Pagan races of the Malay Peninsula - Sabrizain.org

368 CUL TIVA TION ,
part
i i
suffer from coolness nor from cold. I take up these
infants (the Rice-souls) and hear them homewards."
The operator next cut (the first) seven ears, and carried
them away to his house. He next ordered some of
his household to go to a different part of his field, and
cut a considerable quantity of padi, the grain of
which, when brought in, was trodden and rubbed out
of the straw by foot,' after which it was husked and
cooked along with the food that had been collected on
the preceding day. When the guests had feasted
and were about to depart, each of them received a
little of the new rice and food uncooked as a kind of
blessing or largess (" berkat ")."'
The names given by the Mantra to the different
varieties of padi cultivated by them were the
following :
—
Kledang Miet (elephant). Rihu. Ilati kerbau (buffalo's
(a wild fruit). heart).
Tampoi Machin. Atap (palin- Sri gunong (luck of
(a wild fruit). thatch). the mountains).
Saring. Undan (pelican). Tingol. Tulut itam (black
glutinous rice).
Koai. Lampei. Burak. I'ulut putih (white
glutinous rice).
The dry-rice cultivation is by tar the most pre-
valent, but the wet cultivation is also resorted to at
Labu, Malim, Serdang, Payong, Pasang, Jugra,
Rawang Kechil, Rawang Besar, Kidang, and Sepang
Kechil.^
Of other forms of cultivation the only one which I
have found ascribed to the Mantra is gambier-planting
1 Q,^. Malay iMagii, p. 245. There are in fact three methods of rice
2 y, /. A. vol. i. p. 322*. planting practised in the country— (i)
3 Ibid. p. 331*. the dry hill-rice; (2) swamp-grown rice
It should be explained that the cul- (without embankments orwater-course);
tivation of wet rice grown within low (3) wet rice (with both these latter),
embankments is not practised, so far as Most of the places mentioned are in the
I know, by any of these Jakun tribes. Kuala Langat district of Selangor.
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