368 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[September i, 1907. 



THE STEAM 

 BRUSH CO. 



LEATHER 

 SUBSTITUTES. 



cleaning of carpets by the vacuum process. 

 The advent of the Steam Brush Co., of 

 Wandsworth, London, heralds a greatly in- 

 creased demand for steam hose. The company, which is re- 

 moving the grime from prominent buildings in our large towns, 

 uses steam at about 50 pounds pressure from a portable vertical 

 boiler, and considerable lengths of externally armored rubber 

 hose of one inch diameter are used in the distribution of jets. 



It is surprising how many people imagine that the common 

 English spelling of this word is to be found in the English dic- 

 tionaries, whereas the American "tire" is 



TYRE vs. TIRE. Universally given. Londoners who do not 

 read our trade journals have been per- 

 plexed by the very prominent gold letter sign of the Hartridge 

 Tire Syndicate in the Strand, London, and I hear of much ani- 

 mated discussion ancnt the spelling. There can be no doubt that 

 the American spelling is the most correct, and I have not come 

 across any educated person who has tried to prove the contrary. 



From time to time mention has been made in these notes of 

 the progress in the demand for upholstering materials to re- 

 place leather. A material which is now 

 being manufactured on a large scale and 

 for which there is a considerable demand is 

 the Methley patent cloth. Works have already been established 

 on the Continent, at Mannheim and Naples, as well as in France 

 and Alsace-Lorraine. A company is now being formed to start 

 the manufacture in England and the United States. India-rubber 

 machinists are interested in the move, as the spreading machine 

 is an important item in the works equipment, and I understand 

 that a large order for modern type machines has recently been 

 placed in England. 



Mr. L. H. S\v,\ix has sev.;red his connection with the Dook- 

 Swain Tyre and Rubber Co., Limited, of Soho Works, Ancoats, 

 Manchester, though his patronymic still 

 remains in the title of the firm, who, it 

 will be remembered, took over the busi- 

 ness and prennses of the late Wedge Tyre Co. 



Mr. W. Coulter, who two years ago was manager of the 

 elastic thread department at the "Prowodink" rubber factory at 

 Riga, and who left Russia during the late disturbance, has re- 

 cently left England for a post in the spreading department at the 

 Harburg works of the Harburg- Vienna company. For some 

 years Mr. Coulter was in charge of the spreading department at 

 the works of Charles Macintosh & Co., Limited, and some pat- 

 ents he has taken out are in connection with spreading machines. 



Mr. J. F. M. Fuller, m.p., the new vice-chamberlain, has a fam- 

 ily connection with the rubber trade, as his brother has a large in- 

 terest in the Avon India Rubber Co., Limited. 



A firm who in recent years have made large quantities of rub- 

 ber heel pads to order for the trade tell me that they have given 

 up this branch, as there is such a very small margin of profit in it. 

 The good class business is all right, they say, but there is com- 

 paratively little of this, the bulk of the trade being concerned 

 with low quality material. 



Messrs. Claudius Ash & Sons, Limited, the dental supply firm, 

 are largely concerned in the newly floated Platinum Corporation. 

 The company use platinum largely and desire to be concerned in 

 its production. At the beginning of this year this rare metal 

 rose from £5 to £8 per ounce, but recently it has again fallen to 

 the former figure. The high price and market vagaries of the 

 metal are a source .of anxiety to all users of it, but so far others 

 have not followed the lead set by the dental firm in becoming 

 interested in its mining and metallurgy. 



PERSONAL AND 

 BUSINESS NOTICES, 



The Belgian consul at Manila reports favorably on the begin- 

 ning which has been made in rubber jilanting in the Philippines, 

 though as yet it is not large in extent. He mentions a native 

 vine, Parameria Philippinensis, on Mindoro island, as n rubber 

 producer of considerable promise. 



THE AMAZON RUBBER MOVEMENT. 



""pilE exports of crude rubber from the Amazon regions during 

 ■*• the crop season ending June 30 were, as already reported, 

 the largest on record. The shipments taken into account at 

 Para (through which port all the Amazonian product passes) 

 exceeded by nearly 5000 tons the figures for 1904-05, which 

 until now has been the banner year. This rubber may be classed 

 as follows. Para being credited with the quantities actually 

 shipped from there, no matter where produced. The remaining 

 quantities were shipped direct from Manaos, Serpa, and Iquitos, 

 III Europe or New York. 



I'flie Figures Indicate IP'eights in Kilograms.] 



Shipped E'rom — New York. Europe. Total. 



Para 10,227,296 8,146,221 18,373,517 



Manaos and Serpa.... 8,407,912 8.432,652 16,840,564 



Iquitos (Peru) 29,415 2,780,165 2,809,580 



Total 18,664,623 19,359,038 38,023,661 



Tlie shipments credited to Para are proportionately larger 

 than in some former years, for the reason that the rubber from 

 the Acre district now goes largely to Para for shipment, instead 

 of being handled at Manaos. 



The rubber is classed as to grades as follows : 



Grades. New Y'ork. Europe. Total. 



Fine 8,979,796 10,099,486 19,079,282 



Medium 2,053,517 1.328,945 3.382,462 



Coarse 5,948,3S8 3.225,803 9.174.161 



Caucho 1,682,952 4,704,804 6,387,756 



Total 18,664,623 19,359,038 38,023,661 



The actual export from Manaos and Iquitos between July i, 

 1906, and June 30, 1907, diflfcred slightly, of course, from the 

 shipments from Manaos and beyond actually passing Para be- 

 tween those dates, since several days are consumed by transit 

 down the river. The destination of these shipments was as 

 follows : 



New York 8,307,953 kilos 



Liverpool 7,003,212 " 



Havre, Hamburg, and .Antwerp 4,053,279 " 



Total 19,364,444 " 



Manaos shipments include the product of Amazonas state, and 

 rubber in transit from Peru, Bolivia and Venezuela. The details 

 of Iquitos rubber passing Manaos were : 



Fine 1,190,753 Caucho 1,081,735 



Medium 83,172 ■ 



Coarse 469.897 Total 2,825,557 



This rubber probably shows a larger proportion of "medium" 

 on being regraded in the consuming markets. 



A STORY BY COLONEL COLT. 



THE Boston Globe says: President Samuel P. Colt, of the 

 United States Rubber Co., was discussing in New York 

 the amicable trade agreement that has been made between his 

 firm and the Intercontinental Rubber Co. 



"It is best," he said, "for competitors to agree to be fair and 

 honest with one another, and this agreement of ours is a afir 

 and honest one. It is not like those wherein two rivals, while 

 pretending to be fair, yet knife one another continually in the 

 back. Such hypocritical agreements remind me of two children, 

 two little boys I know. 



'They were Inching, Billy and Jack, and when the butler 

 brought on the dessert it was seen that there was only one 

 orange in the fruit basket. Instantly Billy, the larger boy, set 

 up a loud bawling. 



"'Now what's the matter?' said the governess. 'What are 

 you crying about. Billy?' 



■■ T'm crying,' Billy answered, 'because there's no orange for 

 Jack.'" 



