47 



once been tapped, it is not uncommon to find several large, vigorous, 

 and sound trees that are untouched. They all, however, bear the test 

 marks of the chiclero, testimony to the fact that they are poor yield- 

 ers. By the careful selection thus of only good yielding trees, the 

 amount of chicle per tree in the virgin sapodilla forests may be quite 

 high, but the acreage yield is proportionately low. The yield per in- 

 dividual tree is quite variable, as is to be expected in a wild popula- 

 tion. Some trees do not yield sufficient latex to wet the incisions, 

 while others have been reported to yield as much as sixty-one pounds 

 (Hummel, 1925). The report of Sperber that trees in Mexico yield 

 thirty to thirty-five pounds annually is obviously without foundation. 

 Exceptionally large trees may yield that amount at the initial tap- 

 ping, but certainly not every year. According to the writer's obser- 

 vations, the initial yield per large virgin tree is usually two to ten 

 pounds. As soon as a suf^cient number of trees have been located, 

 the chiclero returns to camp with the bags of latex. Frequently the 

 bags are allowed to remain on the trees until the following day if 

 there is no danger of rain. Otherwise they are collected on the same 

 day, since the presence of excess water in the latex makes cooking 

 long, tedious, and difficult. 



The latex from the various trees is poured together in empty 

 petrol tins or larger bags and stored until a sufficient amount for 

 cooking has been accumulated. The chicleros generally tap through- 

 out the week and cook the latex on Sundays. Cooking is primarily 

 for the purpose of driving off water and is done in large iron kettles 

 or cauldrons over an open fire, as is illustrated in Figures 4 and 5. 

 The time required for cooking varies with the amount and quality 

 of latex in the pot, but usually one to two hours are sufficient. Dur- 

 ing the process the latex is stirred continuously with a long stick or 

 paddle in a circular fashion to prevent burning and to throw the 

 water toward the periphery of the mass. After the latex has reached 

 the consistency of soft taffy, the fire is scraped from beneath the 

 kettle or the latter is removed from the open fire. The gum is then 

 further worked and aerated (Fig. 6) with the long paddle until it 

 begins to cool and become firm. It is then lifted out onto a large 

 soaped palm leaf, tarpaulin sheet or sack (Fig. 7) and molded into 

 blocks (Fig. 8). The chicle at this stage is still quite sticky, and an 

 abundance of water and soap are essential for successful handling 

 and molding. Preparatory to taking the chicle out of the cauldron, 



