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Show Harvesting Rica In Japan. ?rof. C. C. GeorgOBon: "Tho harvest season begins In tho latter part of October Oc-tober or the beginning of November. The grain la then cut by hand with sickles, tied In bundles, and carried to the border, where It is set up to dry. When partially dry It Is carried to tho farmhouse, where tho drying la completed and where the thrashing takes place. This operation consists of tearing the grains from the straw on an 1 comb, and afterward the grain Is spread on mats and beaten with flails to complete the separation. The next step Is to hull the grain. This Is done by hand on a primitive quern. Tho millstones are made of tough clay, Into which Is Imbedded strips of bamboo bam-boo on edge, In imitation of the cutting cut-ting ridges of a millstone, clay and bamboo strips being packed in a shallow shal-low tub. Two of these Improvised millstones work together, the upper one being turned by hand. The edges of the bamboo, thus grind against each other nnd offer sufficient friction to remove tho hulls from the kernel. After Af-ter winnowing, either by hand or by a modern fanning mill, the rice Is now ready for market. For the purpose of marketing, sacks are made of mats ot rice straw, by first sewing a mat into a cylinder and then securing a round Ud at either end. Each sack, or "ta-wara," "ta-wara," as it Is called, holds about one and a half bushels. Thus prepared, the small fc mer sells his surplus to the dealer In the city; and If one travels In the country In early winter he Is sure to meet a succession ot handcarts loaded with rice, which the owners aro pulling to market While we cannot follow the methods of culture practiced by the Japahese, we do find that they have developed numerous varieties of rice, many of which are better than varieties native to this country. The Secretary of Agriculture Ag-riculture Is aware of the excellent quality of many of the Japanese varieties, va-rieties, and he has of late years imported im-ported considerable quantities of the best kinds, with a view to Introduce them In the rice-growing districts of our own south. |