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continue to do so four or five times monthly 

 (as they consider the greater number of times the 

 fields are turned up at this period of the season, 

 the better the crop of cane will be), till the end of 

 October, continuing to throw on the little manure 

 they can collect. 



"Towards the end of October and in November, 

 their ploughs are much engaged in sowing their 

 winter (or rubbee) crops of wheat, barley, grain, 

 &c. ; and at this period they make arrangements 

 with the shepherds, who have large flocks of sheep, 

 to fold them upon the fields at night, for which 

 they pay so much per beegah in grain. During 

 the latter part of November and early in Decem- 

 ber, the fields are again ploughed well, and all 

 grass, weeds, &c., removed with the hoe, then the 

 surface of the field is made as smooth as possible 

 by putting the hengah (a piece of wood eight or 

 ten feet in length, five to six inches in breadth, 

 and three or four inches in thickness, drawn by two 

 pairs of bullocks, and the man standing upon the 

 wood to give it weight) over several times for 

 three or four days in succession. This makes the 

 surface of the field very even and somewhat hard, 

 which prevents the sun and dry west wind from 

 abstracting the moisture, which is of great impor- 

 tance at this period of the season, for, should there 

 be no rain, there would not be sufficient moisture 

 at the time of planting the cane to cause vegetation. 



