43 



was necessary for food during the chicle season developed extrava- 

 gant tastes among the women. Where once they had been contented 

 with the simple native costume, they now demanded expensive cloth- 

 ing, etc., from their men. The increased price of food and the efforts 

 to satisfy more extravagant tastes were not commensurate with 

 their increased earnings from bleeding chicle, and as a result they 

 had to turn continually to some chicle contractor for advances. He, 

 in turn, charged impossible rates of interest and paid as little as pos- 

 sible for the chicle. The chiclero, not to be outdone, adulterated the 

 chicle, and often received advances from several contractors without 

 working for any of them. In the last two decades, however, many of 

 these economic factors have changed considerably. 



The chicle tapping season is dependent on the rainfall, and is 

 thus concurrent with the rainy season, contrary to the reports of 

 certain authors. If the tropical rains come early it may begin in June 

 and extend to February, but it does not generally get well started 

 until July and August. Tapping commences with the daylight. The 

 chiclero rises while it is yet dark, prepares a light breakfast, and 

 starts out afoot through the dense jungle for the sapodilla trees 

 which he had located on previous days. Arrived at a tree, the chiclero 

 first clears a small area around the tree, and adjusts the skin or can- 

 vas bag in which the milk is collected. It is either set on the ground 

 or hung from an incision in the bark (Figs. 1, 2). Directly above the 

 bag a small area of the tree is cleared of its outer hard bark and an 

 upward incision made in the softer cortex with the machete. This 

 makes a flap under which the end of a trimmed palm leaf is inserted 

 to act as a conveyor for the latex from the tree to the bag. Having 

 properly adjusted the bag and inserted the palm leaf, the chiclero 

 begins to tap. 



Tapping in the wild chicle "bush" or "chicleria" is done exclu- 

 sively with a long thin-blade cutlass or machete. Chicleros generally 

 prefer the fairly straight machete, since they are thereby able to re- 

 move a wider chip of bark wnth each stroke. The native method of 

 tapping is essentially a half-spiral system, as is shown in Figures 

 2 and 3, and consists of successive parallel rows of cuts ascending 

 the bole obliquely. The successive oblique rows of incisions alternate 

 from side to side and lead into the lower preceding ones, so that the 

 latex from the individual rows flows together in a zigzag channel 

 down the tree to the point where the collecting bag is attached. As 



