398 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



December 15, 1906. 



RUBBER TREES IN BRITISH GUIANA. 



The following is a brief siinimaiy of a report b}' 

 Mr. Edgar Beckett, Agricultural Iivstructor, on an 

 expedition during June, July, and August last, to the 

 north-west district of British Guiana in search of 

 rubber-^-ielding trees of the genus Saiiium : — 



Mr. Beckett left ^lacca.seema on .June 11. On .Tune 13 

 Le met the first Snplum trees. Heavy rain prevented 

 tapping from .succeeding. On June 18, at Dareh creek, he 

 found a gigantic Sajiiuni (possibly S. Jenmani, but no fruit 

 or flowers could be procured to fix the species definitely) 

 which was about 110 feet high, and 9 feet 7 inches in 

 girth at the height of 3 feet from the ground. This tree 

 was tapped, and in spite of the heavy rainfall, some samples 

 of its rubber were procured. Sapium seedlings were not 

 found under Sapium trees, since they require light and air. 

 iSome seedlings, however, were found in places where the fall 

 of a large tree had made room for the sunlight. This is the 

 reason, perhaps, why Sapium trees are not found in large 

 numbers close together. 



As the trees were just past the flowering stage, neither 

 flowers nor seed could be obtained The seeds are so small 

 that they were unknown to the forest Indians, who declared 

 that this tree bore no seed at all. Other seedlings were 

 collected in a clearing at Arriah. Here a giant forest tree 

 was discovered, of a kind called by the Arawak Indians 

 Dukalliballi. It proved to be a Ficuf, and its abundant 

 late.v yielded only resin. 



On June 2i, Mr. Beckett began to ascend the Shiruru. 

 The Indians here had samples of excellent rubber, but would 

 not show the trees from which they obtained it. 



On July 8 large numbers of young Sapium trees were 

 found on the Waini river at a place called ' Short Cut,' where 

 a halt of ten days was made. It was observed that certain 

 kinds of Sapium have no caoutchouc whatever in their 

 milk. This was well known to the Indians of the district. 

 On July 24, what appeared to be a new species of Sapium 

 was discovered past Black Creek, a tributary of the Imoti. 



The chief results of the expedition are : — 



1. Valuable rubber trees exist in British Guiana. 



2. Sajnum Jenmani yields commercial rubber. As sold 

 by the aborigines, its rubber is probably mixed with the resin 

 of wild species of Ficus. 



3. Sapium auciipitrium was not met with in the Waini. 



4. No trees of llevea hmsiliensis were seen, though other 

 species of Hcvca were met with. 



5. Some kinds of S'ipiwn have no rubber in their latex. 



In connexion with this report it is of interest to 

 note that the source of Colombia ' Virgen ' rubber, 

 to which reference was made in the Agricultural 

 News (Vol. V, p. 311), according to the somewhat 

 scanty materials supplier! to Kew by IVIr. R. B. White 

 and Mr. R. Thomson in 1890, seemed to be a variety of 

 Sapium biylandulosum. In Kciv Bulletin, 1890-1, 

 pp. 49-50, the following reference occurs: — 



Mr. R. Thomson gives an interesting account of a tree 

 which yields the india-rubber known in commerce as Colombia 

 'Virgen.' This has the peculiarity, unlike all other known 

 sources of this substance, of growing at high elevations, and 

 therefore in a comparatively cool climate. From the indica- 

 tions furnished by Mr. Robert B. White, and subsequently 

 by Mr. Thomson, there can be little doubt that the tree is 

 one of the multiform varieties of Sap)ium higlandulosum, 

 a member of the family Eiqiliorbiaceae, to which the trees 

 yielding the Para and the Ceara rubbers also belonc;. This 



widely spread and extremely variable .species extends from 

 Mexico and Panama to Colombia, Venezuela, Guiana, and 

 Brazil. The variations which it presents in habit are 

 probably as extreme as are to be met with in the vegetable 

 kingdom, and it is probable that its rubber-producing 

 qualities may be equally variable. In the West Indies it 

 exists in forms which are probablj- conspecific. But though 

 recognized as abounding in a milky juice, it has never been 

 regarded in that region as a source of caoutchouc, at any rate 

 in appreciable quantities. 



In Schoniburgk's History of Barbados, p. 592, 

 Sapium aucuparium alluded to in Mr. Beckett's 

 report, is mentioned as the ' Poison Tree.' 



Species of Sa2num occur in Jamaica, Grenada, 

 Cuba, Trinidad, and other W'est India Islands. It 

 might be interesting to undertake tapping experiments 

 to ascertain if they yield commercial rubber. 



AGRICULTURAL SHOW AT BARBADOS. 



The seventh local Agricultural Show was held by 

 the Imperial Department of Agriculture at Maynard's 

 plantation, St. Peter, Barbados, by kind permission of 

 the Hon. Dr. W. K. Chandler, C.M.G., on Tuesday, 

 December 4. 



Considering the unfavourable weather that had been 

 experienced prior to the date of the show, and the fact that 

 this was the first show to be held in the leeward parishes, 

 there wa.s, on the whole, a fair display of fruit and vegetables. 

 The show of live stock was small, except in the case of 

 poultry, in which department this show was an advance on 

 previous ones. There was a large attendance. 



The prizes were distributed by Lady Morris, and at the 

 conclusion addresses were delivered by the Hon. Sir Daniel 

 Morris, K C.M.G., Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture, 

 Mr. H. B. Skeete, M.C.P., the Rev. H. Hutson, and .Air. J. A. 

 Carrington, Assistant Inspector of Schools. 



In the course of his address. Sir Daniel Morris briefly 

 explained the objects of these local shows, namely, to 

 encourage all the small people of the fsland who happen to 

 have land to make good use of it and to plant more crops 

 likely to be of benefit to them. A further object was to 

 encourage the raising of poultry, pigs, and sheep, and so 

 promote the general welfare and prosperity of the people. 

 Much more might be done in the direction of raising poultry, 

 if greater attention were paid to the matter. 



Sir Daniel Morris expressed the thanks of those present 

 to the Hon. Dr. Chandler for lending Maynard's plantation 

 for the purpose of .the show, and also to the manager of the 

 plantation, and to the show committee. He particularly 

 mentioned his appreciation of the services of Mr. J. R. Bovell, 

 who had devoted much time and trouble to the arrangements 

 for the show. 



Lockjaw or Tetanus. In the Vrest Indies there is 

 every year a loss in cattle and mules from this fatal disease. 

 The microbe of tetanus is found in all soils. When earth gets 

 into a wound, if the animal is quite healthy, the organisms 

 of the blood prevent infection by tetanus. But if the animal 

 is unhealthy, or if the organisms of the blood are weakened, 

 the tetanus microbe multiplies and the symptoms of the disease 

 appear. If a wound is at once washed out with dilute 

 carbolic acid and then covered to prevent dirt entering, there 

 is very little chance of the infection succeeding in estabhshin" 

 itself. 



