The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1884-01-08
PORTUGAL TODAY.
Primitive Forms OF Ln5or---TooIs In
heritcd FROM n BY-G one Age.
tCor. San Francisco Chronicle


[Cor. San Francisco Chronicle
Until about the period of tho land reforms
OF 1872, when emphytheusis was converted
from a tenure with payments by services OF
in kind to one with money payments, the har.
row and hoe were almost unknown. Thresh.
ing was usually performed by tramping the
grain under the feet of horses and cattle. The
pillow is made wholly of wood and consists OF
beam, body, share, a single handle, looking as
though the whole thing had been rudely
shaped out OF a forked tree. There is neither
coulter nor m~old-board; but the share
(woOden) is carried forward lanceshaped and
turned slightly forward. The work of the
mold-board is done by two upright pegs at
the heel Of the pillow, these pegs pressing out
the soil on either side. This heavy and cum
brous implement Is drawn by bullocks, in
some cases by mules, and 1 have even heard
of women being harnessed to 1t, as Is com.
monty to be seen in Russia and not intre.
quently in Germany.
The moving or reaping hook Is In shape a
short segment of a circle. Of which the arc Is
about a foot in length. The edge is serrated,
like that OF a Tile and very sharp, and tho
hook can be used to cut grass not more than
five inches high, the tuft of grass being taken
In one hand and the edge of the hook drawn
with the other against the stems. The cart il
of the East Indian or Egyptian type. Two
wheels Of solid wood, without spokes, but
with iron tires, sometimes with nails driven
into the periphery, are 1xed immovably to
an axle, which ~revolvcs with them, making a
prolonged squeak, resembling that of a steam
whistle. Tho boIy Of the cart is composed of
four or Ave boards laid fiat and resting on a
frame, underneath which are two blocks of
wood, grooyed tn receive the axle. The mid
die board is prolonged forward into a strong
pole, to which the yoke is attached and to
which the o1en are fastened with ropes
around their horns. Indian corn is shelled by
beating it with a long stick on a hard surface.
1t is ground to meal in a wooden block, hav-
Ing a s~emi-spherical hole in the centre and
provided with a wooden club by way Of
a pestle
All grain is threshed by hand. Rough food
for cattle is cut by mailing an iron hoop to an
upright post and with the hand drawing the
hay over the edge. A few French and
English plows have found their way into tho
country of late years, but the peasantry are
generally too poor to buy them. The winds
are inconstant and but few windmills are
employed, these few being of the most ancient
type, similar to those which Don Quixote Is
pictured to have ridden against. In the alb
sence of forests to hold back the snow and
water tho streams are subject to tremendous
freshets and water powers are not used for
mechanical purposes. There is no wood for
steam fuel and but little native coal. English
coal is used ut Lisbon and Oporto, but, owing
to the lack OF roads, none is conveyed to the
interior. There are some old Roman Goa,
mines near Oporto and Coimbra, but they
are waterlogged, and no efforts have beer
made topump them dry.