BelizeSearch.com Website of the Day Hector Silva Click here for past Websites of the Day

Top photo: Here are the blocks of chicle ready to be transported from the Benque Viejo Bodega, to the San Ignacio Boat Wharf and then to the Belize City Ware Houses. (This Bodega was situated by the Park in front of the Benque Viejo Town Council Offices, near the river. ) Lots of chicle used to come from across the river.

It was a dangerous way to make a living. You have to climb the tree with just a rope to hold you like a hammock and some men fell to their death accidentally cutting the rope that sustained them. Very sharp machetes were used for that task. No safety harnesses, no hard hats, etc. Those were the days of exploitation by the British.

This employment had to be when the rainfall began, as the resin flow better better. So, these men, as you see in this picture, had to withstand the dangers of falling from the tree, the mosquitos, and other insects and bugs (Many died from snake bite), to produce CHEWING GUM FOR THE CHEWERS.

We were next door neighbors to the A. Figueros, and everytime the chicle men would reach from the bush my sisters and I would run to the Figueroas under a shed where the men were boiling the chicle. They would cut piece off the big block and give us to chew. We had to chew,chew,chew, to spit out the milk.then we could enjoy our chicle (Then the chicle would have no flavor). That was about our only chewing gum growing up. But oh for those days!

Photo 1:
THESE ARE THE CHICLE BLOCKS READY FOR THE EXPORT MARKET.

This was the second largest Industry in the building of our Economy and the Industry that employed more Belizeans than any other. Notable chicle exporters in Belize history included Mr. Robert Sydney Turton and B.E.C.

This chicle was mostly sold to the Wrigley Company that owned the owners of the Wrigley Field and the Chicago Cubs Many are wondering, what became of this large Industry.

MY ONLY ANSWER IS, - Hurricane Hattie which destroyed most of the Sapodila Trees.-- and synthetic Gums that were introduced..

Photo 2:
The Chiclero that extracted the chewing gum that the world chewed with much gusto

This is one of the most extensive and SAD STORIES in the history of Belize. It took me many years to reach into the belly of this industry.

The story is long, but I will give a tip view of this important STORY, which I have recorded at length.

CHICLEROS were hired men, who had to work in the jungles of Belize for SIX MONTHS without coming home. - BY LAW .. CHICLEROS worked during rainy months, because this was the season when the SAP of the ( sapodilla ) Chicle trees run freely.

CHICLEROS were the victims of snakes, mosquitos, doctor flies,- wasps - biting ants, scorpions and even Wild Animals.

BUT CHICLEROS were in danger that up on the tree, if he made the slightest mistake with that RAZOR SHARP machete, and touch that suspention rope, he would be a dead man.

BUT the worse danger facing the CHICLEROS were those professional KILLERS who were allegedly hired to shoot them down while on the tree top.

IN THOSE DAYS COMPENSATION DID NOT EXISTED, so a Chiclero's body if it was found,it was transported like cargo to be burried by a poor family. - His chicle LOST I have a written a book,on one of Belize;s HERO of hundreds of Chicleros he saved.

Photo 3:
THIS SHOWS THE COMPLETE PROCESS OF CHICLE EXTRACTION from top to bottom

The Chiclero cuts NEAT channels on the bark of the Sapodila Tree. ( neat because if not clear cuts the resin remains under the bark pf the tree.

Then the Chicle Resin flows neatly down the tree, to full a rubber coated bag.

Then In the evening the resin is collected and taken to camp for the cooking process.

The chiclero had to be very careful that his machete does not slip and cut the tense rope - ( he would be a dead man )

Photo 4:
COOKING THE CHICLE RESIN IS THE FINAL PROCESS

Then it was moulded into blocks fort he export market. Here is a Maya man doing the cooking ( look like my friend Tanico)

This cooking was an art. Good fire and water, while stirring or it gets over cooked. and lost.

Photo 5:
HERE IS A CREOLE MAN ALSO COOKING HIS PRODUCT

This goes to show that this industry employed people of all Ethnic Groups. -Careful cooking ..

The color of Chicle varied according to the quality. There was the CHICLE HEMBRA which had the best texture, and the CHICLE MACHO which had a sticky texture. The Chicle Hembra had the best price, SO the geniuses mixed the Macho with the Hembra and they got a better price. The Chicle Macho was more common in the Chiquibul area. So it is believed, that the Chiquibul Forest got its name from the chicle bull, (Bull the macho of the cow). There were about 35 Chicle Traders. Many of these contractors were accompanying Mr. Turton on their way to Bullet Tree, when Eluterio Hernandez appeared on the road, near today's Juan Chuc Store, and shot off two of Mr Turton fingers.

Hector Silva: I was browsing among books, which I have written when my eyes caught the LIFE OF A CHICLERO. ( A chiclero was a hard working man, who made a living for his family, by extracting the Resin of the Sapodilla tree and selling it to a Chicle Contractor. These men signed a Contract in June, to enter the jungles and stay there for six months. In December they would come down to claim their INCOME. - If they didn't appear, that was it, until next year. NOW COME THE SAD DAYS. Many Christmas seasons , many chicleros, did not return home, nor to collect their Income.So that became a day of mourning in those communities. WHAT HAPPENED TO THOSE CHICLEROS, - The Official answer was that Tiger eat them, Snake bit them, or that they fell from the Tree ALL LIES. - According to eye witnesses, ( Chicleros nearby ), they were shot by PROFESSIONAL KILLERS, imported from abroad. Processed Chicle was CASH IN HAD. - SO, Chicleros missing was Chicle money DEAD. SO OUR CHRISTMASES WERE MIXED. - - - ( I am now trying to get sponsors for my books, explaining how dangerous it was to BUILD A NATION, by those hard working men. ). The blocks of chicle depended on the amount of cooked gum. Some blocks weighed 25 lbs and some 50 lbs, or in between, always managable to load them on a Mule Back.

COMMENTS:

I was a chicerio from the age of 12 to the age of 28. I passed through rough expèriences in the jungle from july to February with out seeing my family for 7 months. My brother accidentally cut his rope and fell approximately 40ft from a tree and I had to walk 2 days and 2 nights to get help. My father was also a chiclero and died on the job from a bitten by a yellow jaw and died wen i was only 7 years old. And because jobs were scarce i had to follow his footsteps. Being a chiclero is rough! It takes a real man to be a chiclero.

One of the by-products of the Resin: Use up to now and will never fade off the shelves. My father was a damn good chiclero I witnessed him making a bag ( laundry style) out of the resin it was strong well made and prevented moisture from seeping in

When there is not sufficient water in the jungle to cook the Resin, the POOR COOK have to invite his friends to donate their URINE, so as not to loose the PRODUCT . ( But like how Seferino Coleman would say, " THIS DA BETWEEM YOU AND ME "

The mayas of southern Belize also were a part of the chiclero havesting. There were lots of stories from those that went to camp out for days.

Short oral histories of Chicleros from Corozal

Source: Alan Baker

These men were in their 80's in 2003 so they would be in their late 90's today.

Click here for the document.

The Chiceros sang some very cute songs, I remember hearing this one: "Hairy foot Sambo dah whe Yu think a yawndah" If yu foot soh hairy Sambo dah whe yu think ah yawndah."

William George Ysaguirre: As a child at Holy Redeemer Primary School in the early 60's, I can remember seeing the blocks of chicle in the Belize Estate warehouse on North Front St., directly across from Holy Redeemer Cathedral, at where is now the Bottom Dollar Supermarket. The blocks were about 12" by 10", by maybe 8" high. The blocks had no sharp corners, nor sharp edges, were actually sort of octagonal in shape, as the corners were cut off. They looked rather like a block of 'cow lick' rock salt that a rancher might put in his pasture for cattle. I remember finding bits and pieces of chicle to take home, they looked a bit like cork, as there were bubbles in the chicle. It was totally tasteless, had no flavor or sugar, only it's stickiness and chewability told you it was chicle. I might have been chewing on a piece of old shoe, for all the flavor it had!

Brian Flowers: My Dad worked at BEC..had access to dat warehouse..can't forget that smell .like leather fi real.

Alvaro Papi Varela Jr.: As a kid at Holy Redeemer. Looked like 12x12x10 No taste. But chewable.

Kay Mck: We use to beg for pieces of chicle, chew n spit out the taste after every chew until it became gum. Love those days

Eugene Trench: Talking about Chicle when Belize went to the Gold Cup a couple years ago the announcers mentioned that British Honduras was one of the first country that exported our chicle to the famous Wrigley’s chewing gum makers of Spearmint, Double Mint, Juicy Fruit and others. I learnt that when the announcers mentioned it wow !

Luisa Cardona Tall: I remember being given a piece. Tasteless!

Margaret Tillett-Hosein: As children, my chiclero uncles use to bring us a piece of the chicle after it was cooked. Hard to chew.

Percival Thompson:n We had gone back to Santos pine ridge to recover an oliver tractor left at the sawmill when the rainy season started. Mr. Gerald Baptist was on the... I believe 1090 or 1790 John Deere, I was the sideman to drive back the oliver. Halfway through the ridge we encountered Reggy Peres of Rancho Dolores leading a white donkey fully loaded with slabs of chicle, this was 1973. We stopped to chat and promised on our way back we'd take the load of chicle to Rancho. On our return the donkey decided it was going to squat and would not budge. Reggy told us we could continue on because the donkey will get up when it is quite ready and not before. That to my mind was one of the last chicleros.

George Villanueva: I remember it was hard as tire rubber, no sugar, no flavoring, you could chew till your teeth would fall out.

Nadesna Valencia: I understand they never threw it away. Save and continue to chew later. Check under the chairs at the schools, they're still there lol. My maternal grandfather used to be a Chiclero. He used to tell us they would leave from San Esteban Orange Walk and go through the forest and would be all there up to Tulum sapping them trees. Later on in life my father use to commerce the chicle and I can remember seeing the hauling on that dusty Orange Walk - Belize road, dropping of the chicle front of Holy Redeemer School.

Ben Flores: I remember seeing the block of raw chicle in Santa familia around 1957. That was a site to behold. Twas was a long time ago. It had like a dirty white look, beige or cream.

Spain Luz: When I was very young I tasted the chicle it was tasteless.

Jeremy A. Enriquez: Have you ever thought of the work that goes into satisfying your chicle chewing desires? Here a chiclero is harvesting the sap of the sapodilla tree deep in the jungle. All that work for chew, chew, chew... throw away. The entire process, including searching for these trees in dense forest and all the risks and work of harvesting and curing the gum, just for momentary chewing and discarding of a flavored gum used to amaze me.

Alice Noralez: Hard work indeed. We use to chew the leaves of the sappadilla tree. Its gummy.. The thick liquid from the stem is rubbery n can be chewed too.

Christopher Nesbitt: When I was young I used to go deep into the mountains, and walked from my farm to Caracol. We found sapodilla trees with these marks on them in the middle of absolutely nowhere.

Rosenda McCulloch: And that's the mere start of the process once the tree is located and cleared out!

Genevieve Flores: I witness how they bleed the sapodilla tree then they make them into blocks like cement blocks and ready to be shipped out Mrs Pinto and her husband had a company in Crique Sarco we use to eat gum till our jaw hurt the sapodilla fruit was also delicious when ripe.

Olga Ford: I remember those days when I was growing up and was years ago young one of my girlfriend Father was a chiclero and she used to bring the hard gum to school and she gave it to some of her friends but I didn't like it as it had no taste and was hard it was those days a time of our life

Adelina Martinez: I remember when they brought the huge blocks of chickle to the wharf in PG for shipment to BZE we would bite off pieces and chew until our jaws hurt

Jeremy A. Enriquez: There rugged lives in the deep forest to extract the chicle sap are admirable. It’s still interesting to think about all that hard work… just for the momentary pleasure of people to chew. It’s not even like to build something. Just to chew and spit out. Must be one of the quirks of humanity.

Robert Pennell II: My grandfather and uncles were chicleros for a while. They would give us little pieces of the raw chicle to chew; hard and quite tasteless! The chicle industry was very hard on trees in the whole region from Mexico down. People were bleeding them unsustainably as extractive industries usually do.

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