Part 5 (1/2)
The buri flowers and fruits but once and then dies. This is said to occur when the plant is from 25 to 40 years old. The individual flowers are greenish-white in color and only from 5 to 6 mm. in diameter. They are nevertheless perfect flowers, with calyx, corolla, and ovary showing plainly a division into threes, and stamens six in number. Thousands of these flowers occur on the large, terminal, much branched, pyramidal inflorescence which may grow to be 7 meters in height. The lower branches of this inflorescence may be as much as 3.5 meters long, the upper shorter, the highest about one meter in length.
From 10 to 12 months after flowering the fruits are mature. They are from 2 to 2.5 cm. in diameter and each contains an extremely hard seed 1.5 cm. in diameter.
Preparation.
Buri straw is prepared from the young, unopened leaf of the buri palm. The coa.r.s.est straw is made by separating the leaflets from the midribs and drying them in the sun. A higher grade straw results from boiling them in water. Such straws are suitable only for bayon manufacture and for weaving into coa.r.s.e mats for baling purposes.
Several methods of bleaching buri straw obtain in various localities. Any exact description of the processes is somewhat difficult, since the persons who produce the straw have no very definite idea of the proportions and quant.i.ties of various materials which they use, and often do not care to divulge what they consider trade secrets. In several cases, nevertheless, supervising teachers have succeeded in obtaining fairly exact data on the preparation of buri straw.
However, the same method carried out in different towns seems to result in different qualities of straw. These differences probably result from slight variations in the method of preparation. It has also been found that the age of the leaf, as determined by the length of the stem (petiole), influences the color of the straw produced. In some districts the unopened leaf is not taken if the stem is over two inches in length. In other places, leaves with stems about one foot high are considered ready to cut. It is probable, too, that the composition of the water in which the straw is boiled influences its color. Mauban, in Tayabas province, has the reputation of producing the whitest buri straw. Mr. John H. Finnigan, supervising teacher, attempted to introduce buri straw into the schools of Gumaca, Tayabas, where the buri palm is very plentiful. The work was in charge of expert weavers from Mauban, but only a poor quality of straw was produced. It was claimed that the water in which the segments were boiled, according to the process which is explained later, did not whiten them. It is a fact that in Mauban the water of the town fountain is used to produce the fine white straw. In the several years of his experience, Mr. Finnigan found no place outside of Mauban which produces straw equal in color to the Mauban straw, but he has noted that the second best straw comes from San Fernando, Gumaca, where there is an especially clear stream of water.
In fact, all reports would seem to indicate that clear, pure water is essential to the production of the finest white buri straw, and only such should be used in all processes of the various methods outlined here.
The Arayat Process.--Mr. Robert Clauson, supervising teacher, has determined the process of whitening buri straw in Arayat, Pampanga, as follows: The segments are separated from the midrib and rolled rather loosely, so that the water may pa.s.s between them, in bundles as large around as a plate. These are placed in a large can or vat containing tamarind leaves and alum (see bleaching agents) in water, and the whole is boiled until about one-half of the water has evaporated. During the boiling the buri must be tightly covered with tamarind leaves and not be allowed to project from the water. After this process the rolls are placed in a jar full of clear water and left to soak for three days. The strips are then washed several times in the river during a period of three days, and they are then laid on the gra.s.s or along fences to dry after each was.h.i.+ng. The oftener they are alternately washed and dried the whiter and tougher will the material be. After the final drying, which should be thorough, the strips are rolled very tightly into bundles.
The San Luis Method.--The method of whitening buri straw followed in San Luis, Pampanga, is described by Mr. James H. Ba.s.s, supervising teacher. The unopened leaves are brought down the Chico River in rafts. The segments are torn from the midrib and boiled for four hours in five gallons of water to which one liter of nipa vinegar, a lump of alum the size of an egg, a handful of tamarind leaves, and a handful of pandakaki leaves (see bleaching agents) have been added. Other steps follow as in the previous process.
The Mauban Process.--The following description is taken from Circular No. 27, series 1911, of the Division of Tayabas. Let the unopened leaves, cut from the stalk, stand in a cool shady place several days, until the sap has well run. Open the leaves and separate the segments from the midrib with a sharp knife. Put these carefully into a petroleum can or other suitable receptacle filled with a boiling solution of two-thirds water and one-third white nipa or coconut tuba vinegar (see bleaching agents). Keep the solution boiling until the segments are cooked so soft that folding them leaves no crease.
Spread the cooked leaves on clean gra.s.s in the sun to dry. The drying process may require one or two days. When the segments are quite dry, prepare a jar with clear soft water, and put them in this to soak over night. In the morning remove them from the jar, wash them thoroughly in clear running soft water and place them in the sun. At noon repeat the was.h.i.+ng process until the segments open, then dry thoroughly in the sun.
It is customary to roll the buri into coils in order to make it more convenient to store. The dry leaflets may be made flexible for this purpose by laying them on the gra.s.s in the night air. After a few minutes they will be flexible enough to roll. Care must be taken to have the segments smoothly rolled. When used, they should be smoothed carefully and then split into the widths required.
The process can also be followed with rice vinegar (see bleaching agents) subst.i.tuted for the tuba vinegar.
Wash two chupas of rice and cook it in water until it becomes very soft and starchy. Put this in a clean petroleum can and add cold water until the can is two-thirds full, then cover the can and let it stand five or six days. This mixture will become very sour. Strain it through a piece of sinamay or other cloth. Cook the segments in this mixture instead of in the solution described in the first process, and then carry out all the other steps.
The Romblon Process.--In Romblon, great care is exercised as to the age of the unopened leaf taken for the production of straw. If it is intended to produce bleached straw, stalks having stems about two inches long are selected. In the following description, which was submitted by Mr. R. L. Barron, head teacher, one unopened leaf is taken as a unit. The midribs are removed and the segments are rolled into round bundles, say by fives. These are boiled in clear water for about three hours. The leaves are then placed in a mixture of half a liter of tuba vinegar (or three liters of vinegar made from cooked rice, or one-fourth liter of lemon juice) to which enough water has been added to cover the rolls of buri, and boiled for about five hours. The material is then spread in the sun for three days to dry, care being taken that it is not exposed to rain or dew. The segments are then placed in cool clear water for twelve hours and again placed out in the sun for two days to dry.
The Dyeing of Buri Straw.
Buri straw intended for mats is usually colored with the cheap imported coal tar dyes previously noted. It is expected that the new dyes for which the Bureau of Education has arranged will take the place of these. Romblon buri mats, which are the finest in point of workmans.h.i.+p and design made in the Philippines, are colored entirely by local vegetable dyes.
The methods used in the island of Romblon in dyeing buri straw have been carefully investigated by Mr. Barron, and are presented herewith. In each case the unit of material is one stalk of buri for each color. The process of whitening Romblon buri straw has already been described.
For red, unopened leaves having stems three feet long should be selected. The midribs are removed while green, and the leaves are rolled into bundles of convenient size, say by fives. These are boiled in clear water for about three hours, after which the segments are spread in the sun for three days to dry. Care should be taken that they are not exposed to rain or dew. They are then placed in a fluid made by boiling two gantas of kolis leaves (see mordants) in plain water for one hour. The buri leaves remain in the water and soak thus for three days and three nights. The buri leaflets are then placed in a vessel containing two gantas of sappan wood (see dyes), one-half liter of lime water, and one chupa of tobacco leaves. To this a sufficient quant.i.ty of plain water is added to thoroughly submerge the buri, and the whole is boiled for eight hours, being stirred at short intervals to obtain a uniform shade of red. The segments are then removed and hung in the wind for about six hours to dry, after which they are smoothed and rolled.
For yellow-orange, unopened leaves having stems about two inches long are selected and the segments are removed from the midribs and rolled into bundles. These are boiled in clear water for about three hours and spread in the sun for three days to dry, care being taken that the buri is not exposed to rain or dew. The material is then placed in a vessel containing one ganta of powdered turmeric (see dyes), one chupa of powdered annatto seeds (see dyes), one liter of lime water, and sufficient clear water to cover the buri, and is boiled in this mixture for five hours, with frequent stirring. It is then removed and hung in the wind for one-half day to dry, and is smoothed and rolled.
For green, an unopened leaf having a stem about two inches in length is selected. The segments are removed from the midribs, rolled into bundles and boiled in clear water for about three hours. After this, they are boiled in lye (consisting of ashes) for about two hours, the mixture of ashes and water covering the buri during the process. The bundles are then removed from the vessel, wrapped in a bayon, and put in a dark place for 48 hours. The segments are then taken out and hung in the wind for about three hours to dry, and are smoothed and rolled.
The preliminary steps in the production of ”black straw” (a cold dark gray) are the same in the making of the green material. The segments taken from the bayon, as described above, are buried three days in black mud, in a rice paddy, for instance. The material is then washed in plain water until clean, and is then boiled for two hours in a mixture of one-half ganta each of the leaves of talisay, indigo, and tiagkot (see dyes), with a sufficient quant.i.ty of water to cover the mixture. The whole should be stirred at frequent intervals. After two hours the strips are removed and hung in the wind for five hours to dry. Then they are smoothed and rolled.
Types of Buri Mats.