3 i 
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Part I] Lindsay and Hardow : Lac and Shellac 
in it. The same prejudices affect the manufacture and handling of 
shellac, but to nothing like the same extent. There is no doubt that, 
as the material profits to be made from lac cultivation are realized, 
the prejudice against it is gradually dying out. 
A serious obstacle to the extension of lac cultivation is the risk 
of petty theft. When the price of clean stick-lac is a hundred 
rupees a maund and over, as it was in early 1920, there is every 
incentive to an unscrupulous passer-by to steal some lac-bearing 
twigs which can be hidden on his person and subsequently sold for 
a few rupees. Theft of lac when the crop is maturing is the com¬ 
monest petty crime in the lac districts, and it is so prevalent that in 
some cases police reports of theft have been of material assistance in 
ascertaining the distribution of cultivation. Fear of theft is the 
principal reason why most lac is cut ari and as little as possible, or 
none at all, is retained for brood purposes. The crops mature a 
month before the larvae emerge, and if the cultivator keeps his lac 
for brood he must watch it for an extra month for no definite gain 
that he can see and with every prospect of having it stolen. In the 
Damoh district of the Central Provinces, where lac is cultivated on a 
large scale by the Forest Department, special rules have had to be 
issued under section 41 of the Indian Forest Act to protect lac in 
transit; all such lac must be covered by a pass from the grower, 
which is exchanged for an official pass at the nearest Forest Revenue 
Station. These rules should have a deterrent effect by making t'heft 
more difficult, but will by no means obviate the necessity of watching 
the crops for at least three months before the larvae swarm. With 
extended cultivation the only safeguards are constant patrol and 
effective supervision. 
In view of the widely varying circumstances in which lac is 
Costs Of production. cultivated, it is not easy to furnish a general 
estimate of the cost of production. The 
following particulars have been furnished by the Settlement Officer 
of Chota Nagpur and may be taken as typical. The rent charged 
by a zamindar will vary with the species of tree to be infected. The 
actual sum is usually not fixed until after inspection of the crop and 
varies with its quality, from one-half to three annas each in the case 
of Palas trees and from two to eight annas each in the case of 
Kusum trees, although higher rates up to one or even two rupees are 
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