CHAP. XI TILLAGE OPERATIONS 73 



bad, but if the rain sink into the soil without forming a 

 " crust " it is a good indication of proper tillage. 



The deeper the soil is tilled, the better it is for the plants l^eep tillage 

 growing on it, as the atmosphere descends deeper, and thus 

 acts on more soil, and prepares more plant food. This ac- 

 counts for the advantages derived from sub-soil ploughing The sub-soil 

 and from the holing of the land ; which, as we shall see in J° ^^ turned 

 the second part of this book, is the proper way to prepare 

 the soil for cacao, coffee and other plants put in at a con- 

 siderable distance from each other. 



Tillage operations are of two kinds ; namely, those per- Manual and 

 formed by man himself with manual implements, and those illlsblndly^ 

 performed with implements worked by horses or cattle, or 

 by steam. 



The implements of manual husbandry are, — (i) the cut- 

 lass, (2), the rake, (3) the hoe, (4) the spade, (5) the fork, 

 (6) the dtmgfork^ (7) the pickaxe, and (8) the digger or 

 earthchiscl. 



The Cutlass is a long, broad, heavy knife with a short 

 handle. It is one of the most useful implements of the West 

 Indian labourer. By its means bushes are cut down, trees 

 lopped and the land weeded to a certain extent. On steep 

 hill sides, where the heavy rains would wash down the soil 

 if the land were hoed up, the cutlass is used to clear away 

 the weeds by cutting them off just at their roots. On an 

 emergency, too, the cutlass may be used for digging small utility of the 

 holes, and for pruning off the large branches of trees. Some ^"^'^^^• 

 men are so expert with this implement that they are able, 

 with one swift sweep, to cut off a big branch Sf a tree, and 

 the cut is as clean as, and indeed smoother than, a saw 

 would be able to make it. 



The Rake is a bar of iron along which iron teeth are ar- 

 ranged, as are the teeth of a comb. It is fixed on a long 

 handle which is set at right angles to the teeth. Rakes are 

 made of various sizes, and are used for raking up weeds and 



