36 TEXTILE FIBRES. 



Mr W. B. Pryer, in the Kew Bulletin of January and February 1898, 

 says : " Almost any land will do for the Manila hemp so long as it is not 

 too swampy or too steep, but it thrives best on rich flat land, and does not 

 much mind a flood so long as the water does not stop too long on the 

 land or leave it swampy afterwards." The insertion of the leaves on the 

 plant stem is decurrent. 1 



11 A stem weighs from 20 to 80 Ibs. No machine that I am acquainted 

 with has yet been discovered that will extract it to pay. The native 

 method is simple and cheap. The stem is cut down and each leaf-stalk 

 detached from the others. 



" After this the operator sits down with the end of a stalk in his lap ; 

 he then makes a slight incision just beneath the fibre at the end, and 

 giving a smart twitch, brings away a strip or ribbon of the cuticle with 

 the fibre in it from the whole length of the stalk, much in the same way 

 that the fibrous part of a rhubarb stalk is taken off when preparing it for 

 cooking. This operation is best performed on the plantation itself, as the 

 discarded portions of the stem remain as manure. When a sufficient 

 number of ribbons are obtained they are carried to a hat for treatment. 

 The appliances used for the actual extraction of the fibre are of the most 

 primitive and inexpensive character. A blunt knife is obtained and a 

 hole is made in the blunt end of it, through which a string is passed, and 

 to which a number of bricks or stones are tied. The knife is then 

 attached to a block of softish wood ; the blade of it passing on the wood, 

 against which it is held by the weight of the tied-on stones. 



" Another piece of this rope or string is tied through the same hole 

 in the knife, running over a bit of wood above it, to a treadle worked by 

 the foot. All is now complete. The operator twists the end of one of 

 the ribbons round a small piece of wood so as to get a firmer hold, and 

 slipping it under the knife, allows the blade to descend upon it. A steady 

 pull drags the fibre underneath the knife, which holds back all the pith, 

 weak fibre, and other useless matter. As the strain is heavy it constitutes 

 a guarantee that all the fibre that is not broken is of proper strength, and 

 the result is pure strong fibre. A boy can clean in a similar way the few 

 inches of the end which was wrapped round the piece of wood, and the 

 fibre is then hung over a pole to dry. This is soon done if it is a fine 

 day, and the hemp is then ready for the market. These operations are 

 quite simple, and can be performed by anyone ; but some force is required 

 to pull the fibre under the knife, and the particular muscles brought into 

 play soon tire if the operator is new to the work. Men who have been 

 brought up to hemp pulling can go on for hours without any discomfort. 

 Some men claim to be able to make half a picul (66 Ibs.) of hemp in 



1 Pryer. 



