212 Records of the Indian Museum. [Vol. XXII 



Basket Appliances. 



Only two kinds of baskets are used for catching fish in the 

 valley and one is of a type only to be found in the country border- 

 ing on the Ivoktak Lake. 



The long (pi. xi , fig. 6), which is widely used all over the vallej' 

 is bowl-shaped and is made of coarsely woven bamboo strips. The 

 circular brim of the basket is formed of strong bamboo tied to the 

 lower net-like portion by cane strings. A man using the basket 

 dips it into the water and then disturbs the grass in front of it 

 with his feet. The fish are thus driven in the basket which is, 

 then, suddenly taken from the water and the catch transferred to 

 an earthen pot which is carried tied to the waist. One of the 

 baskets was measured to be 47 cm. in diameter and 31 cm. in 

 height. 



The second type of basket, the chigai-long (pi. xi. fig. 5) is 

 saucer shaped and is generally provided with a bamboo handle, th^ 

 machai. The basket is shoved underneath a floating island and 

 the grass is disturbed from above. It is then quickly withdrawn 

 and small fish and insects are taken from it. It is chiefly used for 

 collecting insects for baiting purposes. One I examined was 85 

 cm. in its longest diameter, 12 cm. in depth and the length of the 

 handle was 200 cm. 



I may here refer to a peculiar type of basket which is used 

 for scooping out water. In marshy places the thick grass is cut 

 with a long sickle and removed. The water is then scooped out 

 with the basket, the ishto-inachai (pi. xi, fig. 3) and the wriggling 

 fish are caught with the bare hands. This method is employed 

 for capturing Ophiocephalus harcourt-butleri and Clarias batrachus. 

 The measurements of one seen at Thanga Island were : length of 

 the handle 140 cm., the length of the basket 95 cm. and the depth 

 of the basket 17 cm. 



Nets. 



Besides the cast net and the big seine net, the well-known 

 maha-jal of India, there are three peculiar types of nets which 

 may be briefly described. 



The lungtharai machai (pi. xi, fig. 4) is like the shallow basket- 

 net, chigailong-machai. It is extensively used among Hydrilla 

 plants on the Potsengbaum side of the Loktak Lake. A long 

 bamboo pole is used for disturbing the weeds and for throwing 

 them off the net. The net without the handle or machai is also 

 used like the long in various marshy places in the valley. 



The most characteristic net is the ilh-hungen-paura of the 

 Manipuris. It consists of a rectangular net 7 to 8 ft. long and 3 

 to 4 ft. wide. The net is spread out by two bamboo arches placed 

 diagonally across it, each arch consisting of two pieces tied to- 

 gether in the middle. Where they cross, the arches are lashed 

 together by a cane string in such a way that they can be folded 

 together when the net is separated from them, A long bamboo 

 pole is tied to the junction of the arches. In the Loktak Lake 



