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Agricultural Crises Due to Flood, Drought, and Lack of Sunshine



             1,375


               1,1



             0,825


              0,55



             0,275



                0
                May(4)            June(5)             July(6)          August(7)

                           Good Harvest 1798            Drought 1799
            Figure 8   Average Monthly Weather Index Values of a Good Harvest Year in 1798
                     and a Drought Year in 1799
            Source  Original digitised database from Amakusa-cho Kyoiku-iinkai (1985–1998);
            UkM, Ueda Yoshiuzu Diaries.

            was explored. The rainy days then continued for some time. In August,
            there were two weeks of sunny days. Although the rainy days began af-
            ter August 23, drought damage was noted in the diary on August 23 (July
            23 of the lunar calendar). This happened too late for the rice plants, which
            had already died.
               It is clear that the timing of rainy and fair weather was crucial in avoid-
            ing agricultural crises. Drought can be avoided by having the desired
            amount of rainfall each year; thus, people developed various rituals to
            produce rain. A good harvest could be the result of a lucky combination
            and good timing between rain and sunshine. Even in 1798, a relatively
            good harvest year, two rainmaking rituals took place in August, because
            the rice harvest is always uncertain as it depends on weather conditions.

            Flooded Paddy Fields in 1803 and a Recovery in 1804
            According to the descriptions in the diaries, several episodes of heavy
            rains within ten days caused flooding in 1803. After heavy rains on April


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