70 



INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 2 



Plank making: 

 Tools : 



Oak mallet 

 Oak wedges 

 Ax 

 Two-handled saw 



Expenses: 



Haulage (ox team, horse, or even burros) 



Forest use tax (now 10 pesos for membership 

 in cooperative) 

 Production (with good workmen) : 



3 dozen planks per week 

 Gross profits: 



$0.85 to 1.25 per day per person 



Comment: Sawing planks requires two men, hence 

 work is done by teams. The gross profits probably are 

 very nearly all net, as deterioration of equipment is 

 slight. Maintaining an average income of the larger 

 size indicated would require 6 long work days a week 

 for the most skilled workers. 

 Firewood cutting: 



Some men at times cut firewood for sale. A burro 

 load brings $0.25 to $0.30. 

 Tie cutting: 



Data on this subject seem unreliable and are 

 omitted. 



Charcoal burning: 



Beyond the fact that charcoal burners work a 5-day 

 week, no economic data were secured. The little char- 

 coal used in Cheran is sold at 2^/4 to 3 centavos a kilo 

 delivered. 

 Carpentry: 

 Tools: 



Mallet, saw, chisels, hammer, ax, adz, plane; 

 value about $20-$30 

 Products, labor, value: 



As each carpenter's job is unique, only a series 

 of cases can be given, as follows: 



(a) Large door takes 4 days (10 to 12 hours daily), 

 lumber cost $4, selling price $17, gross profit $13, 

 daily return (not allowing for interest on capital, 

 etc.) $4.25. 



(b) Average door takes 4 days (6 to 7 hours daily) 

 lumber cost $4, selling price $12, gross profit $8, 

 daily return $2. 



(c) Average door takes 6 days (but this carpenter 

 has rheumatism and cannot v.'ork steadily), selling 

 pi'ice $5 a door if lumber is furnished, daily return 

 less than $1. 



(d) House building or house moving, $1.50 daily (if 

 done under contract, as usual). 



Comment: As only carpenters with other members 

 in the family to get wood, do chores, look after animals, 

 etc. can work more than 6 or 7 hours a day, probably 

 $2 a day is top income. Moreover, as work is not steady 

 and as all seem eager to take house building or house 

 moving jobs at $1.50, it may be assumed that average 

 v,ages the year around are less than $1.50. 



Wood turning: 



Equipment: 

 Lathes 

 Saws 

 Chisels 

 Product : 



Chocolate beaters 

 Cost of materials: 



No data; the small quantity of madrona 

 wood used is probably a minor factor. 

 Labor: 



About 25 to 30 beaters are made in a day's 

 work. Sale price at 50 centavos per 

 dozen $1-$1.25 



Comment: Considering the costs of materials and the 

 time involved in selling the product, returns for labor 

 probably are under $1 a day. Only one man in Cheran 

 follows this trade. 



MINERAL PROCESSING AND USE 

 Drickmaking and tilemaking : 



Labor (per 1,000 tile or brick) : 



Days 



Getting and mixing clay 2 



Cutting and hauling wood 1 



Shaping 5 



Loading kiln 1 



Total 9 



Other costs (in kind) : 



Rent of building and right to dig clay on 

 public lands (paid to municipio) , 10 per- 

 cent of product value: 



Tile, per 1,000 $3.00 



Brick, per 1,000 3.20 



Sales prices: 



Tile, per 1,000 $30 



Brick, per 1,000 32 



Gross profit, tile, per 1,000 27 



Daily profit per worker 3 



Comment: While brick bring a slightly higher price, 

 there is a greater loss in firing. Consequently, profits 

 are about the same as for tile. The demand for brick 

 or tile is not sufficient to employ two men full time. 

 The wage return is hence misleading, indicating what 

 might be possible if demand provided steady labor. 

 The fact that both tilemakers took jobs on highway 

 construction crews whenever possible at $1 a day sug- 

 gests that income over a long period of time is much 

 less than is indicated. On the other hand, the tile- 

 makers probably average a higher annual income than 

 do unskilled landless farm laborers in Cheran. 



Masonry: 



Equipment: 



Trowel ("cuchara") 



Short shovel 



%-pound iron mallet ("marro," maso) 



2-pound sledge with pointed ends ("picadera") 



