South Pacific Horizons (1956)

[Music] throughout the South Pacific and bordering the South China Sea are many lands and peoples whose traditions and Customs were centuries old at the time of Marco Polo here the way of life itself is influenced strongly by religions far more ancient than Christian [Music] ity muhammadans Hindus and Buddhists have their separate traditions and Customs some of great Simplicity others of spectacular grandure in the realm of ancient sayam the streets of Bangkok ReSound to the muffled drum be of a rarely seen [Music] ceremony it is the funeral of a king now to be cremated and the solemn procession moves toward the funeral p [Music] a boxer invokes the blessing of Buddha before a fight as a prayer flute is heard and then to westernize accustomed to Sharp footwork in the ring the fighters add something new that gives them additional weapons the kick is legal they may not have shoes on their feet but they have socks and a good hard sock with a bear foot can put a man down for the [Music] count throughout the Far East women uncomplainingly accept the role of motherhood and at the same time bear many other burdens in the struggle to exist for these are crowded lands and every mouth to feed multiplies the family problem the homemade Loom will produce the cloth from which the family's clothes are made fortunately few are needed the ancient practice of winnowing grain is usually a Woman's Work the wind blowing away the light husks the strong arms and tireless backs pound the grain into flowers here mother enlists the help of her two boys who learn at an early age that to eat one must work chances are he has done his share in creating that bowl of rice having an elephant on your hands in the rubber growing countries is an asset the owner of Beast gets $50 a day for pushing down old trees to clear the ground for new plantings the elephant gets [Music] peanuts he not only uproots them he removes them picking up a heavy Yol and getting it between his strong Jaws the Beast Lumbers off dragging without effort two full grown trees spraying rubber trees with sulfur combats dis disease and everything is done to increase the yield of latex as the saf is called The Cutting of the draining channel is done by a highly skilled worker this part of the Far East produces over 90% of the world's natural rubber almost half of it coming from the island of melea alone of all the peoples of the Orient the rubber Plantation workers earn more and live better and by the way your next new tire may start here your next cup of tea may also originate right here for these girls are picking the top leaves always the tenderest tea leaves to be dried for [Music] export the next time Hollywood selects Miss Universe they might look to this area in many places Farmers still irrigate their fields by methods in use for centuries water is precious in one place a flood problem in another but there is always cleanliness these Farmers have progressed to the point of mechanization the Machinery may be crude but the wooden gears mesh with precision and the power that turns the wheel never falters many gallons of water per hour will be lifted by the jar lash to the rim of the [Music] wheel the fields are ready and now the grain is [Music] sew at Harvest Time the hand sickle is still used on the ripened grain which may represent some security against hunger until the next Harvest cows driven over and over the straw thresh the grain from the ears of the wheat their Hooves leaving the ground covered with the hard kernels beneath the straw winnowing by this method is centuries old and as usual the women do it the family flower Mill may have been in use for Generations the grinding stone worn Smooth by use Foods in these countries are usually hot and spicy with condiments rolled into the mixture as it is prepared for cooking Singapore Crossroads of the Orient and Crown Colony of the straight settlements draws people from all over the Far East with Hindus [Music] predominating the itinerate Snake Charmer is of course a Hindu it is assumed that his flute playing astonishes a cobra so thoroughly the snake forgets to [Music] bite as a Siamese King departed on his last journey so also does the humble peasant but without the Pomp and ceremony the funeral p is prepared exactly as if this were on the banks of the Ganges back in [Music] India like the flame of life the fire flickers out so these are glimpses of South Pacific East Horizons lands of ancient cultures of industrious and proud peoples whose world is closer every year to ours for the twain of east and west has had the meeting