356 I'he Philippine Journal of Science 1915 



in equipment or supplies. For this purpose the tanning industry 

 as conducted at Meycauayan, Bulacan, was chosen for study. 

 Meycauayan is one of the largest leather-manufacturing centers 

 in the Philippines, and its methods are fairly representative of 

 those of the Islands as a whole. Eleven tanneries are located 

 there, with an aggregate output of 36,000 pieces per year, con- 

 sisting almost wholly of cattle hides. These include practically 

 the entire product of the Government slaughterhouse at Sisiman 

 and an almost equal number of imported hides from Hongkong. 

 A few carabao hides are tanned, but the Filipino tanners are not 

 willing to attempt the tanning of these hides except under excep- 

 tional circumstances. On account of their thickness they are 

 very hard to tan and they are liable to putrefaction. Therefore 

 they are usually split, and very commonly only the grain side is 

 tanned, the remainder being discarded or used for glue. 



The leather produced by the Filipino process is soft and pliable 

 and, in general, is very much undertanned. It is characterized 

 by an unpleasant odor, especially when wet. This leather lacks 

 the firmness and durability desirable in sole leather and, at the 

 same time, is too thick for first-class upper leather. 



The salted hides, as received at Meycauayan, are usually in 

 good condition, not showing evidences of decay or having partic- 

 ularly offensive odors. They are laid in packs of from 17 to 20 

 and are soaked for about eight hours in water in the bed of a 

 river. They are then removed to lime pits of masonry con- 

 struction, which are usually placed, in a series of from 10 to 

 20, in the open air without protection from sun or rain. The 

 usual dimensions of a pit are 1.7 meters by 0.9 meter, with a 

 depth of 0.8 meter. A pack of 20 hides is laid in the pit, 25 

 liters of lime and suflflcient water nearly to fill the pit being 

 used for the liming process. The water used is taken either 

 from the river or from shallow surface wells near by. 



The method of preparing the lime liquors and laying the hides 

 in the liming pits is as follows: The lime is mixed with water, 

 and the gravel and the coarser particles are removed with a 

 bamboo sieve. A hide is laid in this liquor, folded lengthwise 

 with the hair outside. Other hides are placed on top in the 

 same manner, until the pack is complete. The hides are left 

 in the lime pits for from ten to fifteen days, during which time 

 they are overhauled three or four times. At each overhauling 

 the order of laying is reversed, so that the upper hide in the 

 pack is laid at the bottom, and so on. The exact duration of 

 the liming process is determined by the loosening of the hair 

 and the degree of plumping of the skin. Frequently after the 



