Fibres. 



500 



[December, 1911. 



merce during the period following the 

 Insurrection, large stores of hemp were 

 found in warehouses, and as the world's 

 supply had been practically cut off for 

 several years, the price was euhanced 

 materially, and all of the hemp found a 

 ready market at good figures, In some 

 years since 1898 hemp has made up two- 

 thirds of the total of exports. 



Its chief competitor in the manufac- 

 ture of cordage and twine is the 

 Mexican Sisal, which comes from the 

 State of Yucatan in Mexico. Although 

 Manila Hemp is the better fibre and 

 is rated by the cordage people at 

 6"50 as against 5 in. tensile strength 

 for sisal, its quality depends to a con- 

 siderable extent on the care that is 

 given to its preparation. The good fibre 

 comes from the outer husk of the stems 

 that form the stalk, and in order to 

 produce the best grade of hemp this 



Fiscal Year. 



TO ALL 



Countries. 



Percentage 







of Total 





Tons, 



Value. 



exports. 



1899 



59,840 



$ 6,185,293 



45-1 



1900 



76,708 



11,393,883 



52-6 



1901 



112,215 



14,453,110 



54 '6 



1902 



109,968 



15,811,316 



58-3 



1903 



132,241 



21,701,575 



54-7 



1904 



131,817 



21,794,960 



58-8 



1905 



130,621 



22,146,241 



59-6 



1906 



112,165 



19,440,769 



59-5 



1907 



114,701 



21,085,081 



61-7 



1908 



115,829 



17,311,808 



52'7 



1909 



149,991 



15,833,577 



51*0 



1910 



170,788 



17,404,922 



48-6 



must be quickly stripped and thoroughly 

 cleaned. 



A major part of the hemp exported is 

 taken by the United States and Great 

 Britain in almost equal proportions. 

 The market in the United States appears 

 to demand the better grades, and when 

 the quality of the output is uniformly 

 high the largest percentage is found 

 going to that country. When the out- 

 put is of low quality, the price naturally 

 corresponds, and the English market is 

 fourd more favourable for it. On the 

 whole, there is almost an equal division 

 between the two countries of the hemp 

 exported. 



The following table taken from the 

 Report of the Collector of Customs gives 

 the quantity and valu6 of hemp ship- 

 ments and proportion sent to the 

 United States since 1898 :— 



To United States. 



Tons. 



23,066 

 25,763 

 18,157 

 45,526 

 71,654 

 61,886 

 73,351 

 62,045 

 58,388 

 48,813 

 79,210 

 99,305 



Value. 



$ 2,439,169 

 3,446,141 

 2,402,867 

 7,261,459 

 12,314,312 

 10,631,591 

 12,954,515 

 11,168,226 

 11,326,864 

 7,684,000 

 8,534,288 

 16,399,397 



Hemp is grown pretty generally 

 throughout the Islands, but thrives best 

 in the central and southern di\ isions. 

 There are still available abundant areas 

 of land well adapted to its cultivation, 

 and the profit in the industry can be 

 made very large if care be given to the 

 end that the best grade of fibre is pro- 

 duced. As the Philippines have a prac- 

 tical monopoly of the industry there is 

 little danger of over-production, and the 

 world's market seems capable of quickly 

 absorbing all that is produced. 



Hemp matures in about thirty months 

 after planting, and there are little 

 shoots called suckers that grow from 

 the roots at the base of the stalk which 

 may be replanted or will mature by 

 themselves when the main stalk is cut 

 down. The only cultivation required 

 is in keeping the soil between the plants 

 in suitable condition. The industry can 

 be carried on in conjunction with the 

 growth of other agricultural products, 

 and is one that offers splendid induce- 

 ments to the individual who can give 

 his time in addition to the investment 

 of a small amount of capital. 



BAMBOO HATS : A GROWING 

 INDUSTRY. 



Received Remarkable Impetus by 

 the Passage op the Payne- 

 Aldrich Bill— Over 

 600,000 Exported. 



(Prom the Manila Bulletin, 

 September 29, 1911.) 



A growing industry and one that 

 promises to expeiience a steady growth 

 in the future is the manufacture and 

 export of bamboo hats, which has 

 received a remarkable impetus since 

 that passage of the Payne-Aldrich Bill 

 providing for the free admission of 

 these hats into the United States. 



The following article on bamboo hats 

 is taken from "Reciprocity and the 

 Philippines," published by Mr. Harold 

 M. Pitt :— 



Among the lesser industries of the 

 Islands is the manufacture and export 

 of hats made of bamboo. This is an 

 industry that is carried on in the homes 



