iS4 THE ISLAND OF JAVA. 
fond, and wliicli they collect into pots suspended at the ex-» 
tremitj of the branches; To fix these vessels is an operation- 
which appears to be attended with no small degree of dan- 
ger : rather than to take the trouble of ascending the high 
stem of each individual tree, the usual method is to lay poles 
horizontally from one to the other, and to crawl along these 
poles. The liquid that exudes through the footstalk of the 
3'^oung nut, or rather the germ out of which the nut is pro- 
duced, is called by the Dutch, after passing the first stage of 
fermentation, palm wine ; but it is seldom used by them, 
having a strong and disagreeable flavour. In the second 
stage, it becomes a pleasant vinegar. The uses, indeed, ta 
which this hquid is applied are very various : it is a material 
ingredient in the distillation of arrack ; if slowly evaporated 
over the fire, or in the open air, the residue is a coarse brown 
sugar. The pulpy substance o| the nut, when ripe, is sweet 
and nutritive, the liquid it thep contains agreeable and re- 
freshing, and an oil of very extensive use is expressed from 
the kernel. This tree is, in fact to the natives of Java what 
the bamboo is to those of China. T^heir humble dwellings are 
almost entirely constructed from the materials which it sup- 
plies. The principal posts or standards, the poles of the 
roof, the rafters and the laths, are hewn out of its stem ; and 
its leaves are used for thatch. It furnishes them with various 
implements, utensils, and domestic furniture. The shell of 
the nut is converted into cups, whose surfaces are carved 
with great skill and neatness into a variety of figures and 
devices, exhibiting curious specimens of what may very pro- 
perly be called " the laborious effects of idleness."' The 
fibres of the husk, which covers the nut, are manufactured 
7 
V 
