INTRODUCTION. 



It is the object of this paper to set forth briefly some facts regarding 

 the fiber plants and their products of the Philippine Archipelago which 

 are at the present time receiving commercial attention. It is not now 

 practicable to mention all those which are of economic importance; for, 

 as this is one line of work which this Bureau is taking up, treatment of 

 such plants and their fibers will be reserved for later publications. 



Strictly speaking, Manila hemp and maguey are the only raw fibers 

 exported from these Islands at the present time, and of these the former 

 rank among the economic products of the Archipelago. The production 

 and exportation of Manila hemp is indeed the most important industry 

 of the Islands at the present time, both from a financial and a commer- 

 cial point of view. Almost every ship that makes a trip to the south of 

 Manila brings back a consignment of Manila hemp, which in turn is 

 loaded into regular hemp-carrying steamers for American and European 

 ports. Formerly the fiber was shipped to Manila, but during the past 

 two years ocean-going vessels have loaded in Cebu with full cargoes for 

 foreign ports. 



Manila hemp came into notice in the early part of last century, but it 

 was not recognized as a product of importance until about 1850. The 

 following table shows the growth in production by decades : 



Tons. 



1840 8,502 



1850 8,561 



1860 _' 30,388 



1870 31,426 



1880 50, 482 



1890 - 67,864 



1900 89,438 



As a product of value Manila hemp ranks first among the resources 

 of the Islands. During the fiscal year 1901 the total value of all exports 

 from the Islands was $23,197,367, and of this amount $14,453,110 repre- 

 sents the value of hemp which is 62.3 per cent. Its relation in this regard 

 to other products of the Islands is shown in the following table, which 

 gives values for the fiscal year 1901 : 



