Jui.v I, 1905.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



327 



A LETTER FROM FRANK DA COSTA. 



TO THE Editor of The India Rubber World: Being 

 one of the oldest merchants in the rubber trade, having 

 resided in Para, Brazil, for the last 35 years, always involved 

 in the export of this article, I naturally follow the business 

 with a certain amount of interest and curiosity, which justifies 

 my addressing you these lines, which you may find worth while 

 inserting in your valuable Journal. 



For 12 years my firm acted in Para as agent for Mr. Joseph 

 Banigan, and up to his death I enjoyed all his confidence. 

 Known, as he was, as one of the most aggressive and intelligent 

 manufacturers in the United States, it was a great honor for 

 me. The Hon. E. S. Converse, the large owner of the Boston, 

 Rubber Shoe Co., and one of the most honest men I ever came 

 across, used my services for many years, and if I mention this 

 it is only to give you and your readers an idea that I have had 

 " something to say " in the trade. 



One of the recent factors which I have followed with great 

 interest has been the United States Rubber Co. — the Trust, 

 so called. For the first eleven years of its existence the results 

 were not bright, but the last report, published in your June 

 number, shows a more reasonable outturn, to say, having sold 

 about $32,000,000 of manufactured goods, they made $3,500,000 

 profits — say about 11^ per cent. It is not extraordinary, as I 

 believe that either the Boston Rubber Shoe Co. or the Bani- 

 gan companies, before joining the consolidation, made much 

 more than that, but it nevertheless indicates the efforts of its 

 management in doing better than heretofore. My sincerest 

 congratulations to them. 



The worst part of a corporation such as the one I am refer- 

 ring to is the necessity of publishing their figures every year, 

 and therefore of drawing the attention of the public, when 

 there is any large profit in the business. In a country like 

 yours, where wealth is so immense, there will be no lack of 

 funds to build rubber factories when it is known that ihey 

 can pay good dividends. A big factory can be erected with a 

 relatively small sum, in a very short time, with modern ma- 

 chinery, and modern facilities <i /' Americaine, and become a 

 very strong competitor for the corporation, whose factories- 

 although of the best, will not be so modern and economical. 



Therefore, as you very wisely say in your June editorial, un- 

 der the heading "The Latest Rubber Merger," a monopoly is 

 impossible, and the mergers may be as many as you like ; new 

 competition will always arise, either with the idea of being also 

 merged at a good profit, or of being able to make goods a little 

 cheaper with the modern facilities, if they cannot merge. A 

 man whom I consider one of the able heads in American com- 

 merce, whose vast knowledge and capacity I always admired 

 and admire up to this day, made this mistake of believing in 

 the supreme control of the rubber trade, and was disappointed 

 at the end. Everybody will know that I refer to Mr. Charles 

 R. Flint, and nobody can doubt his competence in the matter. 



In resuming I wish to confirm your own impression, with my 

 experience, that a monopoly in the rubber business is quite out 

 of the question. 



Some weeks ago I had in my hands a copy of a speech made 

 in Boston at the New England Rubber Club dinner, referring 

 to a probability of insufficient supplies of rubber, or that there 

 would not be enough crude to manufacture enough goods for 

 consumption. Although the speaker was a most competent 

 one, I beg to give my opinion that such a fear is very problem- 

 atical. Not only the supplies coming from the Amazon in- 

 crease every year, and probably will continue to, but Ceylon 

 and African crops, in the next 10 or 15 years, will yield such 



big quantities, that if consumption does not increase in pro- 

 portion, prices of crude will have to fall considerably. 



Your Journal has published many articles about Ceylon and 

 its rubber plantations, and there is no doubt that not only in 

 qu.intities but in excellent qualities we must count largely upon 

 those grades in a not very distant future. About Africa I beg 

 to quote the following portion of Viscount Mountmorris's 

 speech at the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce on May 29 last. 

 He refers to the plantations of vines : 



The number planted by the state itself and under its dirtct adminis- 

 tration — that is, by natives under their direction — is roughly, I believe 

 3.000,000 a year. That has been going on for some years now. In ad- 

 dition the concessionaires are all replanting. In all something like 60,- 

 000,000 rubber producing plants are known to exist and are under the 

 care and supervision of the state authority, and if in ten years these 

 pUints produce only a kilo per annum each, they are sufficient at the 

 present moment to supply the whole of the present world's demand for 

 rubber. Of course the mortality amongst them will probably be great, 

 but making due allowance for that, at the same time this continuous re- 

 pl.inting of 3,000.000 at least per annum will make good any further loss 

 that may occur. 



Therefore, I ask, with this data in hand, can anybody believe 

 in inadequate supplies of crude rubber .' 



I only wish to bring these two points to your attention, and I 

 end, hoping that about this time next year, if I am alive, I can 

 applaud the further success of the big rubber consolidation, 

 which is so justly expected, not only from the latest merger, 

 but also from the trip of the Virginia to the Amazonian 

 waters. Yours very respectfully. frank da costa. 



Paris, June 2d, 1905. 



WIRELESS TELEGRAPH ON THE AMAZON. 



FROM " A PROVINCIA DO PARA," JUNS 4. 



I ," XCELLENT results have at last been obtained by the ex- 



n 



periments with wireless telegraphy, which during the 



past few months have been made between Breves and the town 

 of Pinheiro. The following message addressed to us was re- 

 ceived at the last named station yesterday during the night 

 and transmitted by the national telegraph service, showing the 

 complete success which has now crowned the tenacious efforts 

 of the holders of the franchise for this important improvement. 

 The message reads: 



The s^. s. Tabatinga passed Breves at 3 v. M., carrying 3009 kilos of 

 India rubber for Camillo Dias, 1508 for Esteves Bastos. and 4082 for 

 others. — Wireless. 



DECREASING PROFITS ON CONGO RUBBER. 



THE general meeting of ABIR. one of the large <r(;nf^«/i;- 

 wrt/'r^ companies trading in rubber on the Congo, was held 

 at Brussels on June 5. The report for the fiscal year 1904 showed 

 profits of 1,201,400 89 [=$231,870.37]. The dividends for the 

 year amount to 400 francs per share (of 500 francs) ; of this 250 

 francs have been paid already, and 150 francs are due from July 

 I. In a single year (1900) the profits were 4,873,356 francs 

 [=1940,557.70]. The company gathered 445 tons of rubber 

 and 9^ tons of ivory in 1904. The report makes favorable 

 mention of the prospects of the rubber plantation in the Malay 

 States in which the company invested two years ago. 



Dr. Alberto Pirelli, of Pirelli cS: Co., the rubber manufac- 

 turers of Milan, Italy, and the factory superintendent, Signor 

 Emilio Calcagni, were expected to sail from Liverpool for the 

 LInited States on June 28. 



