142 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[February i, 1905. 



Speaking of substitutes, it must not be forgotten that 

 nature furnishes many of these, a good example being 

 Gutta-jelutong, or Pontianalc, which is plastic and sticky, 

 and has found a very large and useful place in rubber 

 manufacture. Although we know that there are many 

 such gums, very few of them seem to come to the market 

 in any particular quantity. For example, all through the 

 Fiji archipelago there grows a type of Ficus which gives 

 out latex abundantly, the gum being used by the natives 

 for birdlime. In 1877 some of this was valued by a rubber 

 man in England at 50 cents a pound. Then too, there is 

 the so-called " cow tree," which is plentiful all through 

 tropical South America, the milk containing considerable 

 India-rubber, although it is quite resinous. In 1872 the 

 American consul at 15uenos Aires reported on what he 

 called " mangaice " rubber, which he said was very abun- 

 dant, but nothing more has been heard of it. At the pres- 

 ent price of crude rubber would it not profit our friends in 

 that enterprising republic to put some of this on the 

 market ? In addition to this there are a great variety of the 

 Artocarpus and Euphorbia families, which produce low 

 grade gums. 



In looking over the list of little known gums there are 

 something like fifty that from reports should be as valu- 

 able at least as Pontianak, and there would seem to be a 

 fine opportunity for tropical traders to get them now be- 

 fore rubber manufacturers on a commercial scale. 



The amendment of the Chinese exclusion law so 

 as to permit the utilization of Chinese laborers into the Ha- 

 waiian islands, is urged by Governor Carter, of the territory of 

 Hawaii, in his annual report to the secretary of the interior. 

 He says that the natives|will not work in the fields and that the 

 Americans cannot, and that planting industries are threatened. 

 The governor is a wise man and has put his finger on a vital 

 spot concerning the development of our tropical possessions. 

 Witn thousands of acres of most fertile rubber lands in the 

 Philippines, we have no rubber plantations, for just the reason 

 he cites. The natives won't work, and yet right within call are 

 the Japanese, Chinese, and Javanese coolies — enough to raise 

 rubber for the whole world. The same is true of Porto Rico, 

 in a lesser degree. The exclusion act should be made void as 

 far as it relates to our tropical possessions. 



The scoffer is constantly heard to remark that rub- 

 ber shoes do not wear as well as they used to, or that it is 

 doubtful if they contain any rubber at all. If the critic is el- 

 derly, attention is also drawn to the old fashioned gum shoes 

 that were all rubber and never wore out. Without dwelling on 

 the fact that if there was a market for the ancient type of shoe 

 they would be easily furnished, it ought to be brought home 

 to these faultfinders that the present high price of rubber is 

 largely due to the enormous consumption ol the gum by the 

 companies that manufacture rubber shoes, and further, if it 

 were possible for them to make rubber footwear with no rub- 

 ber, they would be particularly glad to have the secret imparted 

 to them, and at once. 



The critical and ofttimes intolerant New York 

 Evening Post asserts that " The experiment of raising Par4 

 rubber in Ceylon has not so far been successful, partly because 

 deer and pigs eat the seedlings ; but by planting out two-year- 



old plants It IS hoped that this difficulty may be overcome." 

 The truth is, the planters in Ceylon have suffered very little 

 from creatures that eat the seedlings, the real trouble having 

 appeared in the Federated Malay States. That, however, it was 

 not at all serious, the 20,000,000 growing trees, some of which 

 are producing rubber, abundantly testify. It is possible, of 

 course, that the editor of the Evening Post had it in mind that 

 Ceylon was in the Malay states, being touched by that sort of 

 geographical inaccuracy which led a newspaper man to inquire 

 of the editor of this Journal if Porto Rico was the capital of 

 Costa Rica. 



Thf. unusual shoe winter that has been so well inaugu- 

 rated by the clerk of the weather, has after all its bright side. 

 It will mean the accumulation of many thousands of tons of 

 old shoes, and a consequent increased supply of reclaimed rub- 

 ber ; a point of considerable interest to rubber manufacturers 

 in almost every line. 



NEW TRADE PUBLICATIONS. 



THE PNEUMATIC TYRE AND THE MOTOR CAR, 1894-1904. THE IN- 

 fluence of Pneumatic Tyres in the Evolution of the Motor Car. Issued by 

 Michelin & Cie.. Clermont-Ferrand [France]. 1904. [6%"x9". 48 pages.] 



TIME was when the indolent monarchs of France rode in 

 state through the streets of Paris in coaches dragged by 

 "harnessed oxen, with calm and tranquil step." Great have 

 been the changes in transportation methods and facilities since 

 those days, but the greatest of all has been the development, 

 almost within a decade, of the automobile — a class of vehicle 

 for which France is entitled to a special degree of credit. The 

 automobile as we know it would have been impossible without 

 the pneumatic tire, and the booklet before us is of interest in 

 recording the history of the great long distance races which 

 concentrated public attention upon the new means of locomo- 

 tion, and impelled manufacturers both of vehicles and tires to 

 their best efforts. The Michelin firm, as tire makers, con- 

 tributed very largely, as everybody knows, to the practical suc- 

 cesses attained in France, and repeated later elsewhere. 



* • * 

 The Diamond Rubber Co. (Akron, Ohio) issue a booklet, 

 " The Diamond Book of Instruction and Catalogue of Automo- 

 bile Tires," which is not only one of the handsomest trade pub- 

 lications of the season, but is very much more readable than any 

 mere catalogue. By way of introduction are a few pages of 

 tire history, referring to the Diamond company as the pioneer 

 manufacturers of pneumatic tires in America. Next is a sum- 

 mary of the processes of tire manufacture, which will serve to 

 impress the user with the importance of the utmost care in or- 

 der to secure the best results from tires. In the catalogue sec- 

 tion it will be seen that the Diamond company make practically 

 every type of pneumatic tires used on automobiles. The re- 

 maining pages are filled with useful information on removing 

 and applying tires, and making repairs, in connection with 

 which are a number of appropriate illustrations. [5' X 7 • 64 



pages.] 



•» * * 



George Borgfeldt & Co. (New York) issue a handsome 

 brochure relative to the increase of space in their already large 

 premises, devoted to the import of several important lines of 

 goods, including rubber goods, toys, and druggists' sundries. 

 It is expected that the 1905 display will be complete and ready 

 for inspection about February i. The firm are sole agents in 

 the United States and Canada for the Hanover Rubber Co., 

 Limited, of Hanover, Germany. [6" x 7". 12 pages.] 



