Spinning (_kuch_) is done by means of a spindle (_hechech_) of hardwood, 12 to 14 inches long, weighted about 3 inches from the bottom with a hardwood or pottery ring (pl. 5). The upper end is revolved by the finger and thumb of the right hand, which are constantly rubbed on a piece of stonelike substance, made from deerskin burned and ground to a powder, to prevent them from sticking (fig. 9). The cotton (_taman_) may be held in the left hand, or on the shoulder; the lower end of the spindle rests in a small calabash (_luch_), which is cemented into a support of woven liana (_met_), the _luch_ and _met_ together being known as _toh_ (fig. 10). [Illustration: FIG. 9.--Stonelike substance used to prevent fingers from sticking while spinning.] Weaving is done on a simple loom consisting of a cloth beam and yarn beam (_xunche_) of light strong wood, connected by the warp (_cheil_) (pl. 6). The cloth beam is attached round the back of the weaver by a thick henequen cord (_yamal_), enabling him to tighten the warp at will by simply leaning backward. The yarn beam is usually attached to a doorpost. The shuttle (_botosh_) consists of a light stick, pointed at both ends, on which the weft is wound obliquely. All the alternate warp strands may be raised together by means of a heddle (_mamacche_) consisting of a number of loops attached to a rod, each loop passing round a warp strand, so that when the rod is raised the warp threads are raised with it. The lease rods (_halahteh_) consist of splints of hard heavy wood, usually sapodilla, 2 to 3 inches broad, one-third of an inch thick in the center, with sharp edges and pointed ends. A loose rod (_toboche_) about the size of the yarn beam is used to roll up the completed material (_yoch_). The loom for cotton cloth is usually 2-1/2 to 3 feet broad, but much smaller looms are frequently used for narrower strips of material. MINOR INDUSTRIES TOBACCO CURING The tobacco leaves are hung in bunches, often under the roof of the corn house, in the milpa, in a free current of air, till they are thoroughly dry; they are then powdered in a shallow basin, or the bottom cut from a large calabash, and mixed with the leaves of the _chiohle_, a species of vanilla, which gives a distinctive flavor and fragrance to the tobacco; finally the mixture is rolled into cigarettes (_chiople_) in a covering of corn husk (_coloch_). [Illustration: FIG. 10.--Calabash with liana base used in spinning.] BASKET AND MAT WEAVING Baskets are woven from a special thin tough liana and from split cane; those of liana (_ak_), which are large and coarse, are commonly used for carrying corn from the milpa, slung over the shoulders like a macapal. The split-cane baskets, which are smaller and more neatly woven, are used in the house for all sorts of domestic purposes.