さぎしま讃歌 — Part 5¶
Verbatim bilingual transcription from the book's own Japanese and English text files. The English is the book's own translation: faithful for prose, but proper nouns/place-names are machine-mangled and must NOT be trusted for spelling (see _meta/open-questions.md). Japanese is authoritative.
日本語 (original / authoritative)¶
p.38
- 米つくり
米つくりは、米の字に表されるように八十八の手を経て米になると言われるほど、人手のかかる作物であったと言われています。
まして、平地の少ないさぎしまでの米づくりは大変な思いの中での作業でした。
如何にして一粒でも多く収穫するか苦労の連続で した。
四月、苗床がつくられ、もみ蒔きが始ります。六月に なると田植えが始ります。
田植えは、普通は、親類を中心にして大勢でお互い に助け合いにより行われました。
田植えは、男子は土地の整地や縄張り・苗配りをし、 女子を中心に苗が植えられました。田植えが終わると 各農家では「さんぼうさん」(三宝様)といって、田に酒・ 洗米・タコ(魚)を供え豊作を祈願しました。また、田植 えの終わった農家では、その日、豊作祈願と共に、無賃 の労働(こうろく)に対してご馳走をつくってもてなし ました。
地域全ての田植えが終わると、「虫送り」と云う地域の行事が行われ、人々は農作業を休み、氏神様に参拝し豊作を祈願しました。
草取りとともに水の少ない島にあって、田んぼに水を 必要とする夏場の作業は大変なものでした。
多くの田んぼに井戸が掘られ、「はね木」が建てられ、 「おけ」を使って水を汲み上げる作業が暑い夏の間中続 けられました。朝夕2回の水汲みは一日も休むことので きない大切な仕事で、大人だけでなく子どもも共に働き ました。
無事台風を乗り越え稔った稲は、今度は一株一株手 作業で刈り取られます。その後もはぜに掛け乾燥させ、 それが済むと脱穀をし籾米にします。
今度はその籾米を玄米にするための脱穀をします。そしてやっと米になるのです。
p.39
稲かり
p.40
参考写真 米つくり
田植え
田んぼの草取り
収穫を直前にした稔った稲
p.41
稲の刈り取り
稲の刈り取り
刈り取られた稲は 「はぜ木」に掛け干された
p.42
田んぼに井戸が掘られ、「はね木」 が建てられた。
はね木(はねつるべ)
田んぼに水を入れるために使われていたのが「はね木」です。
テコの原理が使われています。支柱で支えた一方の端に桶を、もう一方の端に重石を括り付け、支柱にはモロギなど硬い木が使われていました。
桶は、一つの田んぼがすむと次の田んぼで使うため、取り外しの良い様に、図のような仕組みが工夫されています。
木の又などを使う
竹竿の先が割ってある
栓を竹竿の先に差込む
石をくくりつける
p.43
田んぼに立つ 「はね木」 向田
刈り取られた後の稲株
p.44
- ささげの穫り入れ
ささげは、鞘を一つずつ手でもぎ取り、それをむしろに広げ乾燥させ、 写真の
ように竿でたたいたり、 からさんを使って鞘からささげを取り出します。
夏の夕方、各家の庭先で見られる風景でした。
p.45
ささげの穫り入れ
ささげやあずきは、食用として、また換金作物として、さつまいもの間作に植えられた。
English (book's own translation — prose reliable, proper nouns NOT)¶
p.38
- rice cultivation
Rice cultivation is said to have been a labor-intensive crop, as the character for "rice" indicates, as it is said to go through 88 hands to become rice.
In addition, rice cultivation in Sagishima, where there was little flat land, was a very hard work.
It was a continuous struggle to harvest as many grains of rice as possible.
In April, the seedbeds were made and the rice was sown. In June, rice planting begins.
Rice planting was usually done by a large number of people, mainly relatives, helping each other.
During rice planting, the boys would prepare the land, lay out the ropes, and distribute the seedlings, while the girls planted the seedlings in the center. After the rice planting was finished, each farmer would offer sake, washed rice, and octopus (fish) to the rice paddy and pray for a good harvest. On the same day, farmers who had finished rice planting prayed for a bountiful harvest, and also treated their workers to a feast for their unpaid labor (koroku).
When all the rice planting in the area was completed, a local event called "Mushifuri" was held, during which people took a break from farming and prayed to the local deity for a bountiful harvest.
In addition to weeding, the summer work was very hard on the island, where water was scarce and rice paddies needed to be watered.
Wells were dug in many of the rice paddies, "spring trees" were erected, and "buckets" were used to pump up the water throughout the hot summer months. The work of fetching water twice a day, in the morning and evening, was so important that not a single day could be missed, and children as well as adults worked together.
The rice plants that survived the typhoon were harvested one by one by hand. After that, the rice is dried on a haze, and after that, it is threshed to make unhulled rice.
The hulled rice is then threshed to make brown rice. Finally, the rice becomes rice.
p.39
harvesting rice
p.40
Reference photo: Rice cultivation
Rice planting
Weeding the rice field
Fertile rice just before harvest
p.41
Harvesting rice
Reaping rice
Harvested rice is hung to dry on a "haze tree
p.42
A well was dug in the rice field and a "hazegi" was built.
Hanezurube
Hanezurube" was used to fill rice paddies with water.
The principle of leverage is used. A pail was supported by a pole at one end, and a weight was strapped to the other end.
The tubs are used for the next rice field after one rice field is finished, so the mechanism shown in the figure was devised so that the tubs can be easily removed.
Use of wooden poles, etc.
The end of the bamboo pole is split.
Insert a plug into the end of the bamboo pole
A stone is attached to the end of the bamboo pole
p.43
A "spring tree" standing in the rice field, Mukoda
Rice stubble after harvest
p.44
Harvesting Sasage
Sasage is harvested by hand, one sheath at a time, spread out on a mat to dry, and then beaten with a pole or used as shown in the photo.
The sheaths are then spread out to dry, and the sheaths are removed from the sheaths by tapping them with a pole or by using a karasan, as shown in the photo.
This was a scene that could be seen in the yard of each house on summer evenings.
p.45
Harvesting Sasage
Sasage and azuki were planted as an intercrop with sweet potatoes, both for food and as a cash crop.