"From Banda I went to Ceram, to see the process of obtaining sago. Perhaps you are fond of sago-pudding, and may be interested to know where sago comes from, and how it is prepared."
The boys nodded their assent, and Frank remarked that he had many times wished he knew more about the delicious article.
"The sago-tree belongs to the palm family; it is thicker and larger than the cocoa-palm, but not so tall, and its leaves are very large and long. The stem of the leaf is twelve or fifteen feet long, and six inches in diameter at the butt, and is used for a great many purposes. Whole houses are built of these stems, from the framework to the thatch-poles and flooring, and they never shrink or bend, or require any paint or varnish. The leaf forms an admirable thatch, and the trunk of the tree is the food of many thousands of people.
SAGO CLUB.
"When it is about fifteen years old the tree blossoms, and then dies. Just as it is about to blossom, it is cut down close to the ground, and stripped of its leaves. The upper part of the trunk is then taken off, so as to expose the pith of the tree, which is broken into a coarse powder by means of a club of heavy wood, having a piece of iron or sharp stone in one end. The whole inside of the tree is broken up till the trunk forms a trough not more than half an inch thick.
PREPARING SAGO.