The garment shown in the accompanying sketch was captured in the Solomons
area. A number of similar garments were found packed in bales, and in at
least one instance, one was found on a Japanese sniper shot out of a palm
tree by U.S. marines.
It is made from the shaggy, reddish-brown fiber that grows at the base of
the fronds of the coconut palm tree. Sheets of this fiber are sewed together
to form the garment.
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Japanese Camouflage Garment |
It can serve as a camouflage garment to be used in areas where there are
quantities of coconut palms. It has been used by snipers strapped in
among the fronds of palm trees, and it could also be used effectively
on the ground under suitable color conditions.
Comment: This type of garment is widely used in Japan as a raincoat. Those
made of coconut palm fiber are used by Japanese fishermen, while the
Japanese farmer makes his with reeds or rushes.