that when the fruits are
setting appears to be most in favour; plants harvested at this stage
usually yield a large quantity of good fibre which can be perfectly
cleaned, and which is of good spinning quality.

The plants are cut down by hand and with home-made knives; in general,
these knives are of crude manufacture, but they appear to be quite
suitable for the purpose. A field of jute plants ready for cutting
will certainly form a delightful picture, but the prospect of the
operation of cutting indicates a formidable piece of work since it
requires about 10 to 14 tons of the green crop to produce about 10 to
15 cwt. of clean dry fibre.

CHAPTER III. RETTING

The method of separating the bast layer (in which the fibres are
embedded) from the stem of the plant requires a large supply of water,
since the plants must be completely submerged in the water for a
period varying from 8 to 30 days; such time is dependent upon the
period of the year and upon the district in which the operation is
performed.

The above operation of detaching the bast layer from the stem is
technically known as "retting," and a good type of retting or
steeping place is an off-set of a run, branch, or stream where the
water moves slowly, or even remains at rest, during the time the
plants are under treatment.

The disintegration of the structural part of the plant is due to a
bacterial action, and gas is given off during the operation. The
farmer, or ryot, and his men know what progress the action is making
by the presence of the air bells which rise to the surface; when the
formation of air bells ceases, the men examine the plants daily to
see that the operation does not go too far, otherwise the fibrous
layer would be injured, and the resulting fibre weak. The stems are
tested in these examinations to see if the fibrous layer, or bast
layer, will strip off clean from the wood or stem. When the ryot
considers that the layers are separated from the core sufficiently
easy, the work of steeping ceases, and the process of stripping is
commenced immediately. This latter process is conducted in various
ways depending upon the practice in vogue in the district.

In one area the men work amongst the water breaking up the woody
structure of the retted plants by means of mallets and cross rails
fixed to uprights in the water; others break the stems by hand;
while in other cases the stems are handed out of the water to women
who strip off