APPENDIX. 143 



which they are cutting, is in the act of falling. The hrandics, 

 bark> and the ^vhIte portion of the wood are cut away when the tl-ee 

 has been felled, and it is then taken home. . The length Varies 

 fi"om ft)Ur to sis feet) and as tiae Wood is extremely hard, the cut- 

 ting of one billet is considered sufficient labour for the day. The 

 next day) eaily in the morning, they cut these billets lito chijps ; hotr* 

 ever, they are c^treful not to cut more at one time than toay be 

 required for the boiling operations of the day, as they think 

 the chips would be too dry on the second day. To enable them more 

 conveniently to cut these haitl billets into chij^s, they drive three 

 pieces of timber^ each having forked branches, of different lengths, 

 firmly into the ground about half a pace distant from each other, and 

 the lowest being on a level with the earth. The billet is placed in a 

 sloping position in the forks-, and lies quite secure to be cUt. The 

 chips are heaped near the fire*place, after which the meh take their 

 breakfast, and then proceed to the jungle. I'he labour attending the 

 boiling process always devolves on the females : the Katori^s wife or 

 wives (for they sometimes have two or three), when she has finished 

 her own breakfast^ kindles the fire in the tdroo^ and then puts two 

 handfuls of chips, neither more nor less, into ten of thepotsj leaving 

 the one at each end empty ; tvater Is poured in until it rises four 

 fingers^ breadth above the chips; this is ascertained by means of 

 a small stick marked like a scalcj the lines being distaUt from each 

 other a finger's breadth^ 



It has been mentioned that there are twelve holds in each fire-place 

 to hold that number of pots^ but should the persons composing the 

 family be sickly or old, they will most likely only use six pots j each 

 of these pots will contain about three quarts of liquid. The pota 

 at each end are only used during the second and third stages of tJie 

 process. When the liquid has been well boiled and evaporated io d 

 finger^s breadth under the surface of the chips^ they take the pot^ 

 successively off the fire, and pour the liquid into one of the empty 

 ones ; after it has been well boiled in thisj they apply the scale, and, if 

 it is ready, they transfer it to the other empty pot* It is boiled 

 down in this pot till it has attained what they consider the requisite 

 degree of consistency^ and then emptied into a trough made of the 

 Pangara tree {Eryihrina indtca), as the timber is soft and readily 

 absorbs water. The women now fill the pots with fresh chips, and 

 the boiling process is thus continued until evening. 



