During the winter, farmers could spend their evening hours whittling a supply of these wooden sap spouts, or spiles. You can see that the spout is trough-shaped with a hole at the end. The spout would be inserted into a hole in the tree. The sap could then run down the spout and into the barrel that would be hung from the end. Maple syrup was a good sweetener for many things, and less expensive than store-bought sugar. Early settlers used syrup for a whole lot more than pancakes!