126 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[January i, 1907. 



RUBBER INTERESTS IN EUROPE. 



GKKAT BRITAIN. 

 ^OME of the leading makers of in.sulated wires liave an- 

 ^^ nouncefl a further advance of 15 percent, in price.s, over 

 tlie 10 per cent, already in force upon their li.sts for igo6, 

 making in all an advance of 25 per cent. 



= .41 the twelfth International vShoe and Leather Fair in 

 London (November 5-10) rubber goods were exhibited at 

 no less than thirty stands, though these were for the most 

 part heels and soles. The British trade in these, however, is 

 becoming very important, several laFge factories being devot- 

 ed to their production exclusively. The British makers of 

 rubber footwear made exhibits, and also The Outta I'ercha 

 and Rubber Manufacturing Co. of Toronto, Limited, and the 

 European representatives of the Hood Rubber Co. (Boston 1. 

 Howison & Co. (London) included in their exhibit the 

 " Penn " heels, which are made in the United States. 



= A recent patent ( Xo. 17,132a — 1905) granted to John A. 

 L. Nixon, of Dundee, relates to a pneumatic golf ball. The 

 inflatable rubber ball which forms the center may be filled 

 with either air or gas, under pressure. 



= Connolly Brothers, Limited, insulated wire manufactur- 

 ers, of Blackley, Manchester, have introduced an India-rub- 

 ber solution which is described as being non-inflammable, 

 thus rendering it capableof being stored or transported more 

 cheaply and with less risk than has been true of rubber so- 

 lutions in the past. 



=The India-Rubbcr Journal, dealing with the subject of 

 British rubber goods exports to China, expresses the belief 

 that Japan is becoming an active competitor in that field. 

 '\'hi Journal is of the opinion that both Japan and Germany 

 are now selling more rubber goods in China than is England. 



FRANCE. 



There is being organized in Paris the Societe d' Etudes 

 Industrielles pour la Fabrication du Caoutchouc, concerning 

 which information may be gained from INIonsieur M. Harris. 

 47 de la rue de Flandre. 



= The directors of the Societe Industrielle des Telephones, 

 a French rubber manufacturing companj', proposed a divi- 

 dend of 15 francs per share for the year, against 18 francs for 

 the year preceding. 



=The Etablissements Hutchinson are reported to be ex- 

 ceptionally busj-, in all their lines of production, at both 

 Langlee, (France) and Mannheim (Germany). They have 

 received an important order for tires from one of the London 

 motor 'bus companies. The company's shares are quoted 

 higher than at any time in the past. 



=At Daurdan a set of " vSamson " leather treads were 

 used, with Dunlop tires, on a Darracq car which made a 

 speed of 180 kilometers ( = 111.8 miles) an hour. The best 

 previous record with these treads was 174 kilometers an 

 hour. 



=The Xinth Exposition Internationale de I' Automobile, 

 du Cycle, et des Sports, at the Grand Palais, Paris, was held 

 on December 7-25. The French tire trade, as usual, was 

 strongly represented. 



RUSSIA. 

 Exports of manufactures of India-rubber from Russia, for 

 the last three years for which ofiicial statements have been 

 published, were as follows : 



Weight 



In 1902 138,000 pouds 



In 1903 140,000 pouds 



In 1904 i4g.ooo pouds 



Value 

 2977,000 rubles ( = 81,533,155^ 

 3 1,64, (xjo rubles ( $1,880,960) 

 3,983.000 rubles ( $2,051,265) 



These figures relate principally to rubber footwear. The 

 importation of rubber goods into Russia is very small. One 

 item for 1904 was galoches, amounting to 699 pounds in 

 weight, and 22,126 rubles (=$11,395) in value. 



GERMANY. 



.■\ siiowixc. of the profits of the Vereinigte Gummiwaaren- 



Fabriken Harburg-Wien, given last month in these ])ages, 



may be supplemented bj- the following statement of the dis 



position of the net profits for the business year 190506 : 



Net profit for this year M 505.400. 1 1 



Dividend 5 per cent, on the entire capital 300 000 00 



.1/ 205,400. 1 1 

 Less In per cent commission to the directors 20,540 01 



A/ 1S4 860 10 

 .\(i(l balaiHH' from profits of 1904-05 176,948.92 



Dividend 2)^ per cent, on the entire capital 



361 809.02 

 mo.ooo.i o 



.1/ 211,809 02 

 Less Officers' Pension Fumls 50,000.00 



Rrtlance to 1906-07. 



. flf 161, .S09 02 



SEMI CENTENNIAL AT HAKBURG. 



O.N" October 27 occurred the fiftieth anniversarj- of the 

 founding of the rubber factory at Harburg a/d Elbe now- 

 forming part of the equipment of the Vereinigte Gunimi- 

 waaren-Fabriken Harburg-Wien. In 1856 Louis and Albert 

 Cohen established there the rubber shoe industry. It was 

 on a small scale at first, but the business grew and other 

 products were added. After various changes iu firm style, 

 the Harburg factory came into possession of Menier, the 

 French chocolate manufacturer. P'ollowing the Franco- 

 Prussian war in 1S70, the changed conditions led to the re- 

 tirement of Menier from the field, when a stock companv 

 was formed to merge the business with that of J. X. Reit- 

 hoffer, of Vienna. 



Of the founder of the .Austrian branch of the business little 

 has ever been printed. Johann Xepomuk Reithoffer was born 

 in 1781 and in time set up as a tailor in Nikolsburg. After 

 his wanderjahrc in Germany and France he went home im- 

 pressed with the need for some waterproof cloth. In 1S24 

 he obtained the privilege of waterproofing woolen cloth. His 

 process, discovered as early as Macintosh's, lay in soaking 

 the goods in a solution of berries of theleimmistel, sunflower 

 seed oil, and caustic soda. It is said really to have worked 

 well, e.xcept that the cloth stuck to the chair whenever one sat 

 down. Reithoffer went the next year to Vienna, where he 

 started a rubbet thread factorj-. In 1828 he went into part- 

 nership with .\ugust Purschter, who had a patent for rubber 

 thread, cut from Para ' bottles " and wrapped with linen, 

 silk, or wool. In 1850 he got a patent on a vulcanized rub- 

 ber shoe, and in 1S54 founded the factorj' at Wimpassing 

 which later was brought under joint control with that at 

 Harburg. 



ITALY. 



The Cape Asbestos Co., Limited, of Turin, were awarded 

 the grand diploma of honor and a gold medal at the Milan 

 international exposition of 1906. 



