410 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[August 1, 1911. 



A COAGULATOB FROM TOBAGO. 



ToBACO is a beautiful tropical island close to Trinidad, British 

 West Indies. The planters there liave gone in for Castilloa very 

 extensively. They have also evolved their own methods of tap- 

 ping and coagulating. The illustration is from a photograph of 



:^ 



^ 



Smith's Centrifug.^l Co.-^gulator. 



a coagulator, invented by one of the planters, Mr. H. S. Smith. 

 It is in brief a centrifugal, the bowl of which is fitted with a 

 canvas screen. This catches and holds the coagulated rubber 

 and finally delivers it in the form of a clean sheet. The process 

 has a variety of simple and ingenious adjuncts that fit it for 

 the purpose to which it is successfully put. 



RtJBBER INTENTIONS AT PARA. 

 To THE ElllTOR OF THE INDIA RUBBER WoRLD : 



Sir. — I hasten to explain in reference to the article, "Brazil and 

 Valorization," in your issue of June 1, that what the Brazilian 

 States are contemplating is not to wash all rubber, but to wash 

 all the scrap, sernamby and other low grades which are now 

 shipped in an unpresentable and inconvenient state both as to 

 bullc and appearance. But even supposing it was contemplated to 

 wash all rubbers, there is evidence of the most valuable class 

 that rubbers improve after being washed and cured if kept in. 

 the dark. It might also be mentioned that those who are in 

 contact with Their Excellencies, the Governors of both the States 

 of Para and Manaos, know that neither of them desire to assist, 

 nor will in any way act with the avowed purpose of raising the 

 prices of rubber to exorbitant figures. What they are very anx- 

 ious to obtain is a reasonable level for the rubber market, and the 

 stability of prices, absolutely in accordance with the laws of supply 

 and demand. In this they have the concurrence of every intelli- 

 gent manufacturer, and the producers would hail with delight the 

 consummation of that desideratum. 



As a preliminary measure, the laws referred to have been 



passed, but this does not mean that the administration will act 

 rashly or in defiance of common sense and commercial principles. 

 The writer, for one, has noticed that Brazil, on account of its 

 distance from the markets where its products are sold, is always 

 liable to be misunderstood. Whilst every publisher is desirous 

 of venturing an opinion upon Brazilian matters, and rubber specu- 

 lators in shares and raw material are always influencing the 

 public to think with them scarcely one in one hundred times 

 do they do Brazil justice at the beginning of any discussion as 

 to its commercial development and intentions, .^nd some who 

 may have retracted, honorably, some of their unjust commentaries, 

 very often let matters slide and never try to undo wrong im- 

 pressions created by their hasty conclusions. 



Wrongly or rightlj', the valorization of coffee is an accom- 

 plished fact, and not such a commercial heresy and ignominous 

 failure as many foreigners predicted. 



I venture to predict that the stability of rubber markets (not 

 valorisation, as it has been dubbed, wrongly, everywhere) will 

 be brought about in due course and I feel confident that once 

 more Brazil will be given credit for acting cautiously, and in the 

 common interest of both the producers and consumers of one of 

 its most valuable exports — not as our hasty neighbors think 

 we will do. Yours truly, 



Paraense. 



Para, June 23, 1911 



AN ENTERPRISING SUGGESTION. 



To THE Editor of The India Rubber World : 



Sir: — I would greatly appreciate advice from you as to the 

 practicability of shipping rubber seed ("semilla de goma") from 

 Brazil to the East Indies; also the cost of freight from New 

 York to Malaysia and other points in the East where rubber 

 planting is in progress. 



Some months ago I read an article in your publication con- 

 cerning an American establishment at Goebilt, Borneo. If it 

 would not be too much trouble, would you kindly refer this 

 letter to them, and to any other firms who might be interested, 

 requesting them to quote a price per hundredweight, f. o. b. 

 New York. The cost of gathering and preparing the seed for 

 shipment would, of course, be great ; but I understand that 

 seedlings from the Ainazonian species are showing the best 

 results in the east. Yours very truly, W. H. 



Construction Ofiice, Madeira-Mamore 

 Railway, Porto Velho, Brazil. 



[There is absolutely no market for Para rubber seeds in the 

 Far East. With nearly 1.000,000 acres planted to rubber trees 

 they have so much seed that they are already crushing it and 

 making oil out of it. Besides the cost of collection there is 

 almost nothing. Further than this one has to know how to 

 ship seed in the most expert manner or they will perish. With 

 regard to the -American company at Goebilt, Borneo, they are 

 not a planting company at all, but are at work on wild pro- 

 ducers. — The Editor.] 



RUBBER FROM NATAL t 



According to the London correspondence of the Times of 

 Ceylon, a tree, locally known as the TirucaUi, which aflfords a 

 new source of rubber, has been discovered to abound among the 

 dense scrub in the northern parts of Natal. .This tree is said 

 to yield a sticky fluid, containing 10 to 20 per cent, of fine rubber, 

 in conjunction with SQ per cent, of valuable resin. \ concession, 

 covering an area of 600 si|uare miles, is ra|)orted to have been 

 obtained by a company established for the purpose of exploiting 

 the exudations of the Tirucalli tree. 



While a high percentage of resin is said to be undesirable in 

 rubber, the Association of German Paper Manufacturers is offer- 

 ing a liberal reward for the discovery of a substitute for Ameri- 

 can resin, so that, if correct, this new source of supply is of 

 interest for two important branches of industry. 



