64 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[November i, 1904. 



=General S. Duncan Oliphant, clerk ol the United States 

 circuit court at Trenton, New Jersey, died October 23, in 

 his eighty-first year. He was the father of the late Alexan- 

 der C. Oliphant, who, at his death in 1902, was treasurer of The 

 United and Globe Rubber Manufacturing Cos. (Trenton) and 

 adjutant general for New Jersey. 



= Mr. D. Lome McGibbon, general manager of the Canadian 

 Rubber Co. of Montreal, was among recent visitors to the of- 

 fice of The India Rurber World. 



= Rarton Parker, until recently advertising manager of the 

 Hartford Rubber Works Co., has accepted a similar position 

 with the Olds Motor Works (Detroit, Michigan). 



= Mrs. Amelia Godfrey, widow of James W. Godfrey, who 

 was sales manager for The India Rubber and Gutta Percha 

 Insulating Co. (New York) at the time of his accidental death, 

 in November, 1901, has obtained a verdict for $30,000 in a suit 

 against the City of New York, having proved that her husband's 

 death was due to negligence with respect to the condition of 

 the street through which he was driving when the accident 

 occurred. 



A TRIBUTE TO THE LATE MR. ALDEN. 



At a meeting of the Rubber Sundries Manufacturers' Asso- 

 ciation held in New York, October 13, 1904, the following reso- 

 lution was unanimously passed : 



Resolved, that in the death of George A. Alden, Esq., the President 

 of the Seamless Rubber Co. (New Haven, Conn.), this Association de- 

 sires to express its sympathy with the Seamless Rubber Co., in their 

 great loss, and, 



Resolved, that this resolution be spread upon the minutes of this 

 meeting and a copy of the same be sent to the ofificers of the Seamless 

 Rubber Co. 



Rhodes Lockwood and F. H. Jones, members of the Asso- 

 ciation, were appointed a committee to attend the funeral of 

 Mr. Alden. 



SMOKING RUBBER IN AFRICA. 



TO THE Editor ok The India Rubber World: Mr. A. 

 D. Thornton, of the Canadian Rubber Co. of Montreal, 

 in his letter published in your issue of October i (page 3) opens 

 a very interesting question about the coagulation of latex in 

 Africa. His letter ends by the phrase : " It would seem that if 

 a good red Upper Congo milk is cured in the same way as 

 Para, better results would be obtained." 



Of the numerous attempts in the Congo to coagulate Zaw^/o/- 

 phia vine latex by the Pard smoking process, I don't know one 

 which has proved successful. In almost every district trials 

 have been made, not only with Landolphia vine, but also with 

 the " Ireh " and the Kickxia tree latex, and always without any 

 practical result, as the stuff obtained had no elasticity. 



Some time ago I had to report on Gold Coast rubber which 

 had been coagulated by the Pard smoking process; the stuff 

 had a splendid appearance, having the color and even the smell 

 of fine Pard, but as far as elasticity was concerned it was abso- 

 lutely worthless, and was not much better than Accra or Grand 

 Bassam paste. This rubber had been obtained from the Fun- 

 tumia elastica tree. 



It is a curious fact to observe that as far as Africa is con- 

 cerned the smoking process has been a failure on account of 

 the lack of elasticity. Of course many kinds of African rubbers 

 are smoked, but this is to help the drying, the smoking taking 

 place after the latex has been coagulated. 



G. VAN DEN KERCKHOVE, 

 Brussels, October lo, 1904. 



A Clean Court Room. — The new rubber tile floor in the 

 large Criminal Court room has been attracting much attention. 

 It has been found to be even better than a good substitute for 

 carpet and enables the employes of the building to keep the 

 room cleaner than any of the other courts. — Pittsbtvgh Press. 



REVIEW OF THE CRUDE RUBBER MARKET. 



THE advance in Para sorts to be recorded at this time 

 represents a recovery of practically 50 per cent, of the 

 net decline which occurred during September, as re- 

 ported in our last issue. The advance in Africans and 

 Centrals, while less marked, is substantial. The market for all 

 sorts shows a condition of firmness at this time, which is 

 strengthened to a degree by the statistical position, arrivals at 

 Para up to date being hardly up to the average. The Amazon 

 river output (including Caucho) at last advices, compares with 

 the same months of previous years as follows : 



1901. 1902. 1903. 1904. 



July tons 1260 1290 l23o 1240 



August 1290 1370 1230 1250 



September 194c 1670 2010 1810 



October 2640 2280 2440 02460 



Total, four months 7130 6610 6960 6760 



[a To October aS, 1904.! 



Imports into the United States continue on a large scale. 

 Official statements for the nine months ending September 30 

 for three years past are as follows : 



1902. liio3. 1904. 



Pounds 37,610,569 42,898,168 41.553.345 



Import Value $18,118,144 $26,389,072 $30,864,340 



The condition of the industry is not all that could be desired, 

 the factories in some branches running liglit. Others, how- 

 ever, report a normal amount of business, and the footwear 

 manufacturers are working to their full capacity. In another 



column is a review of the cotton goods market, the condition 

 of which has an important bearing upon the rubber industry. 



The reports of the English market, on another page, are to 

 be supplemented by later advices, to the effect that prices are 

 slightly higher, with supplies very light, and the condition of 

 the market firm. 



Following is a statement of prices of Pard grades, one year 

 ago, one month ago, and on October 31 — the current date. 



para. Not. i, 'oj. 



Islands, fine, new 97@ 98 



Islands, fine, old @ 



Upriver, fine, new I02@I03 



Upriver, fine, old io4@i05 



Islands, coarse, new 57@ 58 



Islands, coarse, old @ 



Upriver, coarse, new 82(3 83 



Upriver, coarse, old (§) 



Caucho (Peruvian) sheet 63® 64 



Caucho (Peruvian) ball 72® 73 



The market for other sorts in New York, showing a general 

 advance, is as follows: 



AFRICAN. 



Sierra Leone, istquality92 (S93 



Massai, red 92 ©93 



Benguella 70 ©71 



Cameroon ball 63 ©64 



Accra flake 34 ©35 



Lopori ball, prime. .. .93 ©94 



Lopori strip, prime 87 (388 



Ikelemba 94 ©95 



Madagascar, pinky 82 @83 



CENTRALS. 



Esmeralda, sausage. . .78 ©79 



Guayaquil, strip 67 @68 



Nicaragua, scrap .. . .75 ©76 



Panama, slab 59 @bo 



Mexican, scrap 74 ©75 



Mexican, slab 59 ©bo 



Mangabeira, sheet. .. .47 ©56 

 EAST INDIAN. 



Assam 8g ©90 



Borneo @ 



