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of Nicaragua has imposed a tax of 5 cents on every pound of 

 rubber exported from the country. 



In the value ol exports rubber appears as the fourth. All of 

 this is collected from wild trees. The amount shipped from San 

 Juan del Norte to the United States in 1905 was 473,389 pounds. 



On the cocoa estates in the Rivas district rubber trees have been 

 planted as shade. In Costa Rica rubber has not proved a success 

 as shade for cocoa. In this latter country rubber is cultivated 

 near the coasts and on the Nicaraguan frontier. Several varieties 

 of Castillo, are grown, but the plantations are not yet in bearing, 

 so that definite results as to the yield of these forms are still 

 uncertain. 1111905 about 160,000 pounds of wild Castillo, rubber 

 was exported from this country. 



PLANTING IN MEXICO. 



One of the first attempts to cultivate rubber in Mexico was made 

 by the Hon. MATIAS ROMERO who in 1872 planted 100,000 trees 

 near Suchiate River in Soconusco, on the Guatemalan border. 

 The owner had to abandon the place for political reasons and the 

 plantation was gradually destroyed by native rubber collectors and 

 by fire, so that at present there is hardly any trace left. On the 

 identical spot of the old plantation a new one has been started in 

 recent years by a relative of Senor ROMERO. When I visited the 

 place about a year ago, it was in a thriving condition. Some 

 thirty years ago Don EUGENIO SANCHEZ . on the Teapa river in 

 the State of Tabasco planted the first rubber trees. After that 

 the PRATT and ALFARO families planted rubber, and about 22 

 years ago most of the farmers in the Teapa and Pichucalco valleys 

 commenced to plant extensively. For the past twelve years there 

 has been a steady increase of the planted area. In the Rio Seco 

 Valley, DON AUGUST LlTZOFF has now about 100,000 trees, two 

 to nine years old. 



On the upper Grijalva, above Huimanguillo, there is a line of 

 farms for about 30 miles ; most of these are tapping 10 year old 

 trees. Senor ABALOS, of Huimangillo, cropped an average of 14 

 ounces rubber from his 10 year old trees last year. 



All this was done on a comparatively small scale, however, the 

 plantations being in Mexican hands not consisting of more than a 

 few thousands or tens of thousands of trees. About 18 years ago 

 a number of rubber trees were set out as shade for cocoa on La 

 Zacualpa, in Soconusco, by the then owner, Senor PALAEZ. Of 

 these there are some 1,000 trees left, and they have been regularly 

 tapped for many years, the trees now presenting a very scarred 

 appearance as a result of the primitive method of tapping employed 

 by the native huleros. 



Less than ten years ago American capital was attracted towards 

 rubber planting in Mexico. As a result of this movement we 

 have to-day approximately 100 plantations, entirely or partly 

 devoted to rubber. I have in my possession letters and data 

 showing that the whole area under rubber in Mexico to-day 

 (December I, 1906) is at least 82,620 acres. I think it is safe to 



