8 COGGIN BROWN : MINES & MINERAL RESOURCES OF YUNNAN. 



month. As the cold season advances the temperature gradually 

 rises. The rainy season is usually preceded by showery weather, 

 then the main break conies with tropical violence, lasting for two 

 or three weeks (Le., pp. 456-461). For a month or six weeks in 

 the high regions and for a longer period in the lower ones, trans- 

 portation on the Chinese roads is completely stopped. I marched 

 during the rainy season of 1909 from Yunnan Fit to Teng-yiieh 

 and although it was certainly unpleasant, I did not find any difficulty 

 in getting through, nor did any of my followers including several 

 natives of India suffer from the experience. It is only in the lower 

 regions that transportation is completely stopped. After the first 

 outbreak the rains seem to develop a weaker character and although 

 there are occasional days of rain following one another in succes- 

 sion, they are interspaced with periods of fine weather when field 

 work may be carried on. 



AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS. 



As is only natural in a land possessing such a diversity of 

 surface, soil and climate, the agricultural products of Yunnan 

 are varied. Rice is the most important food plant of the Yunnanese 

 and all the plains of the province which can be irrigated are devoted 

 to rice cultivation during the summer months. The young plants 

 are grown in nurseries and are planted out in the flooded fields from 

 September to November according to the state of the season. The • 

 slopes of the hills Surrounding Some of the plains are terraced for 

 rice cultivation to a height which I have only seen equalled in the 

 Himalayas. A variety of rice, called " hung mi " by the Yunnanese 

 on account of its reddish colour, is sometimes grown in the hilly 

 districts. It does not require artificial irrigation like the numerous 

 white varieties and is grown on poorer soils. Glutinous rice is 

 grown in some places, especially amongst the Shans who use it 

 for food. The Chinese employ it in the distillation of spirit. 



Wheat is not an important crop in Yunnan, except in the Tibetan 

 areas of the north-west, where the plains are too high and the climate 

 too cold for rice cultivation. At the same time, wheat is grown 

 in small quantities in many other places, and wheat flour often 

 adulterated with rice meal, is obtainable in all the larger cities. 

 The awned varieties of wheat are very liable to be confused with 

 barley. The cultivation of true barley is confined to the Tibetan 

 zone, the principal food of the inhabitants of this region being 



