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DISTRIBUTION. 



Nito should be looked for in rather moist, shaded local- 

 ities. It is found growing on hillsides where timber is not 

 very heavy, in open woodland, and sometimes in or near 

 abaca plantations, bordering cogonales, or twining about 

 underbrush in moist places. 



PREPARATION. 



It is better and easier to prepare the material while fresh 

 than when hard and dry. Old material can be immersed 

 in water and made more pliable. 



Nito splmts. — To prepare nito splints, the stem is divided 

 into halves and quarters. If the diameter of the stem is 

 very small, a division into three parts will be sufficient. 

 In brown nito, the epidermis is generally first removed. 

 It is best to start the splitting with a knife at one end and 

 continue it to the other end by running the thumb in be- 

 tween the sections. The inside of these strips may then be 

 pared down to the thickness wanted. If it is desired to 

 have all strips of the same width, they may be passed 

 through a gauge (batakan).^ 



Coloring nito. — The bottom of the stem, being older than 

 the rest, is often of a darker color. The major portion of 

 the stem itself may be of an uneven color. Browns give 

 richer and warmer color effects than blacks. The latter, 

 when used, must have uniform density :- 



Take a young coconut about half grown and cut it into small 

 pieces. Secure a section of sappan wood {Caesalpinia sappan) — a 

 piece of the trunk is best, about a foot long — and split it length- 

 wise into thin pieces. Place both chopped coconut and sappan strips 

 in a pot or can with about a gallon of water and boil for half 

 an hour. Then take the nito and place it in the solution and let 

 it boil for about twenty minutes. Afterwards remove the nito and 

 bury it in moist mud, where it should be left for half a day. It 

 may then be removed and cleaned by washing. It will be found to 

 have a deep, jet-black color.* 



* A "batakan" is easily made from the top of a tin can by punching 

 it full of openings of the desired diameter. 



^ The Philippine Craftsman, July, 1912, p. 76, 



' Rattan, bamboo, and banban may also be dyed in the same 

 manner. 



