452 FETCH : 



Indian woman employed on my " ciringal " used to drink consider- 

 able quantities of the fresh milk ; I suppose it was rendered 

 harmless by becoming mixed with saliva, as it will not congeal 

 if mixed with water. 



Tliere are many trees in tropical America wliich produce milk 

 from the bark yet more copiously than the Hevea. Who knows 

 but that some day equally economic use may be made from 

 some of them ? 



With regard to the success of the introduction of the Hevea into 

 India, much will, of course, depend on the nature of the soil on 

 which they are planted. In Venezuela and Brazil I found the 

 Hevea growing on two classes of comitry ; on the high clayey 

 uplands embraced by the branching rivers, but still at consider- 

 able distances from tliem, and on the low alluvial lands 

 immediately bordering on them. 



From the far greater size and apparent age of the trees I 

 cannot but imagine that the original locality of the tree was in these 

 uplands. The fact of their being so generally found on low lands 

 bordering on the waters may be accounted for. The seeds are 

 scattered widely when they burst ; many of them fall into ravines 

 and gullies and are carried by the watercourses of the rainy season 

 into the rivers, to be cast up by the tide and windy squalls, and 

 readily take root on the rich soil of the allu\ ial islands and shores 

 of the backwaters. In illustration of this I have frequently seen 

 a string of Hevea growing even on a beach, backed by sandy lands, 

 far from their proper localities. 



Although I know nothing personally about the climate of the 

 Eastern Indies, yet I imagine, from what I have read, that the 

 Malay peninsula is most likely to combine the climatic conditions 

 requirt;d by the indiarubber tree of the great valley of South 

 America. 



It is a mistake — naturally fallen into by the travellers who have 

 passed up and down the great water-waj's of South America, 

 without liaving penetrated far into the interior high clay lands 

 enclosed by tliem — to supjjose that the Hevea are confined to the 

 low, often-flooded islands and margins of rivers. Growing on 

 thfso clayey uplands, I met with the largest of these trees, rival- 

 ing ill height and girth all but the very largest trees which grow 

 in these parts. 



At the same tim<>, perhaps, on rich alluvial lands would be fomid 

 tlie b«'st localities for estabUshing plantations of these trees. Nor 

 tlo 1 think it would prove a serious drawback if they should bo 

 planted on lands wliich become annually flooded, to the depth of a 

 fo(jt or so, for a few weeks in the year. The land selected should, 

 1 think, l)e heavily timbered. The timber to bo cut down some 

 eight or nine wrel<i> before the first rains are expected, in order to 

 give thnr. to gcit a good burn over the ground. The ground also 

 should be cleaned up sufliciently, by piling and I)uriHiig the logs ; 

 those renininiiig to be rolled on one side. Tlic plants might be 

 set out in walks, converging to a central point, in order to facilitate 

 the collecting of the milk. I would strongly advise that the 

 Hcvca should bv planted alternately with cacao ; these low bushy 



