II. LIFE IN TROPICAL JUNGLE REGIONS The Appearance of Tropical Jungle.—The equatorial rain forest does not occupy the whole of the warmest regions which form the subject of this chapter. Parts of it are occupied by less luxuriant types of vegetation. As one passes from the equatorial regions of greatest and steadiest rainfall, the size of the trees and the density of their stand diminish. Tropical jungle, the second heading in the table of Fig. 90, takes the place of the dripping rain forest, and the conditions of life correspondingly improve. This does not mean that the vegetation is small or scanty. Large trees still grow in abundance, but among such kinds as mahogany, teak, rosewood, and logwood, one finds also a bewildering variety of palms, bamboos, tree ferns, bananas, canes, and many shrubby types. In drier regions prickly creepers and thorny shrubs add to the variety of plants. For miles the tangle of vegetation is often so dense that one can penetrate it only by cutting a path through the living wall. Now and then a group of chattering monkeys goes swinging through the tree-tops, parrots with harsh voices call attention to their own beauti ful colors, and the jaunty crow of the jungle cock reminds one of the barnyard. Occasionally an elephant is seen browsing on the bushes, deer jump through the openings, wild pigs, dogs, and rodents scamper through the brush, while tigers, leopards, and other beasts of prey lie in wait on low branches or prowl in secret paths hidden from the sight of man.
Ease of Jungle Life.—In regions where tropical jungle still prevails in its natural state, the people get a living with little effort, provided the population is not dense. The cocoanut and banana furnish food with practically no work, the big fruit of-the papaw supplies a family with a meal for the plucking. Wild rice in Siam, yams in Central Africa, the edible seeds of the bamboo in southern India, can be gathered when needed. Elsewhere the breadfruit tree, the sago palm, the sugar palm, the jack-fruit tree, and many other food-pro ducing plants need only be planted and protected in order to furnish abundant food. Life is relatively easy and the natives have little to spur them to effort. Clothing is a luxury, not a necessity; houses
need to be little more than a thatch of palm leaves set on a rude frame of poles; wood for building and cooking can be picked up anywhere. Under such conditions we should not expect much progress in the well-watered jungle regions of southern India and Ceylon, Indo China, the East Indies, Central America, and large areas on the borders of the dense rain-forest in Africa and South America. These are the places which we think of as typically tropical. They form by no means all of the tropical zone, for rain-forests on the one hand and grass and dry scrub on the other occupy vast areas. Yet regions that were originally covered with jungle are the home of the majority of tropical people.
The Primitive Character of Jungle Agriculture.—The lowest and easiest type of agriculture is found in the sparsely settled parts of the tropical jungle. It consists of planting a few palm trees, banana plants, and other fruit trees. After that, as is jokingly said, the native has nothing to do except lie under the trees and wait for the fruit to drop into his mouth. Such agriculture, if we may call it by that name, is a step toward civilization, but only a slight one, for it does not stimulate the natives to steady work.
In the more densely populated tropical countries a somewhat higher type of agriculture prevails. The bushes and smaller trees of the jungle are hacked down and the larger trees are killed by cutting off a girdle of bark. At the end of the dry season the brush is dry enough to burn. Then the primitive farmer goes over the burned field with a pointed stick making holes into which seeds are dropped. A little rough weeding is carried on until the young plants are large enough to take care of themselves. That is all the work until harvest time. The easiest food to raise is such starchy tubers as yams and the common sweet potato, or such starchy roots as the cassava or manioc from which our tapioca is made. Several soft varieties of Indian corn, the common pumpkin, and various kinds of beans furnish a supply of food more healthful and more lasting than the roots.