
THE MATERIAL SIDES OF LIFE 89 
how insignificant animal breeding is in comparison with 
agriculture. This is undoubtedly true for all the pagan 
tribes, past and present. It is interesting that five- 
sixths of all the wild foods are constituted by the clams 
which are a by-product of the system of agriculture. 
With the Negrito, and among some 
groups advantageously situated for fish- 
ing, the ratio of wild foods no doubt rises 
considerably higher; but with these ex- 
ceptions the figures seem to be generally 
representative. From eight to nine-tenths 
of what the Filipino consumes is the pro- 
duct of his farms. 
Tobacco and Betel. Tobacco was 
introduced by the Spaniards, and _ its 
growth fostered or enforced in certain 
districts. Even today Manila tobacco 
enjoys considerable repute. Most of the 
natives have become addicted to it. But 
the original equivalent was betel, whose 
use still maintains its priority among 
many tribes, especially the pagan and 
Mohammedan ones. Betel is chewed. It 
irritates the gums, turns the saliva blood 
red, and blackens the teeth; but the taste 
for it is apparently acquired easily and 
r: retains a firm hold. The essential element 
his: 14, Incised is the nut of the areca palm, Areca catechu, 
hold Lime for Betel which is sliced, sprinkled with lime, and 
‘ wrapped in a leaf of buyo, Piper betel. 
In 1903, 60,000 acres of Philippine lands were in areca, 
or nearly as much as in tobacco. The use of the two 
products is not mutually exclusive, but tends to be, 
and clearly is, so far as connection with religion or 
formulated social custom is concerned. 
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