the grain tolerably clean in a pile at the worker's
feet.

The rice is not yet fit for use, however, the grain still being
enclosed in its hard husk, which has to be removed by another
process. In travelling through Burma one may often notice standing
outside a native dwelling a large and deep bowl composed of some hard
wood in which lies a rounded log about 4 feet in length, much like a
large mortar and pestle. These are the "pounders," in which by a
vigorous use of the pestle the husk is separated from the rice, which
is again winnowed and washed, and is then ready for use. Though
generally eaten in its simple state, bread and cakes are often made
from rice-flour, which is ground in a hand-mill consisting of two flat
circular stones, and is identical with the hand-mill of Scripture.

From the large areas the bulk of the rice-crop is shipped to Rangoon,
sufficient for the needs of the people being stored in the villages in
receptacles formed of wicker-work covered on the outside with mud.

I have described the process of rice cultivation which is followed in
districts where a perpetual water-supply is available, but in other
and drier zones a different kind of rice and other crops, such as
sugar, maize, and sesamum, are grown; but while these, as well as many
fruits and vegetables, are cultivated in the neighbourhood of every
town or village, rice may be considered to be practically the only
agricultural crop in Burma, and forms perhaps its most important
article of export.

Though not cultivated by man, the country produces another crop which
to the Burman is second only to rice in value. I mean the _bamboo_,
which grows in enormous quantities in every forest or jungle in the
country. There are many varieties of bamboo, some comparatively small,
others growing to a height of 60 or 70 feet, the canes being often
upwards of 2 feet in circumference at the base. Each species has its
separate use, and, as we have already seen, there are few things for
which the Burman does not employ it. His houses are very often
entirely built of it: canes, either whole or split, form its framework
and flooring; the mats which form the walls are woven from strips cut
from the outside skin; the thatch is often composed of its leaves;
while no hotter fire can be used than one made from its debris. Split
into finer strands, the bamboo furnishes the material of which baskets
are made, while its fine and flexible fibres, plaited and woven