spondent recording the incident in the Straits Times,
“ The European population were sadly dismayed when
it became known that one of their bravest and most
genial friends was no more, and that his body was
lying at Sandakan. With tearful eyes one asked the
other if it could be true that Frank Hatton was dead ! ” 6
There are many curiously striking coincidences in
connection with the young explorer’s death which may
possibly be hereafter related. One of them may be
noted here. Rarely in his letters or reports, or in such
extracts from his diaries as I have yet seen, has he
taken up much space in anything like eloquent descriptions
of the natural scenery of Borneo. But I have
before me some notes of one of his most remarkable
journeys, from the Labuk River to Kudat, nearly four
months of river and jungle travel. Once he pauses to
describe a “ splendid view ” which he obtained from the
summit of a ridge of land 3000 feet above the sea level,
6 “ The Melbourne Argus contains the report of a paper read hy Mr.
De Lissa at a meeting of the Geographical Society of Australia,
containing an eloquent tribute to the young London scientist whose
accidental death in the interior of North Borneo will be remembered.
8 Among the intrepid explorers and scientific men who have done so'
much for Sabah,’ said the speaker, ‘ can never be forgotten the brave,
young, and clever Trank Hatton, who, at the early age of twenty-two,
had already made a name in Europe for his scientific abilities, and
who, with his chosen Malay followers, intrepidly explored the unknown
regions of Borneo. Never shall I forget my intense sorrow, shared as
it was by a sobbing community, when his death was announced at
Elopura. He will be always remembered among the pioneers of
Borneo as the gentle and heroic Frank Hatton.’ The Singapore
branch of the Asiatic Society recently recorded in their minutes a
note of the society’s high appreciation of Frank Hatton’s work, and
during an official survey of the Seguama country a range of hills were
named after the young explorer and ‘ blood brother ’ of many native
tribes.”—Daily Neits, October 11th, 1884.
and in his graphic sketch he indicates the very country
in which just a year later it was to be his fate to bring
his worldly travel to an end :—
“ To the north,” he writes, “ lay the Kinabatangan
Valley, with the Silam Hills in the distance ; eastwards
stretched the Labuk, girded by bills rising one, above
the other up to the noble crags of Mentapok. In the
distance, again, was the Sihgat Vale, with rangé upon
range of tree-capped mountains rising right away to
Rina Balu, which, seemingly near, towered like a fairy
castle up into the blue sky. I shall never forget this
lovely scene, but more especially shall I remember the
wonderful tints and shades presented by the distant
‘ giant hills of Borneo ! ’ A blue sky showed up every
crag of the principal mountain, which stood out purple
and black. The setting sun shed its rays on rock and
tree, and the water streaming down the time-worn
sides glinted and flashed, while the nearer hills were
clothed in every shade of green. A few white clouds
appeared in the distance, and as I neared the Dusun
kampong of Toadilah night-clouds were closing in the
glorious landscape. I t was a most exceptional view,
and one which this season of the tropical year can
alone afford.”
When he died in the following March, he was on his
way to those very “ Silam Hills ” he writes of. I f the
mountains of Pisgah are as real as these Bornean highlands,
he has ascended the sunny heights and entered
“ the better land.”
An inquest was held at Elopura in the Bay of Sandakan,
and adjourned from time to time during two
or three days, until all the boats came in and each man
could give his evidence. Dr. Walker said the wound