75 



tropics, is made into slippers. It is interesting to note that the 

 making of sHppers from this fiber was started about 1907 or 

 1908 in a small village in the Islands by two Japanese peddlers 

 who passed through the place selling small rice-cakes. Seeing 

 the abundance of C. malaccensis they gave up their cake business 

 and turned to the making of slippers. Now almost every house 

 in the little town is actively engaged in making these slippers 

 which are sold by the thousand throughout the Islands. 



The Chinese matting sedge, Cyperus tegetiformis, is not found 

 in the Philippines. The Japanese matting rush, Juncus effusus, 

 cultivated extensively in Japan for the making of the finest 

 matting is found growing wild in the Philippines but is not 

 used. It seems probable that cultivation would improve the 

 quality of the fiber. Its coarseness in the wild state is the 

 principal objection at present to its use by Filipinos. 



Various species of Scirpus, such as 5. erectus, S. grossus, S. 

 lacustris and S. miicronatus, find occasional uses for different 

 purposes. In connection with sedges might be mentioned our 

 common cat-tail, found in abundance in various parts of the 

 Islands, but not used to any great extent. 



Vines 



Many vines growing in the tropics develop air-roots high 

 above the ground from long, clambering and fleshy stem-struc- 

 tures. 



A description of the forest near Puerta Galera, Mindoro, 

 where the writer found air-roots in plenty, should prove of 

 interest to those unfamiliar with the habitat of these aroids. 

 A good half day's journey from town, Araceae with air-roots 

 were found in fair quantity on the sides of heavily wooded 

 mountains, but more plentiful in ravines or gulleys. In these 

 places bird's-nest ferns were very abundant and the bark of many 

 trees was covered with moss. So humid were the surroundings 

 that even the edges of many leaves were covered with fringes 

 of moss. The trees and plants were so close together that only 

 a little of the light of the sun was able to find its way to the ground 

 through the dense mass of foliage. The earth even after a 



