Mexico Missouri message., 1905-10-19
DETERMINING LIE sEAsoNs
Some OF the Various Methods Adopted
by Island Tribes for This
Purpose.


Purpose.
1t appears from paper IN the Jour.
nal of the Aslatic society that the in.
habitants Of Borneo made use OF the
same means for fixing the times OF
their Agricultural seasons as were used
by the early Brltons, and In Egypt
between 1000 and 1000 B. G. They
rely, that is to say, on the time Of
rising OF certain consultations Just
before the sun--knOwn to astronomers
as their heliacal rising. Many ancient
temples are found to be oriented to
the point Of the horizon which marks
the heliacaI rising OF some particular
constellation. The temple OF Hecatom-
pedon and the older Erechtheum, 14ss
B. @, and 2020 B. c., respectively, were
foud to be oriented to the heliRcal ris-
ing Of the Pleiades, on May morning.
So In our own country, says the New
York Tribune, those groups of stones
known as 1.-THE Hurlers" near Lis
keard, in Cornwall, are oriented in
similar way.
The natives Of Boreno are using the
rising of the same constellation as a
guide to the proper time to prepare
their ground TO grow their food sup
ply. When the dry season is per,
ceived to be approaching two men are
sent out into the Jungle to observe
There they watch, perhaps a few
nights. perhaps month, until the
Fleiades are seen on the horizon Just
before the increasing sunlight causes
the stars to fade. Then they return
to the village and announce the fact
The Inhabitants now know that work
on the forest must be commenced. II
by any means they have missed the
heliacal rising Of the Pleiades, and
have delayed operations till Orion'a
belt is seen rising just before the sun,
they know that they must work double
shift. The ground being cleared, they
then wait till the Plelades are at the
zenith at sunrise before they set fire
to the rubbish.
The above is the method adopted By
the Dyaks. Other nelghboring tribes,
the Kenyahs and Kayans, make use Of
the length Of the shadow cast by 8
stick at noon to determine their sea
sons Situated as they are between
the tropics the shadow is cast on the
north or south of the stick, according
to the time of year. The length Of
tho shadow also varies as the sur
passes from the Cancer to Capricorn
and back. The shadow is measured
by means of a notched stick. The
notchcs represent the lengths of shad.
ow which experience has shown ID
correspond with favorable times fol
their various agricultural operations.
The Samoans, on the other hand, fl
their seasons by the appearance Of &
curious marine worm, which they call
the palolo. The Via-paolo, or tint
Of the palolo, is the name of one Of
their seasons, as spring is one of ours
This strange worm lives in the in
terstices OF the coral reefs, and at GER
tain seasons makes its appearance In
the open sea in immense numbers. II
is eagerly gathered ad eaten by thG
natives II the swarm appears, say
at three O'Clock in the morning, 1t hal
totally disappeared by nine. Boil
male and female worms break up into
innumerable fragments and the eggs
are fortified in the water. The com.
ing OF the palolo is regulated by tht
moon. and yet, strange to say, in the
long run, It keeps solar time II the
dates of its appearances we're sep
arated by 70 lunar months, then, reclK.
oned by the day of the month, Fl
would be IL days earlier each year
On the other hand, if it came every Is
months, it would be IS days later each
year This is rectihed by having in
every cycle Of three years one interval
Of 10 and two of IL months. Finally
by the addition of an extra interval Of
j 10 months in a cycle Of 20 years tine
error is less than one day in cen
fury.