124 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[January i, 1907. 



THE EDITOR'S BOOK TABLE. 



T' 



RKDRUBBKR. THE STDRV OK THE KUBllEk SLAVE TRADI-. ELOUK- 

 ishing on the Congo in the Vear of C.racc 1906. By E. D. Morel. With an 

 Introduction by Sir Harry H. Johnston, <;. c. M. t;., k. c. b. London: 1 

 Fisher Unwin. 1906. [Boards umo Pp. x.\n •) 213 + 2 maps. I'nce. 

 31. firf.] 



^HIS is a resume, up to date, of the studies of the Congo 

 situation, political and economic, to which Mr. Morel 

 has addressed himself so vigorously for half a dozen years or 

 more. By his writings he has done more than any one else 

 to focus the attention of English speaking peoples upon the 

 present condition of the Congo Free State and suggestions 

 for its amelioration. In this book is succinctly outlined the 

 history of the State, the system under which the business of 

 rubber gathering — its most important interest — is carried on, 

 and that for the distribution of the profits. The main points 

 which the author endeavors to prove are that the labor sys- 

 tem is based upon slavery of the worst form, and that the 

 " bensficiaries " are the king-sovereign, in his private capac- 

 ity, and a few associates. The book is convincingly writ- 

 ten, but it is, of course, only an ex pane statement. The 

 author concludes with discussing " What Great Britain Can 

 Do." 



Sir Harry Johnston, who contributs an introduction, is 

 noted as an authority on Africa, with a record as a success- 

 ful colonial administrator on that continent. He believes 

 the Congolese capable of improvement, but not under the 

 existing regime, in which the chief resources of the .Stale are 

 exploited, as he asserts, for private profit. This he terms the 

 inherently false principle in the Free State scheme. Sir 

 Harry would not favor international control of the Congo, 

 for the reason that there is as yet no "international con- 

 science." The proper administration of any colony or de- 

 pendency requires that its methods shall appeal singly to 

 the conscience of one state. His suggestion is that Belgium 

 take over the control of the Congo Free State, to be dealt 

 with as in the case of the other European powers and their 

 colonies. If the present regime continues, however. Sir 

 Harry predicts a ferment of hatred in the minds of the Con- 

 go negroes against all white men that will spread until it 

 has stamped out the beginnings of the new civilization 

 which it has been attempted to implant in Africa. 



THE CEVLON RUBBER EXHIBITION, SEPTEMBER 13-27, 1906. DE- 

 scriptive Account of the Show. Full List of Exhibits and Awards. Notes 

 on tne Prize Exhibits, and Full Reports of all the Lectures and Demonstra- 

 tions. Illustrated. Colombo : A. M. & I. Ferguson. 1906. [Boards. 8vo. 

 Pp. xx.\i+ 130, Price. $1.] 



This is a full and authentic record of the Ceylon rubber 

 exhibition recently reported in this Journal. To indicate the 

 care with which the book has been prepared it may be men- 

 tioned that each of the lecturers was given an opportunity to 

 revise his remarks before printing. The lectures form an 

 important contribution to the literature of India-rubber. 



RUBBER IN THE 1905 CENSUS. 



THE following details are in addition to a comprehensive 

 article in The India Ri'hher World last month on 

 the showing made by the rubber industry in the 1905 cen.sus 

 of manufactures in the I'nited States. 



RHODE ISL.VND. 



For this state the only details given relate to the factories 

 embraced in the classification "Rubber and Elastic Goods." 

 No explanation is given of the failure to include details in 

 connection with 4 rubber shoe factories. In the census of 



1900 the value of rubber footwear products was reported at 

 $8,034,417. Nor do the figures which follow embrace returns 

 for a clothes wringer factory- in the state: 



Rublier and Elastic Goods 



Number of factories 9 



Capital Si .794 533 



Salaries paid 9'>709 



.\verage number of wage earners 991 



Wages paid $416,642 



Miscellaneous expenses 227,815 



Cost of materials i ,639,301 



Value of jiroducls . 2,582,180 



CONNECTICUT. 



Boots and Rubber and 



Shoes— Rubber. Elastic goods. 



Number of factories 5 21 



Capital 19,532,042 ?7,o4i,765 



Salaries paid 199,130 443.732 



Average number of wage earners 4,706 3,143 



Wages paid $2,430,926 |i, 283.359 



Miscellaneous expenses 766,746 933,781 



Cost of materials 8,307,686 5,342040 



Value of products 12,829,346 8,868,353 



THREE OTHER STATES. 



The figures herewith relate solely to "Rubhirand elastic 



goods " : 



Illinois. Indiana, Wisconsi.n. 



Number of factories 11 6 3 



Capital 81562,251 $1,351,021 Ii774i58-1 



vSalaries paid 167,775 78.548 42.255 



Average number wage earners i 179 558 271 



Wages paid % 459.397 S 255,092 $111, S12 



Miscellaneous expen.ses , . . . 386,770 42,950 128,521 



Cost of materials 1,671,345 122,248 427,848 



Value of products 2.847,589 228,810 720,036 



INSUL.\TED WIRE. 

 From a careful study of Bulletin 57 it would appear that 

 the preceding figures do not include the products of that 

 branch of the rubber industry devoted to the manufacture of 

 insulated wires and cables. Included under another head- 

 ing — " Electrical machinery, apparatus, and supplies "—are 

 the statistics of production of insulated wires and cables. 

 The total value in the 1905 census was $34,519,699. The 

 figure for 1900 was $21,292,601. Of course this does not 

 apply to rubber insulation alone. 



WORLD'S PRODUCTION OF RUBBER. 



THE total production of crude rubber for the year 1904 

 is estimated by Brenier and Cla'erie, writing in Coi- 

 tiios. at 57,300 tons, of which one-third is credited to Ameri- 

 ca and one-fifth to .Vfrica. This would leave 46.7 per cent, 

 of the whole as the production of other continents, which 

 figure is clearly too large, .^s for the distribution for con- 

 sumption of the year's production, these figures are given : 



United States lotis 26,470 



Germany 1 2,800 



Kiigland 10,030 



France 4. '3° 



.\ustria-Huiigary 1.32° 



Holland \ i 218 



Belgium 748 



Italy 5S8 



Tot.-il 57.304 



This would leave nothing for Russia, in which countrj' 

 there is a very large consumption, or for Switzerland, Port- 

 ugal, Japan, and .-Vustralia, in all of which countries there 

 are rubber factories. It may be added, however, that the 

 consumption figure given for the United States corresponds 

 very nearly to the statistics commonly regarded as authen- 

 tic in this country, including the consumption in Canada. 



