454 



THE PINE-APPLE. 



to this new and promising brancli of industry. The process they 

 adopt in prej^aring the fibre appears to be much the same as that 

 pursued in the Philippines, and is thus described in a Singapore 

 paper : 



" The process of extracting and bleaching the fibre is exceedingly 

 simple. The first step is to remove the fleshy or succulent side of 

 the leaf. A. Chinese, astride on a narrow stool, extends on it in front 

 of him a pine-apple leaf, one end of which is kept firm by being 

 placed beneath a small bundle of cloth on which he sits. He then, 

 with a kind of two-handled plane made of bamboo, removes the suc- 

 culent matter. Another man receives the leaves as they are planed, 

 and with his thumb-nail loosens and gathers the fibres about the 

 middle of the leaf, which enables him' by one effort to detach the 

 whole of them from the outer skin. The fibres are next steeped in 

 water for some time, after which they are washed, in order to free 

 them from the matter that still adheres and binds them together. 

 They are now laid out to dry and bleach on rude frames of split 

 bamboo. The process of steeping, washing, and exposing to the sun 

 is repeated for some days, until the fibres are considered properly 

 bleached. Without further preparation they are sent into town for 

 exportation to China. Nearly all the islands near Singapore are 

 more or less planted with pine-apples, which, at a rough estimate, 

 cover an extent of 2000 acres. The enormous quantity of leaves that 

 are annually sufiered to putrify on the ground, would su23ply fibre for 

 a large manufactory of valuable pine cloth. The fibres should be 

 cleaned on the spot. Fortunately the pine-apple planters are not 

 Malays, but industrious and thrifty Bugis, most of whom have 

 families. These men could be readily induced to prepare the fibres. 

 Let any merchant offer an adequate price, and a steady annual supply 

 will soon be obtained." 



The wild brother of the pine-apple has a larger leaf and longer 

 fibre. This is the Bromelia sylvestris, or the B. jpinguin of the West 

 Indies. It is known as istle, or ixtle, in Mexico, and pita and pinuella 

 in Central America and Panama. These are probably two distinct 

 species ; and there is a third, B. Jcaratas, which is hardly to be dis- 

 tinguished from them. 



B. karatas is very common in the Antilles, growing in the most 

 arid spots. It makes excellent mats, hammocks, and ropes. Almost 

 all the fishing tackle of the American mercantile marine is made 

 of it. 



The leaves are 5 to 8 feet long, and from 1 1 to 3 inches wide, thin, 

 and lined with a fine tough fibre. The plant is self-propagating, and 

 left to itself in an open field will soon cover the ground. In Central 

 America, but particularly in Nicaragua, it is so abundant in the forests 

 as to be a serious obstruction to man or beast. It is largely culti- 

 vated in the district of Coatzacoalcos, in Mexico. It is indifferent to 

 soil, climate, and season, while the simplicity of its culture, and the 

 facility of extracting and preparing its products, renders it of universal 

 use. From it is fabricated thread and cordage, mats, bagging, and 

 clothing, and the hammocks in which the natives are born, repose, 

 and die. The fibre is sometimes employed for brushes, and in paper- 



