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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 2 



($9 every few weeks) is also an item not included. 

 Some engines are equipped to saw wood, when not 

 driving mills; pine logs are cut in lengths suitable for 

 splitting into box lumber. The blocks are shipped in 

 trucks to Uruapan, where they are split to make crates 

 for shipping fruit. No data on costs or sales were 

 secured on this minor business. 



Barbers: - 



Prices: 



Haircuts: 



Weekdays $0.15 



Sundays 20 



Shaves. 10-.15 



Number of "jobs" daily: 



Except Saturday 4-8 



Saturday 10-15 



Income (a week) $6.00-$7.50 



Comment: Average income is probably under $1.00 

 a day. One of the two full-time barbers (with the 

 smallest income) supplements this by card playing. 

 One barber works only on Sundays and makes shakes 

 during the week. 



Musicians: 

 Wages : 



For 2-day fiesta $10 



For wedding 2 



Number of engagements (individual cases) : 



(a) 6 fiestas, 15 weddings, in 9 months 90 



(b) 5 fiestas, 5 weddings, period 



unknown 60 



(c) 10 fiestas in 1 year 100 



Comment: The musicians obviously do not make a 

 living from music. All have other sources of income; 

 some are farmers, storekeepers, barbers, etc. 



Painters, plasterers: 



Daily wage $1.75-2.50 



Comment: Painters and plasterers have only occa- 

 sional demands for their skills. Only a few stone or 

 adobe houses are plastered, and fewer still are painted. 

 Most jobs are by contract. 



Billiard parlors : 



Equipment $1,500-$1,700 



Rent (monthly) 10-20 



Charge per game .05 



Comment: No estimate of the amount of business 

 was received. It is evident, though, that the enterprise 

 is profitable, to judge by dress and other characteristics 

 of the owners. 



Butchers: 



Prices paid for beeves on hoof $80-$150 



Prices reported paid at wholesale for 

 beef weighing: 



15 arrohas (375 pounds) $90 



14 arrohas (350 pounds) 65 



16 arrobas (400 pounds) 92 



Retail price (per kilo) .70 



Gross profit on beef (per kilo) .40-.45 



Price of pigs 30.00 and up 



Gross profit, per week 7.00-8.00 



Gross profit, per pig 3.50-8.00 



Comment: Returns to butchers are slight on the 

 basis of meat sales. Generally the profit consists of: 

 (a) Meat for the family at no cost, and (b) sale of 

 the hide, usually for $10.00. Most butchers handle beef 

 only, but one who specializes on pork, butchering one 

 or two a week, claimed a profit of 7 or 8 pesos. An 

 item unaccounted for in the figures for beef is a tax of 

 $5.00 on each animal killed. It is also widely believed 

 that some butchers deal in stolen cattle at a consider- 

 able profit. Few butchers lack other sources of income, 

 however, which argues against great profits. Butcher- 

 ing also varies in profitableness at various seasons; 

 when cheese is abundant the demand for meat falls off, 

 and the butcher may have to dry part of his meat and 

 sell it at a lower price. 



Field watchers: 

 Wages : 



In maize 1 row in 30 



Average income for 6 weeks to 2 months (cash 

 value of maize) $60-$G.5 



Comment: Field watchers (vcladores) must be men 

 of good reputation. Usually they watch 20 to 25 

 pieces of land. Although wages seem high — $1 a day 

 or more — the work is seasonal and involves staying day 

 and night in the fields. 



Water carrying: 



Charge for two 25-liter cans $0.06 



Comment: Only one man engages in this work 

 regulai-ly. He works fairly steadily, but no data were 

 secured on his income. Presumably it is as good or 

 better than he could earn as a laborer. 



Beekeeping : 



12 hives produced: 



15 liters of honey at $0.60 $ 9.00 



3-4 kilos of wax at $2.25-$2.50 6.70-10.00 

 Wax: 



1 kilo makes 10-centavo candles 



worth 3.00- 3.25 



3-4 kilos make 10-centavo candles 



worth 9.00-13.00 



Potential income from 12 hives if 



owner makes candles 18.00-22.00 



Comment: In all cases bees are kept as a profitable, 

 but not extremely important, sideline to other activites. 



Fireivorks making : 



Figures from the one fireworks maker in Cheran 

 proved inconsistent upon analysis. The following facts 

 seem reasonable. 



