Smithsonian Report, 1945. — Edwards 



Plate 3 



1. Tuxying" Abaca. 



'he flrsl operation in cleaning abaca fiber by the hand-stripping process is the removal of the fiber-bearing 

 outer layer of the overlapping sheaths of the stalk. These fibrous ribbons are known as iu\ies. ( Photo- 

 graph courtesy Philippine Bureau of Agriculture.) 



2. Stripping Abaca Fiber. 



The native method of cleaning abaca fiber in the Philippines is by pulling the tuxies under a knife (usually 

 serrated) that is pressed down against a block of wood by means of a spring pole. (Photograph courtesy 

 Philippine Bureau of Science. ) 



