| caption: |
Chapter Four. Above the Clouds |
| caption: |
description of ordinary clothing of Konyaks, nakedness |
| text: |
The Konyaks reached up to somewhere near Mills' shoulder, but their slim bodies were so beautifully proportioned that, living alone among them, I quite forgot my first impression, and thought of them as quite normal-sized people. The gaonbura had donned their red Government cloths to welcome us. They wore them with great dignity, one end tossed carelessly over the shoulder. Under their Government cloths they wore their everyday dress -- that is, they wore tight cane belts, or belts of the bark of the agar tree (Aquilaria appallocha), with a small apron hanging down in front. The small apron had developed among the Konyaks only as trade with the inhabitants of the plains increased. But the old men of Wakching did not hold with such new fangled fashions, and stick to the good old custom of belt without apron. Farther in the hills, young and old alike went about completely naked, for they still lived in the good old times. There the Konyaks were still the "Naked Nagas." |
