The demand for Philippine embroideries greatly exceeds the supply. At present the greatest demand is for ladies’ underwear, but there is also a tremendous demand for infants’ and children’s underwear and fine frocks. The making of children’s dresses, especially in the larger sizes, is probably the most complicated of all handmade merchandise, not only in the fine embroidery stitchery but also in the cutting and sewing. This class of workmanship is finding favor by leaps and bounds in the United States.
Embroidery Factories There are about forty embroidery factories in Manila, the entire output of which is practically absorbed by the United States. Recently new markets have opened up, notably India, Australia, and China, where the dainty work of the Filipino women has been much admired.
The following figures show the growth of the embroidery industry of the Philippines during the years indicated:
| Year | Values of exports |
| 1913 | ₱352,338 |
| 1914 | 324,912 |
| 1915 | 735,303 |
| 1916 | 2,328,024 |
| 1917 | 3,929,318 |
| 1918 | 4,319,501 |
| 1919 | 6,913,004 |
| 1920 | 15,623,567 |
| 1921 | 10,696,207 |
| 1922 | 6,514,597 |
Perfumes.—The Orient, since the most ancient times, has been famous for perfumes, and in this regard the Philippines are not behind from other oriental countries. Over two scores of aromatic oils from plants have been studied by the Bureau of Science and found to be available for perfumery and medicine; and, as exploration progresses, undoubtedly others will become better known.
Ilang-ilang.—At least one Philippine essential oil, namely ilang-ilang, has enjoyed a world-wide fame among perfumes for several years. Although the oil is extracted also from the flowers of the same tree in other oriental countries, the Philippine product always has brought and still does bring the highest prices in the perfume trade in Europe.
Patchouli oil.—Another oil that has been known in the Orient for thousands of years and in Europe for centuries is patchouli oil. This, while of no commercial importance in the Philippines at present, has a peculiar interest to the botanist, for while the plant is cultivated in many parts of the Orient in considerable quantities, there is no record of its flowering except in the Philippines.
Rattan.—The thirty odd kinds of rattans, and the climbing members of the palm family, furnish strips and reeds for the manufacture of furniture. Considerable exports in rattan were made during the war; and, should the rattan be prepared and graded in a manner similar to what is being done in Singapore, this item of export alone would not only be increased, but much higher prices would be received for the product. Rattan strips are used in enormous quantities all over the Islands as tying material for houses, bridges, wharfs, boats, fish weirs, and so forth, besides being almost the only material used for tying bales of Manila hemp, tobacco, sugar bags, and similar commercial packages.
Shoes.—The shoe industry in the Philippines is in its infant stage. The exportation during 1919 was only 2,368 pairs of leather shoes and 674 pairs of canvas shoes, worth ₱20,695 and ₱2,351, respectively. Shoes, however, that left the Islands through the military, probably worth more than the amount given, are not included. On the other hand over ₱5,000,000 worth of shoes of all kinds were imported in 1919.
There are two factories in the City of Manila manufacturing shoes by machinery. Filipino laborers are employed and have proved competent to undertake all phases of the manufacture of shoes. These factories are making shoes that compare very favorably with the better-grade shoes made in the United States, using only the best imported leathers and other necessary materials from the United States. The two factories have a capacity of about one thousand pairs of shoes per day.