Methods of Rice-cultivation.
There are over twenty different kinds of rice-paddy grown in the Philippines. These constitute two groups,—the highland rice, grown in localities where inundation cannot be used, and the lowland, with which inundation is easy. The latter, known as Macan, is of much the finer quality, the most esteemed variety being that of white grain. Paga, or highland rice, is in large proportion of red grain. Its return is but half that of the Macan rice, but only one crop of the latter can be grown annually, while usually three crops of Paga rice are raised. One difficulty in Paga rice-cultivation is the presence of a fly that sucks the flower and prevents seeding. These the planters whisk off morning and evening with a bunch of straw, tied to the end of a stick.
Native Women Hulling Rice.
The Macan grain is sown in June, in a plot set aside for seeding, and saturated with water until it is a mass of mud. Here in six weeks the plants grow to the height of a foot. They are then pulled up by the roots and transplanted in the flooded fields, in which the final growth is to be attained. Around these fields banks of earth are raised to prevent the water from flowing off. The men raise and separate the plants, and the women set them out again, one plant at a time, wading through the soft mud, in which they often sink to the knees. The process seems a tedious one, but I have often been surprised to see the rapidity with which the natives perform it. It is a process in which they are thoroughly trained, and at which they are remarkably quick.
Four months more are needed for the ripening of the grain, during which the fields are kept clear of weeds, the natives wading back and forth through the mud in their task. After cutting and heaping, the paddy is made into stacks. In six weeks more the grain is separated from the straw by treading or by the use of the flail, or by causing ponies to trot over it. It may be said that there is nothing in nature more beautiful than a valley of green ripening rice in the midst of verdant hills. In the flood of rich color beneath my eyes, I have gazed upon such a scene with inexpressible delight.
Primitive Machines, and Importance of the Rice Crop.
No rice-husking, winnowing or pearling-machines are in use in the Philippines other than some small ones for domestic use. The great number of kinds of rice-paddy hinders their use on a large scale, since the mill adapted to one field would not clean the crop of another. The grain is generally husked in a large hard-wood mortar, where it is beaten with a pestle, several men and women at times working over one mortar. There is also in use a primitive wooden mill worked by buffaloes. In this a series of pins engage with each other, causing a column to lift and fall, thereby serving as a pestle as it falls. Steam and water-power have recently been brought into use in some localities.
It is said that one quinon (about seven acres) of land will yield from 250 to 300 cavans (about 96 pounds each) of rice, but the yield could be greatly increased if a system of irrigation were generally in use. At present, the dependence is largely on the rains. The yield from seed varies from 40 to 100 grains of crop to one seed, 50 grains being a good average. A family of five persons will consume about 250 pounds of rice per month. It is used in almost every native dish, and takes the place of bread. The paddy, or unhulled rice, is to feed horses, cattle, and fowls.