21,1 Cole: Manufacture of Industrial Alcohol 39 
waterways are navigable only with difficulty or else are impassable at low 
tide, even for such a light draught vessel as the native canoe. The collec- 
tion in some localities begins at 1 o’clock in the morning and is completed 
within 6 hours. 
The laborer in the nipa groves builds himself a house of nipa leaf 
thatch with bamboo framework, on the bank of a stream on the nipa 
estate. Fish, the principal article of food, are easily caught in these places. 
Here, usually with a large family, he lives in peace and contentment. 
The communities in these nipa areas are old-established ones, 
and undoubtedly attempts to establish new communities to-day 
for work in the swamps would be a difficult matter. More 
inducements would have to be offered than were offered in the 
past; medical attention, stores, and amusements would have to | 
be included, barrios constructed, and a water supply provided 
in order to obtain the laborers and keep them contented. 
PROPAGATION OF THE PALM 
The nipa palm reproduces from seed and also by the branch- 
ing of its roots. The original seed produces two plants, each 
of which in turn produces two more at the growing points 
formed by the branching of their roots, and so on. Hence the 
life of a nipa swamp is indefinite. It is said that care must 
be taken not to bleed both of two root-connected plants at the 
same time as in that case the plants will die. When the palms 
are raised from seed, the planting is done just before the 
tuberos begin the first harvest. The seeds are put in about 
2 meters apart, making 100 seeds per loang (about 0.04 hectare). 
The plants begin to bear in about five years. By that time 
each plant has four growing points, about 1 meter distant from 
each other. 
HARVESTING OF THE NIPA SAP 
Conrado and Zobel 2 enumerate the following operations that 
are connected with the collection of the sap: 
The hauan, or “clearing up.” 
The sicat, or “kicking the stem.” 
The talog, or “cleaning the stem.” 
The pucao, or “working of stem to make it soft and limber.” 
The patit, or “cutting of the stem.” 
The cortes, or “daily sectioning of the stem.” 
The “clearing up” is usually done in July or August. The 
nipales are parceled to the tuberos who are required to clear 
* Conrado, A., and Zobel, E., Estudio de la planta llamada “nipa” de 
su cultivo y de sus propiedades. Imp. y lit. de “Ta Concepcion,” Marques de 
Comillas No. 3, Manila (1906). 
. 
