Oils and Fats. 



420 1 



[May, 1909- 



the copra, a small shelter is built over 

 a rectangular hole from 1 to 2 meters 

 wide, 1 meter deep, and as long as 

 the shed, across which small poles are 

 laid parallel, leaviug a small space 

 between each two. On these poles are 

 piled the halved nuts, which are dried 

 in about two days by the heat and 

 smoke from the fire in the hole. Empty 

 shells are used as fuel. 



The dried meat, or copra, is then easily 

 removed from the shells by means of a 

 thin, chisel-shaped, curved knife pro- 

 jecting in front of a seat. After a little 

 further drying the copra is ready for 

 sacking and putting on the market. 

 These small copra factories can be found 

 scattered all about in the coconut groves 

 of Laguna and Tayabas. 



Manufacture of Oil. 

 During the past two months most of 

 the coconut crop of Laguna has been 

 marketed in the form of oil, especially 

 in the hill country. Of course the small 

 native factories are crude and a large per 

 cent, of the oil is left in the cake, but 

 at the prices now being paid oil brings 

 better returns than copra. 



Where the oil is extracted in the 

 grove there is no necessity for drying 

 the meat; it is simply grated from the 

 halves by a native machiue with small 

 rotary knives. This grated meat is 

 put in open shallow iron pots and cooked. 

 The resulting white mash is dipped in- 

 to sacks and placed in a vertical press 

 made of two large thick boards and a 

 large wooden screw. The mash is often 

 cooked twice and pressed several times, 

 being milled or crushed beneath a 

 weighted swinging roller before pressing. 

 The white, milky mixture of oil, water, 

 etc., which drips from the sacks is re- 

 turned to the cooking pan and boiled 

 until all the oil separates and rises to 

 the top, when it is dipped off into five- 

 gallon petroleum tins, and is then 

 ready for market. 



Manufacture of Alcoholic 

 Beverages. 

 While copra and oil are the chief pro- 

 ducts of the coconut industry, a consider- 

 able number of the groves of Laguna 

 and Tayabas are devoted to the making 

 of tuba and alcoholic beverages. Dis- 

 tilleries can be found in the valleys or 

 on the hillsides where water may be 

 had to run through the commencing 

 tanks by gravity. The Government has 

 au internal-revenue employee stationed 

 at each of these "alumbikis" as they 

 are called, to collect revenue and see 

 that they are run according to law. 



Tuba is collected from the trees 

 through the flower stalk. The many 

 small branches are bound together, their 



tips cut off with a sharp knife, and the 

 end of the bunch inserted in a section 

 of bamboo tube, which catches the 

 juice. Early each morning a tuba 

 gatherer climbs the tree, empties the 

 tubes into a larger vessel, and cuts a 

 little more off the ends of the flower 

 stalks. Two strong bamboo poles bridge 

 the distance between the tops of the 

 trees, and the tuba gatherer passes from 

 one tree to another, walking on one pole 

 and holding to the other. When the 

 receptacle becomes full of tuba he lowers 

 it to the ground with a rope, and after 

 it is emptied he pulls it up again. After 

 the tuba is collected it is carried in 

 three-or four-gallon vessels to the dis- 

 tillery on pack hovses or by carriers. 



Bud-Rot. 



The purpose of the writer's visit to 

 Laguna and Tayabas was the inspection 

 ot these provinces with a view to eradi- 

 cating the bacterial disease known as 

 "bud-rot of the coconut." The name 

 bud-rot comes from its habit of attack- 

 ing those portions of the tree which 

 are in the tender or bud stage. The 

 flowers are most liable to attack during 

 the bursting of the flower sheath. Other 

 tender portions of the apex are subject 

 to attack at any period, but more parti- 

 cularly during the rainy season. The 

 presence of the disease is indicated by 

 the young leaves turning yellow and 

 also by the dropping of the fruit. The 

 decaying bud gives off a very offensive 

 odour, by which the disease may be 

 readily recognized. 



Methods of Treatment. 

 After the disease has made sufficient 

 progress to destroy or partially destroy 

 the "cabbage" there is no hope of saving 

 the tree. If the disease can be detected 

 in any early stage of development, it 

 can be checked by the use of fungicides, 

 such as sulphate of copper, but the only 

 practical means of combating it in 

 these Islands is to cut the tree down 

 and destroy it by fire as soon as the 

 presence of the disease is detected. 

 Owing to the fact that the disease 

 spreads readily by the aid of the wind, 

 insects, etc., it is well to destroy all 

 portions of the tree by burning, if 

 possible. 



Prevalence of the Disease and 

 Outlook 



The disease is found to be most 

 prevalent around the base of Mount 

 Banajao in the municipalities of Neg- 

 carlan, Lilio, and San Pablo. More than 

 2,000 trees have been destroyed in one 

 of the barrios of Nagcarlan. It is 

 claimed by some of the inhabitants that 

 the disease has existed in this town fojj 



