169 



light blow of the spade, the whole is covered and the 

 same operation repeated over the whole field at a distance 

 of six or eight inches apart. 



The planted field must then be very sharply watched to 

 preserve it from the ravages of the small birds who visit 

 the farm in thousands. This business is left to the 

 women and children, but often the men must do their 

 share if they hope to have any rice at harvest-time. 

 This Avatching must be kept up day after day, — and often 

 at night too, when the moon shines, — until the plant has 

 so far 2frown as to cease to attract the birds. When the 

 rice begins to head, it must again be guarded until it is 

 fit to cut. This cutting is a tedious work, only one head 

 is cut at a time ; upon this they leave the straw about 

 eight inches long, and this enables them to tie it in bun- 

 dles just as large as the hand can grasp. Five of these 

 handfuls are afterward again tied together to make a larger 

 bunch. One of these large bunches seems to be the unit 

 of measure in dealing with one another. 



All the crop is to be transported on their heads from 

 the fi^rm to their fenced towns, a distance in most cases 

 of two or three miles ; it is there stored in the tops of 

 their conical huts, where it is exposed to the smoke of 

 the fires on the earthen floors below, and this preserves 

 it from the attacks of insects. 



When wanted for food, only a single day's rations are 

 cleaned and cleared of the hulls at a time, by pounding 

 in large wooden mortars, and the chaff is fanned away. 



Prof. E. S. Morse, after alluding briefl}^ to the 

 l^eculiar difficulties of the Japanese language, spoke of 

 the great rocks with which the shore is lined, and which 

 here and there dot the island. It was with reference to 

 the effect upon them, of the glacial period, that expla- 

 nation was made. Many years ago, the entire country 



