THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[February i, 1909. 



Ohio, and exhibited through their house in Paris, 2 rue 

 Brunei. Their space was Xo. 29 in the balcony of the Salon 

 d'honneur, near the Dunlop and Continental exhibits. 

 • Not far away were the Russian-American India-Rubber 



Co., of St. Petersburg, with pneumatic tires and fabrics for 

 dirigible balloons. It will be seen, then, that French makers 

 did not have the exhibition all to themselves, however much 

 they may monopolize the home trade when selling tire 

 covers. 



The Kempshall Tyre Co. of Europe, Limited, of London, 

 showed a new removable rim and the special tread for pneu- 

 matics that has been illustrated in The Indi.\ Rubber World. 



Eleazer Kempshall, the inventor of this tire, is an Ameri- 

 can, as was John F. Palmer, whose invention was the basis 

 of the present "Palmer Cord" tire. The founder of the 

 Hutchinson house was an American, and an original element 

 from the United States is suggested in the name of the Rus- 

 sian-American company. The only out-and-out American 

 exhibit at the Salon, however, except a few makers of auto- 

 mobiles — was the tire display of Goodrich, though the Euro- 

 pean concessionaire of The American Wood Rim Co. occupied 

 space. 



The Samson leather tires were exhibited, the Stepney spare 

 wheel, and practically everything in the world of tires or 

 appertaining thereto. The interest which the whole attracted, 

 as well as that devoted to the cars on exhibition, suggests 

 that the French public, instead of becoming tired of automo- 

 bile shows, is becoming more addicted to the show habit. 



THE RUBBER TRADE IN SAN FRANCISCO 



BY A RESIDENT CORRESPONDENT. 



■W/ITH the first of the new year came a better feeling for the 

 *' future business interests on the Pacific coast. Financial 

 conditions, while not yet entirely as good as before the fire, are 

 rapidly approaching that condition, and every merchant remarks 

 how much easier money is to get now than it has been for over 

 two years. Lately there have been heavy rains throughout Cali- 

 fornia, and although they have caused disastrous floods through 

 portions of the Sacramento valley, yet the great good which they 

 have done to the farming portions of the rest of the state, more 

 than compensates for the Joss. The rains ofTer positive assurance 

 that the coming year will be a prosperous one. In San Francisco 

 there is no longer heard any complaint, and the rubber dealers 

 are preparing for an active year. Despite the large number of 

 rubber houses in the city, all of them have succeeded in pulling 

 through the quiet times, and the fact that they are now ordering 

 extensive stocks is a fair indication that they are in a satisfactory 

 position. 



Mr. R. H. Pease, president of the Goodyear Rubber Co., re- 

 ports that since the first of the year business has been picking 

 up, and that they are now running ahead of January of last year. 

 Last year's business in the line of boots and shoes was naturally 

 very dull, because it was an unusually dry fall and many of the 

 retailers were forced to carry large stocks over from their 

 purchases of 1907, which, of course, brought the sales down 

 lower than they would have been if there had been better fall 

 rains. The recent big rains are a fine thing, and Mr. Pease feels 

 that the stocks in the hands of customers will be greatly re- 

 duced. Mr. Pease, accompanied by his son, has gone to the 

 company's Portland house, and during the latter part of February 

 he will visit New York. 



The latest report from the Bowers Rubber Works shows that 

 the firm is doing an active business. Their factory at Black- 

 Diamond seemed for a while to be in danger from the rising 

 waters of the floods from the Sacramento river, but that danger 

 was soon past. This firm has landed a big contract for furnish- 

 ing rubber dredging sleeves for the Panama canal — the first 

 contract that has been awarded to any of the Pacific coast rubber 



houses for supplies by the Isthmian canal commissioners. The 

 factory will have to supply so many every month, and witli what 

 work they already have they are assured of a busy season. 



Mr. J. L. Phillips, general manager of the fire department sup- 

 plies handled by the Gorham Rubber Co., is in San Francisco look- 

 ing after the department here. Mr. Phillips makes his home in. 

 Seattle, Washington, and reports that business of all kinds has 

 shown great improvement there in the past few weeks. Quite a 

 number of the big lumber mills have burned lately and the 

 owners have awakened more fully to the importance of putting 

 in efficient fire departments. They have heretofore overlooked 

 their fire protection to a large extent, and the stir which the fires 

 have created has given the fire protection business a big boost. 



Mr. Phillips states that in Seattle great preparations are being 

 made for the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition, to open some 

 time in May or June of this year. Mr. Phillips lately visited the 

 Los Angeles branch of the Gorham Rubber Co., as also did Mr. 

 William J. Gorham, president of the company. 



Mr. C. H. Brown, with the Gutta Percha and Rubber Manufac- 

 turing Co., states that he finds an active call for larger belts than 

 were ordered last year, and some very large orders have been 

 placed, indicating that millmen are anticipating a bigger year. 



Mr. Ralph, one of the proprietors of the Phoenix Rubber Co., 

 states that the financial end of business is much better in tone. 

 Money is easier and business is getting back to a firm, steady 

 basis. This firm has been doing particularly well on the output 

 from the Republic Rubber Co. (Youngstown, Ohio), especially 

 in their Staggard tread tires. 



J. C. Martin & Co.. coast agents for the Anchor Packing Co., 

 are now doing a nice business in their new quarters, at No. 562 

 Howard street. 



Mr. C. E. Mathewson, Pacific coast manager for The Diamond 

 Rubber Co. (Akron, Ohio), has returned from Seattle, Washing- 

 ton, where he established a new branch for the company. Donald 

 McKay, who has been looking after the interests of The Diamond 

 Rubber Co. in the north for many years, has been placed in 

 charge as manager of the Seattle branch. Mr. Mathewson has 

 since gone to visit the factory at Akron, and to take in the New 

 York automobile show. Business at the Los Angeles branch of 

 the Diamond company has increased materially of late, and they 

 have found it necessary to increase their traveling forces. 



Mr. F. C. Anderson, representing the Electric Hose and Rubber 

 Co., is now located at No. 420 Mission street. 



Activity down on the water front, according to Mr. Sprague, 

 who devotes most of his attention to demands for rubber sup- 

 plies from that source, is increasing. Shipping is now quite 

 active, and the teamsters are witnesses to the fact that traffic has 

 about doubled during the last two weeks. Everything is moving 

 along better except the lumber business, which is still rather 

 inactive. 



The Pacific Coast Rubber Co. find that there is an increased 

 demand for goods in their lines, and they believe that the next 

 month or two will see a marked improvement in business. 



TO GO OVER NIAGARA I N RUBBER. 



THE New York Sun printed this dispatch from Niagara 

 Falls, Ontario, under the date December 21: 

 "Another man is planning to try .the trip over the Horseshoe 

 Falls, in a vehicle different from anything that has been tried 

 before. It is an immense rubber ball which is now being con- 

 structed by a rubber company in the United States. The voyager 

 is Robert Leach, of Chippewa, and he plans to make the perilous 

 trip next June. There will be two balls, one within the other. 

 The outer ball will be 13 feet in diameter, and the inner one, 

 in which Leach will hazard his life, 11 feet in diameter. The 

 inner ball will be held in position by four spiral steel springs 

 and sufificient oxygen will be pumped into it to give the man a bare 

 chance for life if anything goes viTong." 



