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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 2 



in the tops of bushes in which quail perch and 

 peer about. When the bird puts its head in the 

 noose, the hunter, who is hidden nearby, pulls 

 a string. Pigeons are hunted mostly by boys, 

 who set snares near watering places. The 

 birds ordinarily water at dusk, alighting away 

 from the water and walking toward it. The 

 boys erect small fences by the water and hang 

 the snares in openings left at frequent intervals. 

 Deer meat is sold in the village at the price 

 of beef. It is said not to be liked very well. 

 Squirrels are sold at 10 centavos and pigeons 

 at 5 centavos each. Wild ducks are brought 

 from Zacapu and sold at 50 centavos to 1 peso 

 each, depending on size. 



AGRICULTURE 



Cheran is primarily an agricultural village. 

 Many Tarascan towns have industrial special- 

 ties at which most of the inhabitants work full 

 or part time. For example, it is fair to say 

 that Paracho is a woodworking and weaving 

 village or that Patamban is a pottery-making 

 village, even though a number of persons devote 

 part or all of their time to farming. In the 

 same way, although there are industrial special- 

 ists in Cheran and it produces an important 

 amount of forest products, such as lumber, rail- 

 way ties, and charcoal, farming nevertheless 

 overshadows all other activities. Most Cheran 

 residents own land or farm on shares, and the 

 majority engage in no other activities. In rela- 

 tion to all economic activities, then, farming 

 occupies a place comparable to that occupied 

 by pottery manufacturing in Patamban or fish- 

 ing in some Lake villages. 



The basic crop of Cheran is maize. Second 

 in importance, but ranking far below maize, is 

 wheat. Yet despite the emphasis on these two 

 crops, Cheran farming is extraordinarily 

 varied, as the following list of cultivated plants 

 shows : 



Maguey (agave) 

 Chayote 



Crab apples 

 Zapote bianco 



The above list is but a portion of the total 

 number of varieties cultivated by the Tarascans 

 in other villages. Plants used in Cheran but 

 grown in other villages include onion, garlic, 

 tomato (several types), chile (many kinds), 

 sugarcane, sweetpotato, banana, lime, lemon, 

 orange, guava, mamey, mango, watermelon, 

 canteloup, avocado, zapote negro, and 

 cherimoya. 



TYPES OF FARM LANDS 



The lands cultivated by the Cheran Tarascans 

 all have soils almost exclusively composed of 

 volcanic ash or cinders. However, low-lying 

 areas which receive materials washed from the 

 higher ground are usually more fertile and in 

 a few specially favored spots may be cultivated 

 annually. As a general rule, however, lands are 

 cultivated only in alternate years. 



Cheran lands are of five main categories : (1) 

 "Plains" or valley floors, which may include 

 some gently sloping or rolling areas but which 

 are relatively flat; (2) patches of sloping land 

 capable of permanent cultivation; (3) small 

 areas of level land, usually called "joyas," con- 

 sisting of small valleys, depressions in the midst 

 of lava flows, which were not covered by lava, 

 and the level depressions in the craters of 

 cinder cones; (4) relatively level or gently 

 sloping garden plots within the town; (5) tem- 

 porary fields on the steeper slopes of the 

 mountains. 



The so-called "plains" consist of several large 

 areas (maps 2, 3), subdivided in numerous 

 privately owned plots. Maize and wheat are 

 the principal crops grown. The "plains" are 

 cultivated in alternate years under supervision 

 of the towTi government. Harvest dates are 

 fixed by the town council ; after the final date, 

 the "plains" become community pasture. 

 Fencing of individual plots is not permitted, 

 nor is planting in consecutive years. There- 

 fore, men who own land in only one "plain" 

 plant only every other year. Consequently, 

 everyone tries to have land in at least two 

 "plains." 



The largest "plain," usually referred to sim- 

 ply as el plan, is west of Cheran, extending 

 from the foot of the slope below the town to the 



