514 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[June 1, 1914. 



the trend of opinion in relation to railway construction to 

 Brazil, and have discovered that there is a smoldering desire 

 among the colonists which is crystallizing into a determina- 

 tion to be some day connected with Brazil by railway. .Vbout 

 two years ago the French firm of Hesse & Co., of Paris, re- 

 quested and obtained from the Government of French Guiana 

 permission to construct a railway from Cayenne to St. 

 Laurent and thence to the Mini gold fields, which are situated 

 near the southern boundary of the colony. This firm, which 

 is Inisily engaged at the present moment in making tlie pre- 

 liminary survey between Cayenne and St. Laurent, is l)otIi 

 wealtliy and energetic and being associated with some of the 

 richest men in France can. therefore, find all the capital re- 

 quired if it is decided to carry through this project. In June 

 last I met at Paramaribo a -Mr. .\le.xis Troissart. representa 

 tive of JMessrs. Rothschild, of Paris, who was on h's way t^ 

 French Guiana to study the /"'o.? and cons of railway con- 

 struction in that colony. 



Dutch Guiana has already constructed about a hundred 

 miles of railway, which runs into the heart of the country, 

 and consequently has a start, and a very long one. on the 

 other Guianas. Whether she will take advantage of her 

 costly-bought and premier position is hard to say, but there 

 is a strong under current of opinion, occasionally expressed, 

 that the objective should be Brazil; and the outcome of this 

 may one day be to force the powers that be to turn it into 

 a reality. These Netherlanders who are guiding the destinies 

 of Dutch Guiana have for centuries demonstrated their ability 

 to do, having won a country from the ocean by their gigantic 

 engineering constructions, and made it one of the most 

 wealthy and prosperous by their commercial ability. Hence 

 they must not be left unconsidered. Should they decide to 

 undertake such a project it would not be long before it would 

 be carried through. 



I may state that Sir Walter Egerton's scheme has met with 

 the admiration of the colonists of the sister Guianas and has 

 .given them a feeling of emulation, so that one is likely to 

 see in the near future a healthy rivalry between them as to 

 which will be first to touch the Brazilian frontier with a 

 railway. British Guiana, being in actual possession of ;i 

 master-mind, only needs the undivided support and co- 

 operation of her people to assure her a good run in what 

 is likely to become a race to Brazil. The impediment re- 

 ferred to above is the diplomatic side of the project. Brazil 

 can make such a project a success or a failure, and it would 

 be taking too big a chance to build such a railway — that is. 

 if the Brazilian-.^mazon trade is the sine qua non of success — 

 without first coming to some diploinatic arrangement with 

 that country. Nothing in His Excellency's despatch shows 

 that any such present or future arrangement is contemplated, 

 and to me it seems to be of paramount consideration, as the 

 following excerpt from the despatch will show: "At present 

 the city of Manaos only offers a limited and uncertain de- 

 mand, and a heavy duty shuts out colonial cattle from even 

 that market." 



It is far from my intention to enter into any discussion as 

 to whether the development of subsidiary industries and the 

 gold and diamond fields, the establishment of towns and the 

 consequent traffic thus created, the transport of cattle and 

 timber, the exploitation of balata and other forest products, 

 would pay the working expenses and interest on capital within 

 ten, twenty-five, or even a hundred years, but of this I atn 

 sure, that were the government to satisfactorily demonstrate 

 to Brazil the incalculable advantages and benefits that would 

 accrue to the many interests engaged in the upper reaches of 

 the .Amazon, and thereby gain her co-operation, the success 

 of the project would be assured. One must not forget that 

 there are powerful interests at stake. Para has been made 

 by the .Amazon and only a decade ago the flourishing and 



wealthy city of Manaos was built to cope with the increasing 

 river trade. Last, but of considerable importance, is the 

 .\mazon Navigation Co.. with no fewer than 300 steamers. 

 These vast interests will do all they can to nullify such an 

 enterprise, so as to keep trade in the present channel 



L.SBORER T.M'l'l.NO B.\1..\T.\ TrEE WITH GoNGGRIJP's l.\r-HUOK. 



Perhaps it may be thought that the precaution urged is 

 only the croakings of a pessimistic mind, or the officious 

 endeavor of an outsider to dim the silver lining behind 

 Demerara's dark cloud, now apparently about to pass away. 

 To those so minded let me hasten to give the assurance that 

 as a native of British Guiana — altho a wanderer for years — I 

 appreciate the words "This is my own, my native land," and 

 that my warning is called forth by the desire to see my 

 native land in possession of a flourishing and wealthy enter- 

 prise instead of a dearly bought "white elephant.' 



."Xs will be seen by the above, a railroad to the Brazilian 

 borders is the desire of the three Guianas, and, as Dutch 

 Guiana already has about 100 miles open for traffic, the dis- 

 tance now to be constructed would give her the leading 

 position, especially with the opening of the Panama Canal next 

 year. If the Dutch Government could only be made to realize 

 the benefits to be derived by spending the necessary money 

 in completing this grand enterprise, it would not hesitate to 

 take advantage of the situation and "make hay while the sun 

 shines." 



The capital popularly subscribed in the London market during 

 1913 for the purpose of investment in rubber securities — Indian, 

 colonial and foreign — amounted to $6,754,435. or $6,483,395 less 

 than similar subscriptions of the preceding year. 



