September 1, 1914.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



661 



THE RUBBER TRADE IN AKRON. 



By Our l\,\i;ulcir Correspondent. 



/^N account of the lliictiiation in the price of ruhhcr, unccr- 

 '^ tainty in the money market and in regard to the demand 

 for rubber goods, quotations have been advanced in many lines, 

 some of the factories raising the price of various goods from 

 five to twenty -tive per cent. Several companies have made no 

 advance at all in their prices, and some of the advances made 

 have already been rescinded, so that the impression prevails 

 that within a few weeks prices will be almost normal, not only 

 for tlic finished product but also for the various raw materials 

 which are received from abroad. It is my belief that most of 

 the Akron factories have a sufficient stock of rubber goods on 

 hand, and also a sufficient supply of raw materials, to run them 

 several months, so that the general market in rubber goods 

 should not be greatly affected, and that as soon as the money 

 market and shipping become regular prices will be lower. I am 

 informed that the shipping of rubber into this country was not 

 stopped except when exchange between this and European 

 countries rose to prohibitive rates. Akron men have said that 

 if the shipments cannot be taken care of they will make an ef- 

 fort to charter their own boats to bring in Brazilian and planta- 

 tion rubber. 



H. S. Firestone says: "A sharp turn of war conditions may 

 quickly relieve the present tie-up of navigation and permit crude 

 rubber shipments to reach us. Here are the facts : Over 60 

 per cent, of the crude rubber used in the United States comijs 

 from the Far East, via the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. No 

 merchant ships are passing through thsse seas now, and we 

 don't know when they will start, surely not for a while. Ship- 

 pers could divert the shipments via the Pacific Ocean to our 

 western coast, but this change would require time and w-e have 

 no word that such a course is under advisement. 



"Being shut off from the East, we must look to South Amer- 

 ica for our supply. Here we find only a few hundred tons in 

 stock, because the Brazilian district has a steady market for all 

 they make during their open season. Just now that country is 

 flooded with torrential rains and the gathering of crude rubber 

 cannot start until October. So we find but little immediate re- 

 lief there. 



"When shipments start to come in from tlie East, crude rub- 

 ber prices will probably decline sharply, although it has been 

 reported unofficially that when navigation stopped the plantation 

 owners laid off their men and ceased tapping the trees. This 

 of course would mean a shortage of rubber, but it is my per- 

 sonal opinion that transportation is the main difficulty and that 

 as soon as navigation opens we will find plenty of rubber to 

 supply this country."' 



* * * 



The .\damson Machine Co. is making a large addition to its 

 foundry, and installing machinery in the recent addition to its 

 machine shop, giving improved facilities for heavy work. The 

 plant is exceptionally busy, running day and night. 



* * * 



The B. F. Goodrich Co., for the first si.x months of 1914, 

 after making proper allow'ances for maintenance, depreciation 

 and all outstanding liabilities, showed a net profit of $2,651,200. 

 This, added to December surplus, after deducting the regular 

 April and July dividends on preferred stock, shows undivided 

 profits of $2,307,200. From this the company has appropriated 

 sufficient funds to retire nine hundred thousand dollars par 

 value of preferred stock. 



This period's gain of quick assets over current liabilities 

 amounts to $1,628,500. Net profits for the first half of 1914 

 were greater than for the fiscal year of 1913. 



B. G. Work, president of the Goodrich company, who, with 

 his family, has been in Germany, and was marooned by the war, 

 has cabled home assurances of their safety. 



It is reported that this company's plant in France, on account 

 of the increased need of tires occasioned by the European war, 

 is running day and night to its utmost capacity. 



* * » 



The Firestone reclaiming plant is practically completed, andf 

 the company is building another addition to its main building. 



* * * 



The .Miller Tire & Rubber Co. has commenced to tear down 

 part of the buildings of the Frantz Body Works and expects to 



replace them with new ones. 



« * * 



The Marathon Tire & Rubber Co., which has had an excep- 

 tional year, is building an addition to its factory and store 



buildings at Cuyahoga Falls. 



• * * 



The Kelly-Springfield Tire Co. has just completed equipment 

 of its new factory building, and the whole factory is running 

 full force. 



THE RUBBER TRADE IN BOSTON. 



By Our Regular Correspondent. 



A S elsewhere, the rubber trade has been in a very unsettled 

 ** condition for the past month. The flurry in rubber costs 

 was one factor, and the general uncertainty regarding money 

 rates, foreign exchange and delivery of supplies, added to sudden 

 business depression all along the line, made the first two weeks 

 in August rather exciting ones. Prices of about everything 

 made wholly or partly of rubber were advanced, but at last 

 reports most of these lines were settling back nearly or quite to 

 old rates. 



The tire situation was presumably the same here as else- 

 where. Prices were advanced ten per cent, by all makers. 

 Some houses allowed their favored customers to cover immediate 

 needs at old prices, while others held rigidly to the advance. 

 As a consequence those first two weeks in August were lively 

 ones, with more than one factory reporting the biggest business 

 in their history. 



The sundries manufacturers advanced prices twenty per cent., 

 which had the effect of narrowing trade down to immediate 

 needs of their customers. Along about the tw-entieth. however, 

 half of the advance was lopped off, though this helped trade 

 but little. 



The clothing men are uncertain how their trade will be af- 

 fected. Most of them have large orders. Those who use im- 

 ported fabrics are by no means certain they will get the goods 

 they have already ordered, and they are likely to pay pretty 

 high rates to insure delivery. While this may work to their 

 disadvantage, the same causes may prevent the receipt of im- 

 ported garments and thus by removing competition make a 

 better demand for the finer lines. 



In boots and shoes, no advance was made in either terms or 

 prices. The possibility that such action might be taken later, 

 however, caused a rush of orders. The factories, which had 

 closed for the regular summer shut-down for repairs and in- 

 ventory, are now running, and most of them with enough 

 business to keep them going for eight or ten weeks, and stock 

 enough to enable them to do so. 



* * * 



The Forsyth Dental Infirmary, which has previously been de- 

 scribed in these pages, is expected to be opened for its philan- 

 thropic work early ne.xt month, and will have a proper setting 

 worthy of the beauty of the building, and what might have 

 been a controversy has been amicably settled. Incidentally, 

 a further evidence is shown of the way money made in the 

 rubber business is donated for the benefit of humanity. A 

 large plot of ground belonging to Ex-Governor Foss, if built 

 up in apartment houses, would hide the frontage and obscure 



