72 



INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY PUBLICATION XO. 13 



paste in middle ground hides embedded jars). 

 The Maya apparently have the same habit of ac- 

 cumulating ash about the outside of the water 

 container (Wauchope, p. 138, pi. 36, c, d). 



LUMBER AND FUEL 



In the Papantla zone, lumbering seems to have 

 started early. By 1581, timber, especially cedar 

 (No. 219), was being cut on a large scale and 

 shipped by water to San Juan cle Ulua, where it 

 was used in the construction of houses and vessels 

 (Relacion de Papantla). It is difficult to know 

 when the forests of the Taj in area were cut, but 

 there seems to have been considerable monte alto 

 60 or 70 years ago. Our guess is that the timber 

 was not exploited, but was frittered away in the 

 course of clearing lands for milpas. All local 

 farmers agree that planting is much easier on 

 fields recently cleared of monte alto, because for 

 several years weeds present no problem. On the 

 contrary, the struggle with intrusive vegetation is 

 incessant on lands formerly grown to monte bajo. 

 Accordingly, if there is opportunity to choose be- 

 tween the two types of forest, the normal inclina- 

 tion is to fell monte alto. 



Relatively little virgin forest still exists at 

 Taj in (map 6) ; and, except for three parcels on 

 the western fringes, the stands are of very limited 

 extent. The Totonac have come to appreciate 

 what little remains of monte alto, because it pro- 

 duces the woods and lianas, used in house building 

 and for other domestic purposes. Magdaleno 

 Mendez is said to plant on rented land, so as to 

 preserve what little virgin forest is found on his 

 own property. Arnulfo Garcia owns two of the 

 westerly parcels (Nos. 177, 178) of virgin forest. 

 From time to time, he sells a bit of timber, but he 

 refuses to permit cutting on a large scale, pro- 

 claiming, "May I not see the destruction of my 

 lands; later, let my sons do what they like with 

 them." He also is the owner of parcel No. 124, 

 which adjoins the fwndo on the south; here, too, 

 he refuses to allow extensive cutting, in this case, 

 for fear the little Arroj^o de Ortiga may dry. 



Monte alto contains many fine hardwoods, of 

 which the most prized are cedro (cedar), alsa- 

 prima, chijol, caoba (mahogany), sapote chico, 

 moral, palo de rosa, and escolin (Nos. 219, 206, 176, 

 194, 191, 324, 171, 338, respectively). Of these, 



the cedar probably has the widest general utility ; 

 it is considered preferable to mahogany because 

 of its greater resistance to borers. The most du- 

 rable of all the woods apparently is the chijol, al- 

 though it is said that "any wood will last longer if 

 the tree is felled in November, when the moon is 

 in conjunction." Most of these hardwoods now 

 are scarce in Tajin, since the virgin forest has 

 been pretty well cut. For the frame of the house, 

 probably the zapote chico and the alzoprima are 

 most frequently used today, simply because they 

 are somewhat more plentiful than the others. In 

 addition, a great quantity of other woods are put 

 to a variety of uses. They will be mentioned later, 

 in connection with housing and various manufac- 

 tures. 



In spite of this repertoire of fine woods, which 

 must have been abundant until relatively few years 

 ago, the Totonac are extraordinarily inexpert at 

 lumbering; "it is difficult to cut a plank straight." 

 Juan Villanueva, formerly of Polutla, and Bar- 

 tolo Simbron are said to have a fair skill, and a 

 couple of others are willing to try their hands. 

 However, if a resident of Tajin wishes to build a 

 house with squared beams or with plank walls, or 

 if he wishes to have furniture made, he generally 

 buys the necessary trees, and then looks outside 

 of Tajin for a sawyer {aserrador) . Every year, a 

 few outsiders — generally highlanders (arribenos) 

 from some unspecified parts of the Sierra, but 

 some, at least, from Cuetzalan — come looking for 

 work. Among them, some may know how to saw 

 lumber and may bring the necessary tools. An 

 aserrador is given his meals, and his work is paid 

 by the piece, at a rate fixed in advance (p. 189). 



Dependence upon outside labor for dressed lum- 

 ber does not mean that a house cannot be built 

 without such assistance. Most of the houses have 

 both posts and beams unsquared, and the walls 

 are made of upright saplings or of bamboo. In 

 this case, the Totonac himself cuts the necessary 

 timber, either on his own land or on that of an- 

 other, after arranging the price with the owner. 



Wood is the universal fuel in Tajin. Occasion- 

 ally, during chill weather, a fire is built on the 

 earth floor of the house, and a sizable trunk is 

 allowed to smoulder, for the heat it produces; it 

 is referred to jocosely as a "stove." Day in and 

 day out, every family uses wood as the fuel for 

 cooking. Dry corncobs are utilized "when there 



