This
machine is used for squeezing the juice out of sugar cane. There is a stalk of
sugar cane in it. The juice is squeezed out, and dried, and sugar is left
behind.
Josef's family had it in their yard. In the Amazon area, people grow much of what they need, including fruit, vegetables and even sugar! They invent a lot of their own simple machines. This means they are very self-sufficient. They don't need much money. They do need some money to buy clothes, machetes or other things they cannot make. So sometimes they sell extra fruit, vegetables, fish, palm oil or rubber to people in markets in the villages or cities a few hours away. Rubber is made from the sap of rubber trees that grow here.