THE CEYLON RUBBER EXHIBITION, AND 

 RUBBER CULTIVATION IN THE EAST. 



By J. C. WILLIS, Sc.D., 

 Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Ceylon. 



An Exhibition of Rubber has lately been held in the Royal 

 Botanic Gardens, Peradeniya, Ceylon, and marks a distinct 

 stage in the development of this great new industry. As the 

 cultivation of rubber is, at the present time, probably the most 

 profitable agricultural pursuit in the world, and is entirely the 

 creation of the scientific departments kept up (by their Govern- 

 ments) in the tropical colonies of Ceylon and the Straits Settle- 

 ments aided by the central gardens of Kew, it may be useful 

 to review at this time the way in which science has assisted it. 

 Not only was the establishment of the industry due to the 

 forethought of men of science, but it has been developed in a 

 very scientific spirit, and is being advanced mainly by the 

 labours of scientific men. 



For its inception we must go back more than thirty years, 

 when, inspired by Sir Clements Markham, expeditions were 

 sent by the Indian Government to the river Amazon, to collect 

 and bring back the seeds of the South American rubber plants, 

 which looked as if they would one day cease to supply the large 

 quantity of rubber consumed in the world. The expeditions, 

 headed by Mr. Wickham and Mr. Cross, successfully brought 

 to Kew seeds of the Para rubber {Hevea brasiliensis) and other 

 species. It was intended that these should be sent to India, but 

 it was evident that at that time there was no Botanic Garden in 

 India with a suitable climate, and the bulk of the plants were in 

 consequence sent, in charge of a special gardener, to Ceylon, 

 where they were established in the branch garden at Henarat- 

 goda, near Colombo, which was opened by Dr. Thwaites for 

 their reception. A few were also planted at Peradeniya, but 



538 



