PHILIPPINE HATS. 
Ill 
Briefly, the material is obtained from the upright stems in August or 
September, and a slight quantity from the curving branches, or later in 
the year. The lowest 2 to 3 meters of the stem are not used, and but 
little from near its summit. 
The stems are cut, divided into joints, the nodes cut away, the inter- 
nodes longitudinally halved, the parts nearer the hollow interior removed, 
and the thin remaining outer part pulled out in sheets, which may again 
be split. The number of layers varies at the judgment of the worker, 
but those nearest to the useless, outer, green surface give the best material. 
These sheets are boiled, dried, split into strips of the desired width, and 
made of the required thickness. They are often dyed, formerly with 
native dyes, now usually with aniline. 
The form of the apex of the crown is variable, in rosettes, oblongs, etc., 
tlie beginning being usually made with two sets each of about 6 strands 
at right angles to one another, new material being introduced as required 
by the increasing diameter or by approaching the ends of the strands. 
The weave is an alternation of two strands with one, often changing 
into three or four with one, when additional- strands are introduced. 
Only the very cheapest hats are single, practically all on the market 
being double. This means that there are made what would at first sight 
be supposed to be two distinct hats, one of them almost always coarser 
than the other. When these have been woven down to the brims, the 
coarser is placed inside the other, and the two woven together at the 
margins of the brim, resulting in a much more durable hat than if it were 
single. 
Estimates of the time required for the weaving should be understood 
in connection with the conditions under which it is done. Thus, not only 
has time to be taken from the work for all household duties, but there is 
a distinct preference for the cooler and more humid parts of the day, 
especially for better grades of work. Ordinary commercial hats require 
about a day’s work, higher grades longer, even months. The real prices, 
if there can be said to be such, run all the way from perhaps 15 centavos 
to 25 pesos apiece, but the vast majority of the hats cost between 50 
centavos and 2 pesos each. There is much difference of opinion on 
such questions as. the comparative superiority of different kinds of 
hats. As contrasted with buntal, there is no question that the single 
strands of the latter are stronger than those of bamboo, but when the 
hats themselves are considered, the method of weaving comes into con- 
sideration, bamboo being woven much closer than buntal, except in the 
recent use of the latter at Baliuag. In practice, a bamboo hat is apt 
to break sooner than one of bunted, along the lines where it is folded 
in shaping, elsewhere the bamboo has the advantage. Further, the 
fineness of the separate strands must be considered. Bamboo is a split 
material, and can thus be made in very many grades. Finer division, 
