Page 124 - A Hand book of Arabia Vol 1 (iii) Ch 4,5

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CULTURE AND INDUSTRIES 157
AG1

i-irvosts vet that it is not self-supporting seems to be
T 'the fact that it imports more than £100,000 worth of
" |)s oven in years of plenty. This condition, however, is
u'v due not to natural causes, nor even to individual sloth,
I1' 1 I'ick of security and co-operation, for which the political
.I; is1 mainly responsible. A sound system of collecting surface
'!"n > <re would also give a great impetus to agricultural production.
' MMst* industries, other than agriculture, in Yemen, are either
ik in bund or languish from various causes, but in former days they
H'r're not unimportant. The following remnant local industries are

i he only ones worth mentioning :
(1) Dyeing. The indigo plant is still cultivated round Zebid
.uid Beit el-Faqih, but the dyeing which was formerly carried on
•it these places has been dislocated by tribal disturbance (of the
Zaranik in particular), and the industry has been transferred to
I [odcidah, where indigo-dyeing had already been practised on a
.smaller scale. There it continues to maintain itself in spite of an
increasing tendency to use synthetic dyes. ■'
(2) Weaving. There is a colony of weavers at Hodeidah, many
of whom have come from the disturbed area just mentioned. They !
weave a coarse cotton cloth in stripes of colour, which is retailed in ;
lengths suitable for shawls, &c., as worn by the natives. Ta‘izz
was once famous for weaving, but is much less so now than
formerly.

(.1) Boat-building. The building of dhows is carried on at
some small yards along the beach south of Hodeidah. The Yemen
dhow or sanbvq—used for transporting cargo to and from vessels \
in the roadstead—is about 50 ft. long and sharp prowed. It has
a short sturdy mast, which carries a big lateen sail on an almost
Perpendicular gaff of great length and well tapered. The rudder
Is ‘Moated by tiller-ropes leading direct to it, well below the water-
l,up either gunnel. Such a craft takes about three months
■w\(l>lU-h aiK* cos^s £100- The stem and stern posts and the knees
il'u n 3 are made of up-country acacia, which is very hard and
"<>i Si, Pinking comes from the Malabar coast. Sea-
mi-S® cl^l0ws are built on the same lines, but larger, with a small
;lI)(jZeiVmast' well aft, and also lateen rigged. They have decks fore

l*ooi) mu Passenger‘S berth aft, under an awning on the raised
as til are outlandish-looking vessels, but very seaworthy,
(I) T ne • on this windy coast.
Hod^id Hides are dressed and made into sandals at
•''kins are**’ Beit el-Faqih, and some other centres. Sheep-
also soft-tanned in some of the larger up-country centres,