The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-06-17
AN ISLAND
RESOURCE
OIona Fiber Gets
An Official
Report.
NATIVES ONCE
MANUFACTURED IT
Suitable Mechanical Extractor
Night Make Fiber q Source
OF Profit.


charge of the United States Agri-
OcuituraI Experiment Station. has
received from Dr. ~. Russel OF Noun
tain View, Hawaii. an interesting
sketch of the Olona fibre. its growth.
characteristics and manufacture into
FISH nets.
The article, with samples OF the fbre.
is to be forwarded to the washington
Department Of Agriculture for q pcien-
tific analysis, and for Information In
regard TO a suitable mechanical extrac-
tor, which DIR. Russell says Is needed
before the cultivation OF the hore can
become a success financially In Ha-
wall.
The following Is the article furnished
by Dr. Russell. which VIII be forwarded
TO Washington:
oLoNA FIBRE.
Bosany-Olona Is a native Hawaiian
name OF n single botanical Hawaiian
species Of plant OF the Urticaceae fam
ily. In HilIebrand's Flora OF the Ha-
waiian Islands" we find page 4l5) the
following quotation from Gaud- Bot
I. pp 2a5-i3:
.sTouchardGa latifoiia. A shrub. As
n. high. with a vIscId juice. sparingiy
dividing into stout branches. the
youngest hispide but soon giaorate.
Leaves on petioles OF 80. ovate. s-lex
SO. acute or acuminste. odyssey ere
nate. rounded At the base, chartaceous.
dark green on both faces and glabrous.
excepting n few hairlets on the nerves.
tripli-neTged. the lateral nerves not
reaching the middle OF the margin.
penni nerved higher up. with rectan-
Ciomerules OF flowers generally arrang-
ed In repeatedly forking cymes. with
one branch suppressed and the middle
glouierule sess!le. The male cymes
longer $50 and broader go than
the femal. which are also more crowd
I'D. Male glomeruIes 6-s~ in diameter.
Perigone ~ to %, the Immediate seq
.nents hooded and obtuse or tubercu-
late below the apex Stamens shortly
excerted. anthers large. white. hudi-
ment of pistil glaorous. Fem gioner
ules 4-5S. Perigone Il, orange coiored
when mature style as long as the
achcne.-wedd. Monogr. ort. y. AZ.
tab. 3 Wawra In Flora, 1874. y. o4f.
This quotation Is accompanied with
the following foot-note by Htlleorand;
I'm deep ravines on all ISLANDS, out "
no means common. It Is the "Olona
of The natives. which yields hore
highly priced for teracity and duraoh-
ity. and Is chiefly employed for making
fishing nets The species. as
rule. Is -lioec.ous."
| 1000 natives were living on the margin
/ Of the virgin forest and pahoe-hoe
rock along the trail connecting Hilo
l town with the crater OF kilauea. Island
of Hawaii. in spot corresponding 10
| the present 2z-mile point OF the VOL
cano road Making Of kappa tnative
cIoth) out of .'Mamake" bark Q'1pturus
aIbisitis. rrrtlcaceael. OF Olona hore Tor
1 nshina. nets ont 81 Touchardia iltiioiia.
ard eaufuYlng "O-t~ birds Tor the sake
/ az fh.. fs.s precious yellow feathers un-
d. a.. s-inss. 81 which luxurious royal
i .-p-nIfrfs were rnauufactureo-thos
| ssrf "a. Industries on which they
| lived.
Far reasons common 10 all the ma
4 tgv.. urpuiatl0u Of the Islands. namely.
i m fr.t~oduction 90 new germs OF dis
L .ase. syphilis. leprosy. tuberculosis.
/ -,oaftraT tie. this settlement gradual
| ~ dwfrdlcd away and In lse- the lev
| surviving members migrated 10 otheT
localities ~ present only patches OF
i =, iff bananas. taro and heaps Of stones
scattered Ia the forest Indicate the
! ptnr.s Of former habitation and Indus
! trv have heard. however. that a. a.
| iat. as the seventies kalakauh stli'
levied a tax in olCua fibre from the
I artt,.e - Puma and Ciaa districts.
! which hbre he sold az high priees u
| Swiss Anime clubs. whO valued ~ Tor
fts light weight and great strenS IN.
| Conditions % Growth-Touchardia
| grows abundautly IN oiaa forests, ple-
| septiue "a Kind % a natural plantation
n v.ry suecessfuily holds Its own IN
eorap~ffflou with Ferns and other els-
rrents - the underground. In the shaar
Of -Ohfa" tres tAistrcsidcFos poiyinot
,.haY. Tn. deep shade. very porous
son. considerable. moisture with year
| ~ rainfall % - inches. pretty eNenp
distributed. are ths natural conditions
| Ffy, renewing some OF the underground
sgnft-ring IL. seed. and probably py
planting cgtiiuEs. the number OF plant
or ~. sam. area could BE- greatly IN
crossed with but very small expense
sine plants % medium age 1ao"ut l'
months ODD supply the best more, ma
tgv.s fn Gathering. used % turn down
| the elder ones with the loot. layshk tn'
,~hois plant on the ground 70 force ne"
shoots and sprouts -,
Il Manufacture was familiar with the
miami ana it, properties for years. but
!. ala not Vay any further attention to
1, a. q ursSibls object 81 Industry. TOT
the reason that 20 al appearances th'
Sam. di.fic mites IN mechanical eNtTNc-
tlor Of atr~ viii b. met a. In the case
| - rrto.. f0r which no satisfactory
II sns-ffn. has been found 20 fat ke-
4 -sf,giy my Interest IN the matter was
coin aroused by Mr.. Jared 6. smith
q the Hawaii Experiment station
\ Considering that Touchardia seems &c
~ free from rssinous. matter. upon MS
| sue-@sti0n I decided TO examine the
subject more In detail. For this pur
| noe m old native. born and raised N
| the settlement above mentioned. ~as
interviewed. Together with MN pro
coded into the forest along = mnes
I Sid.. trail In my presence he PICKED
,be piants stripped them Of the bark
| ard With his own oiden toolc manuf@c'
! tured the sample Of fibre. which 1 o-s