166 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[February 1, 1911. 



Ihere, look that visitor into the greenhouse and proceeded to show him 

 the rubber milk which would exude from these plants after they were 

 cut. He stuck his knife into them and not a drop of rubber came out, 

 though in the montit before it had exuded freely. 



I have myself gi>ne through groups of rubber trees uf exactly the 

 same kind. There wasn't even a tlifferencc of variety, but one of Ibcin 

 grew about 600 or 700 miles away from the other group, and the third 

 one was about intermediate between tlie two. .And in the same week, 

 one of those grou|« of trees didn't yield one drop of rubber milk; 

 another one yielded a considerable quantity, but it coagulated in the 

 cut, and wouldn't How; and the third group of trees would yield from 

 one to two liters of rubber milk each, rich in rubber. Nobody can 

 tell why it is. I tell you that there are very few of us scientific 

 people who feel that we actually know any facts at all about the 

 relations of the rubber late.x to the lite of the plant that produces 

 it, and until we find that out, there is not much use of speculating 

 about the rubber. 



Now. you all know that Central American rubber tree, which ought 

 to be known as Castillciii, although improperly known as Ciistilloa. 

 We used to suppose it was one tree. Now there are at least ten dif- 

 ferent species, and half of them don't yield any rubber milk at all. 

 When 1 am asked about the possibilities of the cultivation of the 

 Caslillda rubber tree in the Philippine islands, how do I know? One 

 which in Central .America produces only a little rubber, may produce 

 a great deal in the Philippines. It is largely guesswork. We can study 

 it as carefully as we want to, and the man who is honest with himself 

 doesn't want to say anything unless he has a good scientific basis 

 for it. Rut I should say, Mr. President, that the chances for the cul- 

 tivation of rubber trees of many of the kinds that we have, in the 

 Philippine islands are very good. I think the climate of the Philip- 

 pines is such that we could have the Caslilleia grow well in certain 

 sections. Some Castilleia trees are growing there at present and doing 

 splendidly, and I expect to see success down there. 



I do not believe in a country doing anything for which it is not 

 fitted, and wasting its money, just for the mere sake of saying what 

 it has done. Of course, there is a middle, conservative ground. But 

 I wo'ddn't believe in trying to grow rubber plants in any territory of 

 the I'nited States, unless the territory was fitted for it. If there are 

 two things, one of which is fitted for your own soil and another that 

 is not. for heaven's sake grow it on the soil which is best fitted. But 

 so far as rubber is concerned in the Philipiiines, I fully believe that we 

 are going to see it grow. 



Now, as to the growth of the guayule shrub in Texas — there is 

 another very difficult problem. I would like to know if there is a man 

 in this room who is able to say that he feels sure that the cultivation 

 of the guayule shrub anywhere in the world is going to pay. I am not. 

 I have studied it very carefully, and the only reason that I am in- 

 clined to believe that it will pay even in Mexico, its native country, 

 is that the Rockefeller crowd have gone into it pretty carefully. [Cries 

 of "No"!) Well, I have heard it. They don't generally go into any- 

 thing unless they are pretty certain it is going to succeed. 



When we first studied that guayule shrub, we were told that it would 

 take at least thirty years for it to reach the full production. .After that 

 we were told fifteen; then we were told that in five years, although it 

 hadn't reached its full growth, it would still produce a great deal of 

 rubber. So there are all those things still to be determined. 



My friend. Professor Francis E. Lloyd, has studied it very carefully 

 for a number of years, and he has established the fact that the guayule 

 shrub can be cultivated; it can be propagated freely and cultivated 

 under proper conditions. But, whether the time of production will be 

 so far postponed that the interest on the investment and all the ex- 

 penses connected with it will make it unprofitable, that is a thing that 

 I do no think wc can positively say until we try. 



Now, as to guayule growing in Texas. There is a shrub growing 

 in Texas which is very similar to the Mexican guayule, and closely 

 related to it. The two plants have descended from some common stock, 

 and if that common stock has produced in Texas a plant which is 

 different from the one in Mexico — I ask those of you who know 

 anything about the evolution of plants — doesn't it stand to reason that 

 the climate of Texas is adapted to that one which developed there and 

 not to the other one? I don't know about Texas, but I do think th.it 

 there are parts of the desert territory of southern California where 

 the guayule plant can be cultivated with success if this is possible 

 anywhere. The only question is whether we can grow guayule any- 

 where, if we can't grow it in the regions that I have mentioned. 



Before I close I want to tell you of a little incident. When I was 

 listening tonight to the interesting and most instructive address of 

 Mr. Nixon, I remembered an experience of mine back in 1886 that I 

 thought would interest you, as rubber men. 



In that year I mjde a voyage of thousands of miles which took 

 nearly a year. I traveled in ships built in foreign countries, and 

 which I bought in those foreign countries, and 1 put the .American 

 flag on the ships, and I ftew it through the whole voyage. There 

 wasn't a day when it wasn't there. The first ship I bought consisted 



of seven logs tied together to form a raft. Some of you gentlemen 

 may have been down to my pier in Bolivia, on the Napo river, and 

 you know that little rocky shore. And that little river in places was 

 so shallow that the logs of the raft grated on the stones as they went 

 over. That is where I bought my first ship, and over it I raised my 

 American flag. When we had gone so far that we bad a little deeper 

 water and could float a bigger raft, we kept the flag still afloat, until 

 we got down still further and made a "dug out" canoe out of a huge 

 log, almost as long as this table, and the flag floated over that. When 

 we went through the valley of the Madeira I had about seventy men, 

 and perhaps seven or eight boats, and the flag floated there, and when 

 we finally got to the lower Amazon and we boarded an English river 

 steamer, I asked permission of the captain, because we had had this 

 flag so long, to let me stick it up on the boat, and it was hailed all the 

 way to Peru. So there is a case where somebody carried the .\merican 

 flpg in foreign waters. 



Well, about that journey, gentlemen, another thing that will interest 

 you, perhaps, is the fact that in 1S86 1 bought rubber at S3. 60 for 28 

 I)ounds. And how much is that? About 13 cents a pound. I sold it 

 afterwards at an advance of 35 per cent., and I thought I had made a 

 big thing out of it. The best rubber in this country then was worth 

 about 65 cents a pound. The most interesting thing, however, was 

 that when I sold out my rubber and got Bolivian dollars for it, those 

 dollars were worth 22 pence, and I exchanged them dollar for dollar 

 for Brazilian money, worth 42 pence on the dollar — nearly 100 per 

 cent, on exchange. And then, Mr. Pearson, some people have got 

 the gall to say that scientific men haven't got business ability. 

 [.Applause.] 



GOOD NIGHT. 



The President said ; 



Now, in saying good-night, let us rise and consider our rising a 

 general vote of thanks to our distinguished guests and speakers this 

 evening. 



All rose. 



SOME OF THE LETTERS OF REGRET. 



Mr. P;ail Mi>rton. wliose lamented death a few days later is 

 reported elsewhere in this paper, wrote regretting his inability 

 to accept an invitation to the dinner. 



From the Governor of New York : 



Delayed replying invitation January 11, hoping could arrange ac- 

 ceptance, but obliged to decline, with much regret. -Accept apprecia- 

 tion for yourself and friends. .JOHN A. DIX. 



From the President of the United States Rnbber Co. : 

 I had hoped to be able to be with you at the dinner of The Rubber 



Club of America this evening, but find it impossible to do so. I know 



that you will excuse me. and I shall trust another year to have the 



pleastire of meeting with you. 



Wishing you every success, which I know from past experiences you 



will have, believe me alwavs, Very sincerely vours. 



"SAMUEL P. COLT. 



From Mr. William AL Ivins: 



T regret very nuicli lliat uiy professional engagements in Washington 

 will detain me there luitil Thursday, and that therefore I shall be 

 imable to attend the dinner of The Rubber Club of .\merica to be held 

 on January 11. Very truly yours, WILLIAM M. IVINS. 



AT THE PRESIDENT'S TABLE. 



Those seated at the President's table [see tlie frontispiece to 

 this issue], naming them from left to right, were Messrs. J. O. 

 Stokes, Charles A. Daniel, H. W. DuPuy, A. M. Paul, H. E. 

 Raymond, Ex-Governor A. O. Bourn, Sidney Ussher, d.d., L. 

 Dewart Apslcy, Hon, Lewis Nixon, Henry C. Pearson, Hon J. 

 Gustavus Whiteley, George B. Hodgman, Professor Henry H. 

 Rushy, Frederic C. Hood, Henry Spadone, Arthur W. Stedman, 

 John H. Flint, and Crcsswell Maclau.uhlin. 



The reception committee at the dinner consisted of the follow- 

 ing members of the club : H. W. French, George H. Mayo, 

 F. D. Ralderston, R. L. Chapman. F. H. .^ppleton, W. E. Barker, 

 Charles J. Bailey, W, H. Gleason, W. J. Kelly, George P. 

 Whitmore. 



No banquet that the club has given was as notable in arrange- 

 ment, in the brilliancy of speakers and in attendance, with the 

 possible exception of that at the Hotel Somerset, Boston, when 

 the Hon. L. D. .\i«ley was president. 



