Vol. X. No. 232. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



95 



WEST INDIAN PRODUCTS. 



DRUGS AND SPICES ON THE LONDON 

 MARKET. 



Mr. J. R. Jackson. A.LS., has forwarded the fol- 

 lowing report on the London drug and spice market, 

 lor the month of February : — 



The month of February opened well in Mincing Lane 

 in the matter of drugs and chemicals, but with .spices much 

 le.ss interest has been shown. The greatest activity prevailed 

 in the middle of the month, and alfected products of Eastern 

 origin rather than those of the West, Imt the general tone of 

 the markets was considered, by buyers and sellers alike, as 

 highly satisfactory, both in the quantities brought forward, 

 as well as in tlie prices realized. The drug that is still 

 attracting perhaps the most interest is Buchu, the leaves of 

 species of Barosma from Cape Colony, which at the time of 

 writing are fetching as much as 4.s. 3d. per lb. The interest 

 shown in, and the demand for, this drug are proved from the 

 facts that in the month of December 1909, the exports from 

 Cape Colony amounted to 13,88.5 lb., valued at £.58.5, while 

 in December last (1910) the exports were only 6,727 ft) , and 

 the value £563. 



GINGER. 



The demand for this article has been very slow. In the 

 early part of the month it was represented by only 215 bags 

 of Cochin, which were sold without reserve at 47,s. 6d. to 48s. 

 Again later, some 300 packages of Japan were brought for- 

 ward, and sold without reserve at 38.s. to -lOs. per cwt. 



NUTMEGS, MACE AND PIMENTO. 



On the Sth of the month, 190 packages of West Indian 

 nutmegs were brought forward, and partly sold at the follow- 

 ing rates: 56's lOd., 58's dd., 8-t's 8</., OS's to 70's Id. and 

 in proportion down to 120's at id. to ihd. Later in the 

 month, 16 packages of West Indian were oti'ered and sold, 67's 

 fetching 5irf, 90's 5,1., 104's to I09's -i'ld. to 5d. Some 51 

 packages from the east were also offered and partly sold; 60's 

 realizing 8d., 85's 6d. and lOO's 4|(/. Mace was represented 

 on the Sth by 58 packages West Indian, which sold at 

 2s. 3fZ. to 2s. Id. per lb. Pimento has been very little in 

 demand, and the offerings mostly bought in, and the same 

 may be said with regard to arrowroot. 



SARSAPAPaLL.\. 



Grey Jamaica and Lima-Jamaica have been scarce 

 during the month, and enquiries have been made for both. 

 Their absence has been the cause, at the latter part of the 

 month ,of a greater demand for native Jamaica. At auction 

 on the 9th this quality was however slow of sale. Some 1 1 

 bales were bought in at lOd. per lb., while 4 bales out of 

 another oft'ering of 21 bales sold at lljd to ll|d. per Bb. for 

 dull mixed to fair red,; yellow fetched Id. per B). At the 

 .same sale, 4 packages of Honduras were bought in at Is. 2d. 

 per B). At the last auction on the 23rd, grey and Lima- 

 Jamaica were still ab.sent, with the result that a few bales of 



native .Jamaica fetched slightly increased prices, 10(^. to Is. 

 being paid for dullish red mixed. 



KOLA, LIME .JUICE AND LIME OIL. 



At auction in the middle of the month, 5 bags of West 

 Indian kola were offered and sold at 3id. per lb. for dull 

 and dark, and at the last sale 3|c?. per lb. was paid for 7 

 barrels of fair dried West Indian. In connexion with the 

 continental trade in kola, it may be interesting to .say that 

 the West African crops are reported to be very small, with 

 the result that prices have risen considerably, and further 

 advances are expected, especially as the stock at Hamburg 

 is said to be small. The business in concentrated West 

 Indian lime juice has been small at prices from £18 2s. 6d. 

 to £18 7s. 6d. Raw West Indian, for which there has been 

 a fair demand, has fetched from Is. per gallon upward. For 

 hand pressed West Indian lime oil 5s. to 5s. 3d. per lb. 

 has been paid, and for West Indian distilled oil Is. Id to 

 Is. -Id. 



A NEW METHOD OF COAGULATING 

 RUBBER LATEX. 



The process, devised by Mr. W. F. Dern, chemist to 

 the Mexico Latex Company, consists of two stages, the first 

 being the preservation of the latex. For this purpose the 

 latex is filtered the first day it is collected; thereby particles 

 of bark and other impurities are removed. A preservini^ 

 powder, discovered by Dern, is then well mixed in, and this 

 sets up a kind of fermentation. When this fermentation 

 has subsided, the latex is prepared for transport by being 

 enclosed in hermetically sealed drums. The latex prepared 

 in this way will remain in its natural state for months. At 

 the works it first undergoes another treatment with a second 

 compound discovered by Dern, 2 litres of this liquid being 

 sufficient for 5 gallons of latex. The mixture is then treated 

 in a centrifugal machine, this process taking from twenty to 

 thirty minutes. By these means the objectionable resins and 

 protein substances are separated, and there remains, accord- 

 ing to statements of the company, a pure, well-preserved, 

 nervy, non-sticky raw product. The yield naturally varies 

 according to the nature of the latex. With Castilloa latex 

 about 35 per cent, of pure rubber is obtained, and 10 per 

 cent, of rubber resins; with Hevea hradlieiisis, up to 40 per 

 cent, of pure rubber and 6 per cent, of rubber resins. The 

 value of the rubber resins amounts to about 50 per cent, of 

 that of the pure rubber, and when working with large 

 quantities of latex it covers the total cost of treatment. 



The rubber thus obtained is immediately pa.ssed through 

 the washing rollers and dried, and is ready for despatch within 

 twenty-four hours; the rubber resins are obtained two days 

 later. With the plant, as at present used in San Juan Bautista, 

 namely, one motor, two presses, and twenty mixing machines, 

 about 200 gallons of latex can be treated daily. The com- 

 pound used to bring about coagulation can be used 

 repeatedly, and when it is finally too weak, its original 

 strength can be restored by distillation and the addition of 

 about 20 per cent, of spirit. At present the rubber produced 

 by this process is shipped to Hamburg, where it is said to find 

 a ready sale at a good price; rublier resin is sold in the 

 4'nited States. Up to now the process has only been tested 

 with Hevea, Castilloa and balata. It should, however, be 

 applicable to other sorts with equal results. As for the pro- 

 duct of the new method, reports must be awaited. (The 

 India-Ruhher Journal, January 28, 1911.) 



