486 



THE INDIA RUBBEai WORLD 



[September 1, 1911. 



INDIA RUBBER AND BALATA IN DUTCH GUIANA. 



FORMIC ACID FOR LATEX COAGULATION. 



(Bv Our Regular Correspondent.) 

 TV/E note from "De Rotterdammer Coiirant" that the directors 

 ''* of the Balata Compagnie Suriname have sent the follow- 

 ing circular to their shareholders : 



"When we took over the balata business of Messrs. J. G. von 

 Memert and Henri Benjamin it was agreed that the net profit 

 over 1910 should belong to the new company, :ind vendors 

 guaranteed that this profit should be at least $72,360: and that 

 balances and accounts should be controlled by Mr. W. Kreuh- 

 niet, an accountant. 



"This has been accomplished in Paramaribo, and Mr. Kreuh- 

 niet has sent in his report. According to this report the gross 

 profit has been $186,405. Costs of exploitation and materials 

 has been $48,025. On advances to laborers a loss has been 

 written off of $18,936. With a small profit on the timber busi- 

 ness of $218, the total net profit has been $119,613, or $47,301 

 more than has been guaranteed. 



■"It must be understood that the first book year of the com- 

 pany will be closed on December 31, 1911, so this profit will be 

 a part of profit and loss account of that year ; also the results 

 of the business over 1911, and will include also the dividends 

 of the shares taken over from the Balata Compagnie Guyana." 



Under separate cover I send you for your library a brochure 

 on "Para Rubber Culture in Surinam," by A. W. Drost, assistant 

 agronom to the Department of Agriculture in Surinam. I am 

 very sorry that this book seems to be made up in a hurried 

 fashion. Where statements are given, the date is omitted. 

 The English translation is very bad, and I fear very often 

 you will have to guess at the meaning. Some pictures are 

 very fine, and show the lu.xuriant growth of Hevea in Suri- 

 nam. On one page you are promised a picture of a Hevea, 

 banana and coffee field on Wederzorg, but you look for it in vain. 



Of course, among all this interesting information, you will 

 look out for the "Costs of Establishing a Hevea Plantation." 

 Mr. Drost gives some interesting figures, and shows that the 

 laying out and the upkeep of one hectare (2.3 acres) until Hevea 

 is productive is $473, and that this amount is covered by the 

 profit on the catch crops. It is not the place here, says Mr. 

 Drost. to give a detailed estimate of the costs which are required 

 for the exploitation of Hevea plantations. Where is the place 

 then? 



Very impressive is the photo of nine-year-old Heveas with 

 cocoa as a sub-planting on Jagdlust Estate. Mr. Drost is strongly 

 advocating intercrops or catch crops while growing rubber. In 

 this Dr. Cramer, our agricultural director, is the opponent of 

 his assistant agronom, see his book on rubber cultivation, 1910. 

 To whom shall the practical planter listen? The effects of most 

 intercrops are certainly: that the growth is slower and the ulti- 

 mate yield of rubber is less— you will never be able to cut 

 three backs from one hog — but if a good market for catch crops 

 is near, transport cheap and easy, laborers at hand, the profits 

 on a catch crop can be so considerable that it is wise to plant 

 them, even if it should delay the profitable tapping of rubber 

 from five to seven years, as Mr. Drost asserts. 



It is, however, an established and known fact that at some 

 Surinam estates the tapping of five-year-old Heveas grown up 

 with bananas has been very remunerative, and that under the 

 most favorable conditions the first tapping of Heveas can take 

 place even at the age of ZYz years. 



THE problem of the best and cheapest coagulating agent has, 

 it is claimed, been solved by the Fabrick van Chemioche 

 Producten (Factory of Chemical Products), Schiedam, Holland, 

 with its latest preparation of formic acid. Expert investigation 

 having apparently demonstrated the advantages resulting from 

 the use of acids in coagulation, the question of the most suitable 

 one still remained for discussion. 



On behalf of formic acid, it has been urged that it is not only 

 the cheapest in price of the organic acids, but that it is more 

 powerful in its action than other compounds of that class. The 

 makers claim that they are in a position to offer a grade con- 

 taining 90 per cent, of free acid, with specific gravity 1.20, 46 

 parts of which -are theoretically equal to 60 of acetic acid .63 of 

 oxalic acid, 70 of citric acid and 75 of tartaric acid. It is de- 

 scribed as an effective and antiseptic coagulating agent, without 

 any harmful effect upon the rubber and preventing agglutination. 

 In view of the admittedly e.xtensive use of acetic acid in the 

 Federated Malayan States and in Ceylon, interest attaches to the 

 statement that the tests of Spence prove that the rubber obtained 

 by a treatment with formic acid is as good or rather better than 

 the product obtained by the use of the other agent named. 



Formic acid has only been used for technical purposes since 

 the year 1903, when Dr. Goldschmidt discovered a cheap process 

 for the manufacture in quantity of what had previously been a 

 laboratory product. 



In "Crude Rubber and Compounding Ingredients" (pp. 37 and 

 98) reference is made to the fact that formic acid had been 

 suggested as an ideal precipitant for rubber milk, being used 

 instead of acetic acid in coagulating Hevea latex. 



RUBBER PLANTATIONS FOR BOSTON. 



THE country newspapers are publishing an item to the effect 

 that crude rubber, at the cost of 15 cents a pound, can be 

 produced in the hot regions of the United States just as easily 

 as corn can be raised. That is, according to the claims of an 

 American who has been in Mexico several years experimenting 

 with plants from which rubber could be taken in paying quan- 

 tities. He claims to possess a tree, a vine and three small plants 

 which may be cultivated by planting the seed or cuttings. The 

 latex of the tree contains 6 per cent, of crude rubber. The vine 

 may be .grown on trellises and will give 8 per cent, of pure 

 rubber. Both these rubber producers may be grown fit for 

 cutting in three years, then trimmed to the roots each season 

 and left to keep that process going for years. 



.According to weather reports Boston was the hottest place in 

 the United States this summer. If Mayor Fitzgerald is in 

 earnest in his efforts for a greater Boston he will at once cover 

 the Common, the Public Gardens and the Fenway with these 

 trees and vines. 



HEABD ON THE PLAMTAXION. 



First Rubber Tree. — "Isn't it awful ! They are really produc- 

 ing synthetic rubber in England. Aren't you frightenctl?" ■ 5 

 '. Second Rubber Tree. — "Yes, indeed! The very thougTit of it 

 -sends c6T3^shiveP6"<lown my back. " 



QviTE RErENTi.v .\N illustrated lecture on india-rubber was 

 given at the magnificent theatre da Paz, Para, by Sr. Amando 

 Mendes, the subjects being "Rubber Planting in the Far East" 

 and "Rubber Manufacture in the United States." For the 

 first lecture there were some 60 views covering the whole topic 

 of rubber planting, tapping, coagulation, etc., in Ceylon and the 

 Malay States. The second section which was introduced by a 

 review of manufacture in the United States as a whole was 

 illustrated by some 60 views showing processes in the leading 

 factories throughout the country and then exterior views of the 

 larger factories making rubber boots, shoes, tires, druggists' 

 sundries, clothing, etc., etc. A very large audience was in at- 

 tendance and much interest.'was shown. The lantern slides were 

 prepared by the editor of The Indi.\ Rubber World and pre- 

 sented l»y him td^h* Musen Goeldi in Para. 



