January i, 1906.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER ^VORLD 



115 



THE INDIA-RUBBER TRADE IN GREAT BRITAIN. 



By Our Regular Correspondtnt. 



FOR several years, it will be remembered, the National 

 cycle show at the Crystal Palace has coincided with the 

 Stanley, at the Agricultural Hall. This season there 

 was only the Stanley show, but it found a powerful rival 

 in the afltections of the public in the great motor show at Olym- 

 pia. 1 have no official figures to show how the at- 

 ^^^ tendance at the Agricultural Hall compared wiih 



STANLEY , , ° .J 



SHOW. former years, but from my own observations and 

 from what I gathered from exhibitors I imagine that 

 there was a distinct falling off. Of course there is more novel, 

 ty about the motor business, which is yet in its infancy, and 

 cycle shows cannot compete in this respect. Then the raucous 

 tones of the gramophone and the elocutionary efforts of the 

 purveyors of boot polish strike one as being somewhat foreign 

 to the show as a business venture. The explanation of the pres- 

 ence of gramophones, toys, and other goods quite unconnected 

 with cycling is that they are sold by cycle dealers in the dull 

 season and form part and parcel of their regular stock in 

 trade. The rubber manufacturing firms represented, in addi- 

 tion to those exhibiting at Olympia, were the Avon India Rub- 

 ber Co., Limited, of Melkeham ; F. Reddaway & Co., of Man- 

 chester (of Camel tire fame) ; W. & A. Bates, Limited, of Lei- 

 cester ; Capon Heaton &Co. ; and the Gorton Rubber Co. The 

 Silvertown company. The North British, Moseley's, the Conti- 

 nental, and Michelin were in evidence at both shows. To some 

 extent the two shows overlapped, as there were motor tires to 

 be seen at the Agricultural Hall, and the minor hall was wholly 

 given up to motor cars, a fact probably explained by failure to 

 obtain space at Olympia. The rapid advance of the motor car 

 has caused the attention of inventors to be devoted to its inter- 

 ests to an extent which has caused cycling improvements to be 

 somewhat neglected. A great deal for instance is heard of side 

 slip contrivances for motor tires, but the matter is still an urgent 

 one with regard to cycle tires, the various trials made by the 

 authorities not having shown that the desired perfection has 

 been attained. 



S. AxELROD has an interesting paper on this subject in a 

 recent issue of the Gummi-Zeitung. Without following the au- 

 thor through all his figures, I may be allowed to 



SOLUBILITY remark on one or two points. In case any mis- 



OF RUBBER , . u i j • i • i i • 



IN BENZINE apprehension should exist, I might emphasize 

 that benzine with an i is quite distinct from ben- 

 zine with an e. The former is a derivative or more correctly a 

 constituent of petroleum while the latter is derived from coal 

 tar. It is recognized that the latter has the better solvent ac- 

 tion and one notices in motoring papers notices warning tire 

 users that petrol cannot be used instead of benzene in cases 

 where a serni solution of the rubber is desired. But to return 

 to the main topic under notice, in a column showirg the resin- 

 ous constituents of the various rubbers experimented with, the 

 figure for fine Para hard cure is 3 4 per cent, while that for Cey- 

 lon Para, sheets is 8.6 per cent. The first is higher than is usu- 

 ally supposed, but the latter if really representative shows the 

 Ceylon rubber to compare unfavorably with the native product 

 in a direction which has not hitherto been so clearly demon- 

 strated. Possibly the author's sample came from immature 

 trees and must not be considered as representative. lixcept in 

 the Para figures there is nothing else in the column which is 

 different to what I should have expected. The paper as a whole 



MR. HANCOCK NUNN. 



has a scientific rather than a practical interest, and it is doubt- 

 ful, to say the least of it, whether the ordinary works manager 

 will stop by the way to ponder on the following sentence : 

 " The degree of viscosity («) and the percentage composition 

 of the solution (/) are connected by the equation n-c.p., where 

 <: is a constant depending on the kind of rubber, and r the tan- 

 gent of the angle which the curve drawn to the logarithms of 

 the figures of the viscosity tables makes with the horizontal." 

 The managing director informs me that the newspaper re- 

 ports concerning the fire which occurred at the company's re- 

 claimed rubber works at New Mills 

 MESSRS. Q.H.SCOTT 4 CO., Stockport, in November, were 



LIMITED. *^ _ 



much exaggerated. The damage done 

 only amounted to a little more than ^i, and consequently no 

 interference to the business resulted. Taking the opportunity 

 afforded me of referring to business matters generally, I learned 

 that it has been the object of late years to reclaim without the 

 use of oil, and was shown some good quality rubber which was 

 said to contain no oil at all. Of course oil has only been used 

 because of its physical help in agglomerating the particles of 

 vulcanized rubber, and if it can be dispensed with the product 

 should show increased tenacity. 



The recent publication in the London papers of the name 

 of Mr. T. Hancock Nunn, as a member of the Royal commission 

 on the Poor laws has led several people to 

 assume that the gentleman named is iden- 

 tical with the Mr. J. Hancock Nunn, who is proprietor of the 

 Vulcanized Rubber Works at 266 Goswell road, London. This, 

 however, I may say is not the case, though I am not prepared 

 to say that there is no family connection. The trading name 

 of the Goswell road rubber works is James Lyne Hancock, 

 the present proprietorship being as above mentioned in the 

 hands of Mr. J. Hancock Nunn. The name will be familiar to 

 readers of Dickens, as it was from a local habitation that Mr. 

 Pickwick, on looking out of the window remarked that Goswell 

 street was on his right, Goswell street was on his left, and the 

 opposite side of Goswell street was over the way. The business 

 dates from 1820, its original founder being Thomas Hancock, 

 of familiar memory in the trade. It can therefore claim to be 

 the oldest established rubber business in the world, though only 

 beating in this respect Messrs. Charles Macintosh & Co. by 

 three years. 



The introduction of the rubber cored golf ball has trans- 

 ferred a good deal of business from the Gutta-percha manufac- 

 turers to the elastic thread makers. At first 



GOLF BALL ordinary elastic thread was used; of late how- 



"UBBER. •; , , , • / u J 



ever a large demand has arisen for a broader 

 count. This is made in the same way as elastic thread, that is, 

 by calendering therubbcrand sulphur dough on sheets. These 

 are then vulcanized in steam, stripped, made into rolls and cut 

 to the desired width of strip by the lathe. This material is now 

 made by the ton and is noteworthy if only as one of the few new 

 articles which the trade has been called upon so supply of late 

 years. In general appearance this strip resembles what is sold 

 as tape for electrical purposes, though this latter is unvulcan- 

 ized. It is a common idea that the advent of the rubber cored 

 golf ball has practically done away with the use of Gutta-percha 

 in this connection. This, however, is not strictly true, as some 

 balls at any rate contain a good deal more gutta than rubber 



