THE WILD DATE PALM OF INDIA. 



259 



which may amount to ten in all during the season. The juice- 

 yielding days amount therefore to fifty in all. 



Now counting according to the Bengali months, and taking the 

 average produce month by month, as in the under-mentioned table, we 

 find the yield of a full-grown tree to be — 



Seers. 



25 days of Aghran, at 2 seers per day 50 



29 „ Pous 5 „ 145 



30 „ Magh 8 „ 240 



15 „ Falgun 3 „ 45 



Total in ninety-nine days 480 



Or deducting the days of rest, we have for fifty days 240 seers, which 

 is equal to 24 seers of goor, 10 seers of juice being capable of pro- 

 ducing 1 seer of goor. The price of these 24 seers would equal 

 Es. 1-3 and Es. 2 per maund. 



Another, and perhaps a more correct and safe way of calculation, is 

 the following : 



There are 5 turns of tapping in Aghran, as rest is given to the tree 

 for sis days after jeeran, which at 2 seers per turn would give 

 only — 



10 seers of juice = 1 seer of goor, price 2 annas. 

 In Pous 6 turns of jeeran at 5 seers yield 30 seers. 

 6 turns of rubbed juice at 2 seers =12 seers. 



Total 42 seers of juice = 4J seers of goor ; price 3 annas 6 pie, at 



Es. 2-2 per maund. 

 In Magh 6 turns of jeeran at 8 seers each turn yield 48 seers of 



juice. 



6 turns of dokat at 6 seers each turn yield 36 seers of juice. 

 6 turns of rubbed (puccha) juice at 2 seers each turn yield 12 seers 

 of juice. 



Total 96 seers of juice = 9J seers of goor ; price 7 annas 6 pie, 



at Es. 2 per maund. 

 In Falgun 3 turns of jeeran at 3 seers each turn yield 9 seers of 



juice. 



3 turns of dokat at 2 seers each turn yield 6 seers of juice. 

 3 turns of tekat at 1 seer each turn yield 3 seers of juice. 

 18 seers of juice = 2 seers of goor • price 1 anna 3 pie. 

 Total 17 seers of goor ; price 14 annas 3 pie. 



Taking contingencies into account, the yield of a good tree may 

 fairly be estimated at 12 annas a year. Both Colonel Gastrell and 

 Mr. "Westland calculate the average produce at 5 seers per tree, 

 while the former makes the tapping nights sixty-five and the latter 

 sixty-seven. My own calculation, counting the number of days from 

 beginning to end, is fifty-five, without deducting foggy and cloudy 

 nights. According to Colonel Gastrell's estimate the average yield 

 of a tree is Es. 1-2-6, which is very near my first estimate. Mr. 

 Westland's estimate of each tree yielding one maund of goor, valued 

 at Es. 2 and 2-4, appears to me to be too high. Dr. Forbes Eoyle, in 

 his work on ' The Fibrous Plants of India,' page 96, quoting from Dr. 

 Eoxbui'gh, states that each date tree on an average yields one hundred 

 and eighty pints of juice, of which every twelve pints are boiled down 

 to one of goor or jagri, and four of goor yield one of good powder 



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