Abstract
1) The farmers of the rice-producing villages in the Kitakami valley are driven into an unoccupied period in winter due to the long-lasting snowcover which makes land production difficult or impossible to be carried out.
2) In order to make this non-productive period profitable or to utilize the unoccupied lab corers, the following two ways have been practically adopted: (a) To make efforts in winter cropping by using upland fields and paddy fields, as is carried on in the D and E regions (Fig 2) where the duration of snow-coyer is less than 80 days. (b) To engage in labours other than those for land production in the regions where the snow covers the ground for more than 80 days. 3) In the case of (b) two types are distingished: (b1) In the regions where there is a labour-market, the percentage of emigrants is not high, as in the A rgion (Fig. 2) where labours are needed for charcoal making and mining, and in the D and B regions (Fig. 2) where the provincial cities make labour-markets. (b2) In the regions where there is no labour-market, the percentage of emigrants is high. as in the B and C regions (Fig. 2)
4) The regional difference in emigrants percentage (Fig. 1) is considered tc be the resultant of these factors above-mentioned.
