116 



THE BUSINESS OF AGRICUITUNE 



ing 100 percent. In the, case of somo varieties of 

 Spanish plums, the number of fruit is greater than 

 shown, the remainder eaten by the birds. 



Since so little cost is involved, the profit from 

 fruit is considerable. The Pauajachel Indians 

 devote their energies to agriculture, but a good 

 part of their living comes from the sale of fruit 

 which comes near to being a free resource. 



SUMMARY: COSTS AND PROFITS 



The total cost of the harvests produced by resi- 

 dent Indians, on laud exploited for themselves, 

 came to a little more than $24,000 (table 37). 

 About 95 percent of this amount represents the 

 cost of labor which was almost entirely of the 

 Indian community itself. Onl.y the sm.aU remain- 

 der was spent in cash outside the community — 

 for labor, tools, a little fertilizer and a few seeds, 

 a few dollars worth of candles and incense, and 

 rent paid to outsiders. 



The total value of the produce harvested by the 

 Indians on the same land was over $2G,000 (table 

 38). From the apparent net profit of $2,146.90 

 must be subtracted $380, the value of produce 

 given as rental; about $320 for market taxes, bus 

 fares, etc.; and about $900 for the value of the 

 time devoted to selling the produce. Actually, of 

 course, all this sum need not be subtracted from 

 the profit, for the value of the produce was fig- 

 ured on the basis of Panajachel prices, and the 

 merchandise sold outside presumably brought 

 enough more to make up the value of the time 



Table 37. — Total cost of agricultural products 



I It i^ ai^sumed, as in teble 38, that the onion acreage is reduced 20 percent 

 by the p.rowiDp of tubcis and peppers in onion beds. The labor Is reduced 

 by only 5 percent, however (and that reduction has here been made) because 

 only the tran?plnntins and preparing-for-raarket items are affected. 



' Assuming thai 0.4 acie of beets were grown in 1930. 



' Of this total, about $200 Is for fLrtili7cr and broad covering leaves, $100 for 

 packgped seed, and $iO for randle= incense, and food consumed m connection 

 ■with harvests of corn. The total of $310 is spent outside the cnrnmnnily. 

 The remainder, $1,104.70 is really chargeable to local labor, MOO for fertiUzcr 

 and I'^aves locally produced, atid the remaiuder for feticing materials and 

 Specially homc-siown seeds. 



' Cf. table 67. Except in items where there i5 special reason for not doing 

 so, (or convenience it ii^ falsely assumed that tl^e local product is consumed 

 first, then additional supplies bought fiom outside. This i.s not true in all 

 cases. For example, Panajichel producers sell most of their green-bean crop 

 and in other seasons buy Ereen beans; and throughout the year alsc buy dry 

 beans. Thus the space for beans "sold to outsiders" sl-.ould not be lilank, 

 while in table 67, the items under be;ms and green beans "produced In com- 

 munity" should be correspondingly less. But since the result is tlie same 

 in the final bookkeeping, 1 am doing it this way. 



3 This figure assumes that 85 pcrceiit of shrub beans and 50 percent of vine 

 beans are permitted lo ripen. 



'Assuming that the total onion acreage is reduced by 20 percent for the 

 growing of root crops and peppers 



^Assuming that 0.4 aero of beets were grown and that miscellaneous vege- 

 tables besides beets produced 10 cents worth of vegetables per package of 

 seed planted. 



expended. On the basis of the figures presented 

 here the net profit from agi'iculture was evident^ 

 something like $1,500. That is to say that if the 

 Indians owned no agricultural land and worked 

 exclusively for outsiders (and could always obtain 

 work at the prevaUing rates) they would be about 

 $1,500 poorer — or its equivalent in goods pur- 

 chased — than they actually are at the end of each 

 3'car. Their agriculture not onl_y gives them steady 

 work, but a little extra as profit. 



Koughly 80 percent of the $26,000 crop is sold 

 for cash outside the community, and only the 

 small remainder is consumed. Almost $13,000 

 in cash is realized from the sale of onions alone 

 and amply explains whj^ the people of Panajachel 

 consider onions the basis of their economy. 



SUMMARY: TIME CONSUMPTION 



The total number of man-days devoted to agri- 

 cultural production on resident Indian lands, 

 owned and controlled, and rented, came to some 

 120,854 man-days in 1936 (table 39), including 

 work done by the men, women, and children of 

 the community as well as that done by hned 

 laborers — vutually all Indian — living outside the 

 community. It assumes that all work is done 

 by adult men. The times given are calculated on 

 the basis of what an industrious man can do in a 

 day. Since women and youths of both se.xes do 

 a good i)art of the agricultural work, it is neces- 



