FOOD IN THE TROPICS 
raw or roasted. These are what are commonly called palm 
4 ‘cabbages” (Fig. 17). To get at them' you may have to use the 
“climbing bandage” described in connection with obtaining coco- 
nuts. You may find that some of these “cabbages” are too bitter 
to be eaten, but none of them is harmful. The tender, unopened 
flower clusters of palms may also be eaten and the immature 
seeds of the fruits of some forms are edible, although you will 
find most of them unpalatable. The juice which drips from the 
cut end of the flower or fruit cluster, or from the end of a small 
branch or from a gash in the trunk, will quench thirst if caught 
and drunk immediately. When permitted, it ferments. 
Several of the Old World palms, particularly the Sago (fig. 17) , 
have a pithy center that contains starch which can be extracted 
for use as a substitute for rice or for the making of pastries. 
The process for obtaining this material is so involved, however, 
that one should depend on the natives for it or, if possible, have 
the natives show you how to prepare it. None of the New World 
palms provides this starch. 
Another tree commonly found is the screw pine or pandanus 
(Fig. 9). It is easily recognized by its stilt-like roots and the 
spiral arrangement of its long leaves. It has a large fruit di- 
vided into sections like a pineapple. These sections are cov- 
ered with a hard husk that encloses the fleshy, edible pulp 
and the seeds. The seeds may be roasted and eaten like 
chestnuts; the fleshy portion may be boiled or baked. Boiling 
is better for the young fruits, baking for the mature ones. 
In some cases the natives strip off the outer rind with the seeds 
and then pound the flesh of the fruits into a dust resembling 
snuff. This dust is exposed to the sun until a sweet juice exudes 
making the whole mass sticky. This mass is then rolled and 
