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Manufacture . — The palm is cut into logs about 3 to 
4 ft. long, the bark removed, and the pith split 
lengthwise into quarters. The pith is then passed 
through a rasping machine which grinds it to a 
fine powder. After passing through the rasper, the 
powder falls into a revolving washing machine which 
separates any fibrous matter from the sago; the 
refuse is discharged from the end of the washing 
machine, whilst the sago passes through the gauze 
netting with which the washing machine is lined. 
The sago and water then flow into long narrow 
troughs about 8 inches wide and 24 to 30 inches 
deep, arranged in series, an opening being left at 
the top to allow the water to pass from one trough 
to another. The sago is deposited gradually in the 
form of a white powder, the quantity becoming 
smaller as each trough is passed until the last one 
is reached, in which there should be no deposit. 
After drying the powder, in the sun or by artificial 
means, the sago flour is placed in sacks for shipment. 
A tree of average size will produce about 2 pikuls 
of sago flour. 
Pearl sago is made by squeezing the damp flour 
through a cloth into a sieve, perforated with holes 
of the required size, from which it falls into a 
shallow iron pan heated over a fire. 
Uses . — Sago flour is used principally for size in the 
manufacture of cotton piece goods, for starch, and in 
the preparation of chocolate, corn-flour and mustard, 
while pearl sago is used for making biscuits. 
The local prices (Oct. 1923) now ruling are: Sago 
flour $5.75 per pikul, and Pearl sago $8.30 per pikul. 
