ments 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 washing 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 grass 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) substituted 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 a