July 1, 1914.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



571 



NOTES FROM BRITISH GUIANA. 



By Our Regular Corrcsfondcnt. 



THIC K.MLWAY— POSITION OF THE BAI.ATA INDUSTKY. 



Tl I E Secretary of State for the colonies has replied to the 

 governor's despatch asking for an Imperial loan for the 

 construction of a railway to the hinterland of this colony, 

 together with a grant in aid of any deficit that may occur 

 during the first five years the railway is running. The Sec- 

 retary of State agrees that the resources of British Guiana 

 are rich, but points out that any scheme of development that 

 is proposed should show a satisfactory prospect of recouping 

 the expenditure incurred upon it within a reasonable period. 

 The scheme submitted by the governor does not, in his opin- 

 ion, conform with economic principles. The scheme sub- 

 mitted must be self-supporting at an early stage, and must 

 not be such as to make any appeal to the Imperial Govern- 

 ment for a grant in aid of revenue. The Secretary of State, 

 therefore, asks the governor to frame a scheme which it will 

 be possible for the colony to finance out of its receipts and 

 out of the general increase of prosperity created by the 

 scheme. In the event, however, of the Imperial Government 

 granting a loan for the construction of the railway, the Secre- 

 tary of State makes it quite clear that the constitution will 

 have to be so modified as to give the Imperial Government 

 full control over the colony's revenue and expenditure. 



It has been decided in the colony to proceed with the idea 

 of the railway and to endeavor to secure a loan from the 

 Imperial Government on the most favorable terms possible. 

 It has been suggested that as the conditions will be harder 

 for the colony to meet than would have been the case under 

 the Governor's scheme, and as the gold and balata industries 

 stand to benefit most by the enterprise, they should submit 

 to slightly increased taxation. Representatives of the balata 

 interests in the colony do not look upon the suggestion 

 with favor. In view, however, of the great saving balata 

 companies will effect upon their expeditions by means of the 

 railway, the suggestion is worth their consideration. The 

 following letter by the Attorney General, illustrates the 

 enormous disadvantages under which the balata industry now- 

 suffers on account of the lack of adequate means of com- 

 munication: "When I spoke at the Railway Committee yester- 

 day of the cost of the present journey of balata bleeders to 

 and from the Rupununi as amounting to £30 to £40 per head 

 I meant the total economic cost to the industry, not the 

 actual out-of-pocket expenses of the employer. The employer 

 loses much in money outlay for boats and boat-hands and 

 in the efficiency of his men. The laborer loses months of 

 time in actual journeys and in delays and is out of pocket 

 for months of expensive food, every mouthful of which has 

 to be carried from Georgetown. There is also to be con- 

 sidered the loss of balata and the occasional abandonment 

 of expeditions costing thousands of dollars." 



THE RUBBER INDUSTRY— L.VTEST STATISTICS. 

 At a meeting of the Board of Agriculture, held recently, 

 the governor. Sir Walter Egerton, who presided, said that 

 since Mr. Bancroft, the Assistant Director of Science and 

 Agriculture, had been in the colony he had demonstrated 

 that Para rubber would grow as well here as in the Malay 

 Peninsula and Eastern countries. Para rubber was not a gold 

 mine but was still a very profitable speculation. It was 

 stated at this meeting that in future the colony would depend 

 very little upon outside supplies of seeds. There were now 

 in the Botanic Gardens 200,000 seedling plants and in order 

 to encourage purchasers the price has been reduced from 

 five cents each to two cents each. Since the last census of 

 production was taken in the colony the area under rubber 

 has increased by 859 acres and it is now 4.018 acres. There 

 has been a steady increase during the past seven years. 



THE RUBBER EXHIBITION— THE COLONY'S EXHIBIT. 

 The colony is not going to make the same mistake this year 

 that it made in 1912, when, by a curious series of blunders, it 

 abstained from securing representation at the New York 

 Rubber Exhibition. Eor the Rubber and Allied Trades Ex- 

 hibition that is being held in London this year excellent 

 exhibits of rubber, balata, sugar, rice, cacao, coffee, cocoanuts,. 

 casava starch, arrowroot, timber, etc., have been despatched. 

 The rul)l)er and balata exhibits include the following; 



Rubber: Issorora station, biscuits 120 pounds, scrap 10' 

 ])ounds; Ondcrneeming Farm, biscuits 38J4 pounds; Plantation 

 Tushen, biscuits 6 pounds; Plantation Leonora, biscuits 7}4 

 pounds; Plantation Providence, biscuits 7 pounds; the Hills. 

 Plantation, biscuits 15 pounds; Plantation Noitgedacht, biscuits 

 15 pounds, sheet 26 pounds. 



Balata: Consolidated Rubber and Balata Estates, 40O 

 pounds; Consolidated Rubber and Balata Estates, 30 pounds; 

 Department of Lands and Mines, 112 pounds; Board of 

 Agriculture, 25 pounds. 



Sapium rubber: Consolidated Rubber and Balata Estates,. 

 120 pounds. 



This decision to exhibit in London is regarded as a wise 

 one, for it is still felt that the abstention from the New 

 York Exhibition was a great mistake. 



NOTES FROM DUTCH GUIANA. 

 By Our Regular Correspondent. 

 A T the time of writing, Dutch Guiana is passing through an. 

 ■»' unusually wet period. The rains are falling almost con- 

 tinuously, with but very short intervals of sunshine. The balata. 

 bleeders are taking advantage of the favorable weather, and 

 are all reaping a big harvest of latex. One bleeder alone re- 

 ports having stored 200 barrels of milk awaiting fair weather 

 to dry his production. Unlike rubber, balata cannot be satisfac- 

 torily dried without some sunshine, and too much rain is as bad 

 as no rain for the balata business. 



This year will undoubtedly break all records of production, 

 for 145,225 kilos. (319,495 lbs.) had been exported to the United 

 States and Europe by the end of April. The production for the 

 month of .'Vpril alone stands at 50,341 kilos. (110,750 lbs.). 



The new regulations to which reference has been made in 

 previous correspondence are still the topic of the day and con- 

 tinue to cause a good deal of friction in the balata gathering 

 industry. It is said that the Colonial States will not pass the- 

 bill, but the Home Government will certainly take a different 

 view of the situation and adopt the new ordinance in .spite of 

 whatever the local parliament may say or do, for the new regula- 

 tions are well suited to Dutch Guiana, where capital is so badly 

 needed. 



The man of modest means will be obliged to work for the 

 capitalist on his terms or get out of the business altogether. 

 Formerly, the little man could take a small concession from the 

 government or work a piece of private land on which balata 

 trees grew, and pay a small royalty to the owners ; but under 

 the new regulations, unless he can put up a large airiount of 

 money and take in concession an extensive tract of land, he 

 must drop out of the business. This is the principal bone of 

 contention airiong the moderate capitali.st3 in the colony. 



The new regulations will greatly tend to lessen fraud among 

 the bleeders and others who formerly did not hesitate to help 

 themselves to their employers' property, especially when they 

 found themselves heavily indebted. Not only was the government 

 swindled out of revenues, but the concerns operating on a large 

 scale were badly "done." All this will be stopped under the new 

 regulations. 



Our neighbors in Cayenne, or French Guiana, have at last 

 awakened to the fact that their colony possesses a very valuable 

 asset in the form of large tracts of balata forests. In days oC 



