Jasper County Democrat, Volume 18, Number 72, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 December 1915 — STRAW HAT WEAVING. [ARTICLE]

STRAW HAT WEAVING.

liow the SjtU.j to SIOO Panamas Are . Made in Colombia. Toquilla straw, from which Panama hats are made, is obtained from five or six species of palm. The most important of these is known as Carludoviea pallida, and grows in the warm, moist regions of the Pacific coast in Colombia and Ecuador, and also in the forests of Peru, along the headwaters of the Amazon. This palm attains a height of six to ten feet. The leaves are fan-shaped. Toquilla straw is exported to the United States and other countries, where the hats are made by machinery. It has been suggested to the Colombian government that the exportation of iraca and toquilla seeds should be prohibited in order to prevent other countries from cultivating those plants, It is also urged that it would be wise to levy a heavy export duty on the exports of toquilla straw and to enter into an agreement to that effect with Ecuador and Peru. ; ; ' . _ ■ -■ : . Panama hats are made in Colombia in the following manner: When the palm is about five feet high the most tender leaves are cut and the veins taken out, submerged in boiling water several times, and placed in the sun to dry and whiten. Further to whiten the straw lime juice is added to the boiling water. Then the straw is moistened to make it flexible and split with the finger nail into strips of the required width. A bunch of the straw is tied in the middle and placed in the center of a wooden mold. The fibers are placed in equidistant pairs, and weaving is begun in the upper part of the cup and continues in circular form until the liat is finished. The beauty and durability of the hat depend largely upon the degree of exactness with which the fibers are interwoven. Once completed, the hat is washed in clean, cold water, a coat of gum is applied, and the hat is finally polished with dry sulphur* / To weave a fine hat requires three to six months, with four to five hours’ work daily. Two inferior hats of ordinary straw can be woven in one day. First quality bats of toquilla are sold in foreign retail markets at prices varying from $25 to SIOO each. The declared exports of Panama hats from Cartagena to the United States have been steadily increasing. In 1914 the exports were valued at $263,274.—T0r0nt0 Mail.