730 PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIED ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 



Hapur, the diameter at any point is one and a half times or even twice 

 the depth of the point from the ground level. The capacity of the 

 hhatti is regulated by the level of the subsoil water. At Hapur, where 

 there are 2,000 kJiattis, the capacity is said to be 700 to 800 maunds ; 

 at Secunderabad it is 300 to 400 maunds ; at Deoband and Dancor 200 

 maunds ; at Meerut and Shamli 300 maunds and at Etawa 1,500 

 to 2,000 maunds. A khatti of a given cubical capacity can accom- 

 modate different quantities of different articles. Thus, one capable 

 , of holding 600 maunds of wheat, gram or peas can accommodate only 

 500 maunds of barley. 



Storage in hliaUis is extremely cheap. To make one of a capacity 

 of 600 to 750 maunds of wheat at Ghaziabad costs only about Rs. 20 

 and it lasts for years. Babu Bhuhmal has ten which are more than 

 iifty years old. At Ghaziabad there are hhattis which are more than 

 a hundred years old. They are a source of steady income to their owners 

 who do not as a rule use them themselves but hire out to merchants. 

 At Ghaziabad the hire of the hhattis for the term (April to April) is 

 Rs. 15, 20 or 25. In some places the hire is fixed according to the 

 capacity. To a merchant who takes, say, a hhatti for 600 maunds of 

 wheat for Rs. 20 the storage cost works up to a little more than one 

 anna per maund for the whole year. 



The greatest defect of the hhatti system of storage is that the grains 

 absorb moisture and ferment to a small extent, those at the bottom 

 and near the walls being spoilt, turning black and becoming unfit for 

 human consumption. When the grain is taken out it feels moist and 

 hot and possesses a distinct fermentation smell wMch, however, dis- 

 appears to a very great extent when the grain becomes dry. For this 

 reason hhatti grain {i.e., grain preserved in hhattis) always sells cheaper 

 than hotha or kothi grains {i.e., that preserved in above-ground store- 

 houses). On the 7th March 1918 at Ghaziabad khatti grain was selling 

 at 11 seers per rupee, while hotha grain was selling at 10| seers. The 

 Tate for hhatti wheat was Rs. 4-14-0 per maund and the spoilt wheat 

 from the same khatti was selling at Rs. 1|- per maund if moist {i.e., 

 freshly taken out) or Rs. 2 per maund if dry. The spoilt grain is fed 

 to cattle. On account of the absorption of moisture there is always 

 an increase in the weight of the stored grain at Ghaziabad, usually 

 about one maund in every 100 maunds stored. This increase of course 

 varies from place to place or even from hhatti to hhatti. 



The efficiency of the hhatti as a storage receptacle depends on {a) 

 the kind of soil in which it happens to be dug, (6) its age, and (c) its size. 

 A high ground is preferred for the hhatti and one in such ground is always 

 better than one in low ground. A man pointed to a hhatti in front of 



