28 RUBBER 



the huts, and tells them which estrada or estradas they 

 are to work. Often one man is given two estradas, 

 which are to be worked on alternate days, so that the 

 trees can have a little longer rest between milking- 

 times. 



The first job everyone has to do is to lend a hand in 

 clearing the estradas — and very hard work this is. 

 Although the paths are old cuttings, they are blocked 

 with a tangle of undergrowth. They have not been 

 used since last December, when the Amazon, as usual, 

 began its big annual rise, and overflowed its banks 

 with a far-reaching volume of water. Since then the 

 forests have been impassable, therefore work has been 

 impossible until this month of May, when the lands are 

 once more uncovered ; meanwhile, tropical vegetation 

 has sprung up and run riot along the paths. 



When the estradas have been re-cleared — also some 

 new ones may be cut, if sufficient labourers have come 

 up to make further development possible — tapping 

 begins. You have seen how the serengueiro gets the 

 rubber and prepares it for market. When he delivers 

 his week's collection to the manager, the weight thereof 

 is put to his credit, and his pelles are forwarded to the 

 aviador who has sent him up to the seringal. The 

 aviador sells them, and remits to the seringueiro the 

 amount they fetch, less commission and something on 

 account of his debt. All the rubber-gatherers take 

 part of their dues in stores, as the aviador is general 

 provider to the seringal. 



You want to know what the seringueiros do when 

 the flood season sets in ? Some of them go away to 

 look for work in more civilized parts of the country. 

 But many of them are several weeks' journey away from 



