52 



WEST COAST— MALABAR DISTRICT. 



MADAI. 



Fishermen are richer than curers owing to the fresh fish trade ; 

 some only own boats and nets, others take unemployed boats and 

 nets on payment of half the value of catches to the owners of boats 

 and gear. Curers are mostly poor and own no boats or nets but 

 advance money to local fishermen and to fishermen from Banacote 

 (Bombay Presidency) for catching large fish from November to 

 February. Mukkuvas and others from adjacent parts, e.g., Dhar- 

 madam, Tellicherry, and Cannanore, come during the heavy 

 sardine season and sell their catches to local curers. Fishermen 

 and curers are Mappillas. 



Coolies, mostly Pulayas, are engaged on daily wages of l/^ to 

 2 annas with rations. No separate payments are made for gutting 

 or salting, but on days of heavy catches coolies for transporting the 

 fish from beach to yard are engaged. Wages have recently 

 increased owing to the establishment of fish oil and guano 

 factories. 



MATUL. 



Fishermen and curers are generally poor; but curers, all 

 Mappillas, are a little better oft" than fishermen and are financed by 

 capitalists or middlemen. Hired coolies, mostly Pulayas, are em- 

 ployed for gutting and salting small kinds of fish and paid 3 annas 

 per day. The curers themselves attend to the curing of large fish. 

 They also carry fish from beach to yard. Owing to the establish- 

 ment of fish oil and guano factories wages have increased 

 recently. 



BALIAPATAM. 



All curers (Mukkuvas) are comparatively poor, making only a 

 hand-to-mouth existence ; they do not work under capitalists or 

 middlemen. No hired labour is employed. Pulaya coolies are 

 available but from caste prejudice are not employed, and no others 

 are obtainable; hence heavy catches are taken to Cannanore and 

 Matul for curing. Such labour as is required is paid by the piece. 



CANNANORE. 



Most fishermen and curers are poor. During heavy catches 

 curers salt fish for Mappilla merchants with advances for buying 

 salt and they are paid for their labour. Except a few individuals 

 who are wealthy and influential traders all Mukkuvas are poor and 

 live from hand-to-mouth. About 4 Mappillas and 24 Mukkuva 

 curers are boat and net owners and the remaintler are financed by 

 middlemen on condition of the sale of the cured fish to them. Some 

 curer women when they are hard up for cash to pay for salt, take 

 loans which they return to the lender after the sale of the cured 

 fish with interest at 2 annas per rupee. This, of course, is exorbi- 

 tant, as the curing period is l3ut 3 or 4 days. The Mukkuva curers 

 who are mostly women, themselves do the gutting, cleaning and 

 transporting of their fish, but Mappilla curers employ Pulaya coolies 

 who are paid according to piece rates. The fishing is carried on by 



