202 PHILIPPINE PALMS 
are twisted into a rope which is extensively used in some parts 
of the Philippines, notably in Panay. 
Strips made from the leaves are used for wrapping a con- 
fection of glutinous rice, known as suman. ‘The strips are 
wrapped in a spiral form around the confection to form a 
sausage-shaped package. Whole leaves are regularly brought 
for this purpose to Manila, where suman making is an estab- 
lished industry. In the provinces it is merely a domestic affair. 
For a discussion of the various buri fibers and their products 
see the following: 
Miller, H. H., Philippine Hats, Philippine Bureau of Educa- 
tion Bulletin 33, (1910), pages 1 to 60; Robinson, C. B., Phil- 
ippine Hats, Philippine Journal of Science, Section C, Volume 
6 (1911), pages 938 to 131; Muller, T., Industrial Fiber Plants 
of the Philippines, Bureau of Education Bulletin 49, (1913), 
pages 73 to 85; Gibbs, H. D., The Alcohol Industry in the Phil- 
ippine Islands, Part I, Philippine Journal of Science, Section 
A, Volume 6 (1911), pages 147 to 206; Miller, H. H. and others, 
Philippine Mats, Philippine Craftsman, Volume I (1912), pages 
194 to 203; Parker, L., Philippine Craftsman, Volume 2 (1913), 
pages 376 to 395. 
At present, the production of sugar, alcohol, and starch from 
the buri palm is only of minor local importance and gives little 
promise of future development into industries of great mag- 
nitude. The subject has been extensively investigated by 
Gibbs * with the following general results. 
The sap is obtained from the buri palm in two ways. Ap- 
parently the more usual way is to cut an inflorescence near its 
base, protecting the cut surface from the sun and rain by a 
small covering of leaves, and collecting the sap which flows 
from the cut surface, in small earthen jars. Thé second method, 
used in Tayabas and some other provinces, but not known 
to a great many localities, is employed on trees which have not 
flowered and which may, indeed, be very far from maturity. 
The trees are stripped of leaves, the top bound with bamboo 
hoops 8 to 10 centimeters apart for a distance of about 1 meter, 
and then cut off so that the heart of the tree is exposed. The 
surface thus produced is cut and channeled, furnishing a clean 
tissue which is continually exposed to the air, but protected 
from the sun by a covering of leaf thatch. In three or four 

* Gibbs, H. D., The alcohol industry of the Philippine Islands. Part I. 
Philippine Journal of Science, Volume 6 (1911), pages 99 to 206. 
