AGRICULTURE 53 



hand, highly esteem barley. Roasted and ground into meal 

 and mixed with tea and rancid butter it forms " Tsamba," their 

 national and staple food. Since it is hardier than wheat its 

 culture extends to a greater altitude; the highest point at which 

 I noted it was 12,000 feet. Both Chinese and Thibetans cul- 

 tivate several varieties, but the six-rowed variety, Hordeum 

 hexasiichon, is most in favour. Around Sungpan a variety of 

 the above, having purple paleae, is largely grown, being con- 

 sidered hardier than the type. This variety is apparently 

 peculiar to this region, being quite distinct from the two-ranked 

 chocolate Barley {H. coeleste), which is cultivated in parts of the 

 Himalaya. Ordinary Barley {H. vulgare) is cultivated in smaller 

 quantities than the preceding kinds by Chinese and Thibetans. 

 In Hupeh and in the river-valleys of western Szechuan I met 

 with occasional patches of H. hexasiichon, var. trifurcatum. 

 This variety is the Mi-me (Rice-wheat) of the Chinese. 



In the mountains Rye [Secale fragile) is sparingly grown 

 and the grain eaten. 



Oats are not much grown by the Chinese in the parts through 

 which I travelled, but they are cultivated to a considerable 

 extent by the Thibetan and other tribesmen in the highlands. 

 The Chinese prefer Avena nuda, which they designate " Yen- 

 me " ; the Thibetans and tribesf oik favour ^yg««/(3;;{wa. The 

 grain of both these kinds is roasted and ground into oatmeal, 

 or cooked and eaten whole. 



Next to rice and wheat. Maize, or " Pao-k'o " {Zea Mays), 

 is the most important cereal. This plant is of American origin, 

 but it has been so long cultivated in China that the date of 

 introduction is not ascertainable. In the rice-belt it is rele- 

 gated to land that for one reason or another is not suitable 

 for rice. It is in the more mountainous parts that maize is the 

 staple crop. It occupies the gullies and slopes of the mountains, 

 and commonly so steep are these that one wonders how the 

 people manage to sow and reap the crop. Wild pigs rob the 

 maize fields, and when the crop is in ear the farmers beat gongs 

 and make as much noise as possible during the night to scare 

 these animals away. In open country tall thatched look outs 

 are erected, where the juvenile and female members of the 

 family sit and watch for thieves during the daylight. 



