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  IN THE ANDAMANS
  AND NICOBARS

  THE NARRATIVE OF A CRUISE IN THE SCHOONER
  "TERRAPIN," WITH NOTICES OF THE ISLANDS,
  THEIR FAUNA, ETHNOLOGY, ETC.


  By C. BODEN KLOSS


    "Where, beneath another sky,
    Parrot islands anchored lie."


  WITH MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS


  LONDON
  JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET, W.
  1903




  TO

  WILLIAM LOUIS ABBOTT

  IN FELLOWSHIP WITH WHOM I SPENT MANY ENJOYABLE
  MONTHS ON THIS AND FORMER CRUISES




PREFACE


The following pages are the result of an attempt to record a cruise, in
a schooner, to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bengal Sea, the
main purpose of which was to obtain good representative collections (now
in the National Museum, Washington, U.S.A.) of natural history and
ethnological objects from the places visited. Special attention was
given to the trapping of small mammals, which, comprising the least
known section of the island fauna, were the most interesting subject for
investigation. Sixteen new varieties were obtained in the Andamans and
Nicobars together, thus raising the known mammalian fauna of those
islands from twenty-four to forty individuals, while the collections
also included ten hitherto undescribed species of birds. All the
collecting and preparation was done by my companion, whose guest I was,
and myself, for we were accompanied by no native assistants or hunters.
Broadly speaking, one half of the day passed in obtaining specimens, the
other in preserving them; and such observations as I have been able to
chronicle were, for the greater part, made during the periods of actual
collecting and the consequent going to and fro.

In order to give a certain completeness to the account, I have included
a more or less general description of the two Archipelagoes, their
inhabitants, etc.; the chapters of this nature are partly compiled from
the writings of those who had had previous experience of the islands,
and for the most part the references have been given.

I cannot but regard the illustrations, which are a selection from my
series of photographs, as the most valuable part of this work, but I
hope that my written record, in spite of its imperfections, may
stimulate some more competent observer and chronicler than myself to
visit the latter islands--for the Andamans have already been
described[1] in an admirable monograph by one who dwelt there for many
years--before it is too late. Ethnically, much remains to be done, and
every day that goes by produces some deterioration of native life and
custom. To this end I have added many details about supplies,
anchorages, etc., that might otherwise seem superfluous.

Of those who entertained and assisted us during the voyage, thanks are
specially due to Mr P. Vaux of Port Blair, for his hospitality to us
during our stay in that place;[2] and I am greatly indebted to Messrs
O. T. Mason, G. S. Miller, and Dr C. W. Richmond, respectively, for the
photographs of the Nicobarese pottery and skirt, for permission to
include here much information from the report on the Andaman and Nicobar
mammals, and for a list of the new species of birds obtained, which,
however,