October i, 1909.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



The Coming Rubber Congress at Manaos. 



IN connection with an announcement of a "Congresso In- 

 dustrial Seringuero," to be held in the Acre district, a 

 short time ago, The India Rubber World (August 1, 

 1909 — page 397), mentioned that a rubber congress to be held 

 later at Manaos was also in prospect. It is too early yet to 

 present here a report of the meeting in the Acre during 

 August. But that the merchants and the producers of rub- 

 ber up the Amazon are deeply interested in the improvement 

 in industrial and commercial conditions in their region is 

 indicated by the scope of the preparations under way for the 

 Manaos conference, which has been called under the auspices 

 of the Associagao Commercial do Amazonas. The objects of 

 the proposed meeting and the tentative programme may best 

 be shown by giving here in full a translation of a communica- 

 tion appearing in the important newspaper, A Provincia do Para. 



"In accordance with the provisions of our by-law?, we are 

 going to hold a Commercial, Industrial and Agricultural Con- 

 gress in this city in February, 1910, one destined to be an 

 eloquent exponent of the Amazon basin, both as regards the 

 interests of Brazil itself and the countries bordering on the 

 state of Amazonas. 



"Both the intervening distances separating us and the exist- 

 ing physiographical conditions seemed to make a work of 

 this magnitude impossible of realization, a work that has 

 always been hampered by rivalry and undue caution. 



"But everything is now different. We have grown so large 

 that we no longer fear to be absorbed by others. Each one 

 has its own sphere of influence. In these latter days a wise 

 foreign policy affords Brazil the opportunity of peacefully 

 delimiting its extreme frontier lines. Finally, new treaties 

 of commerce and navigation complete the patriotic and en- 

 during work to which the second Baron do Rio Branco 

 dedicated his activities and talents as a statesman, in remov- 

 ing the last traces of our ancient controversies. 



"There is therefore no reason why Para, Matto Grosso, and 

 the cis-Andine region, embracing Peru, Colombia, Bolivia 

 and Venezuela, should not also be represented at our con- 

 gress. It is manifest that when brought face to face in this 

 way they cannot but be moved by the desire of knowing one 

 another better, of strengthening more firmly their community 

 of interests, of studying and solving in unison their economic 

 problems, their native products, their industries, agriculture, 

 and commerce, beset witli surprises and discouragements. 



"The honor of presiding over the congress falls by right to 

 his excellency, the governor of the state of Amazonas. The 

 Federal government, Para, Matto Grosso, and each of the 

 neo-Spanish countries above mentioned will undoubtedly be 

 officially represented at the congress. There will be a repre- 

 sentative of the National Agricultural Society, and one from 

 the Para Agricultural Society. We count upon the attend- 

 ance of the commercial associations of Para, Parintins, and 

 Itacoatiara, the Amazon Agricultural Society, the Gceldi mu- 

 seum, the Chamber of Commerce and Geographical Society 

 of Iquitos, the Association for Geographical and Scientific 

 Study of Rivera Alta, the Geographical and Colonial Devel- 

 opment Society of Cobija (Bolivia), the state municipalities 

 and their superintendents, the proprietors of rubber planta- 

 tions, the regular press, and above, all the national and 

 foreign journals especially dedicated to the subject of India- 

 rubber, the one question which will be first and foremost at 

 this congress. In furtherance of this purpose there will be a 

 small exposition held in connection with the congress, with 



a garden of practical demonstration, of the planting of the 

 Hevea Brasiliensis. 



"In subsequent congresses such subjects a- the 



nuts, food plants, and sugar and cattle industries will be 

 taken up. 



"From the instructions published below it will be seen that 

 the three groups of themes to be discussed are commerce, 

 the extractive industries, and agriculture. Among them are 

 comprehended, so far as possible, the elements requisite for 

 the study and solution of the principal questions that so 

 fundamentally concern the economic life of the Amazonian 

 regions. 



"We are confident therefore that the able editor of the 

 A Provincia do Para will lend his assistance in our work of 

 -■•king closer regional affiliation, by opening the colums of 

 his well edited journal to the propaganda, and to giving a 

 clearer understanding of the objects of our congress of 1910. 

 "JOAQUIN GONCALVES D'ARAUJO, Vice-President." 



"Manaos, July 6, [909." 



* * * 



[The paragraphs which follow constitute a circular which forms part 

 of the communication above quoted from.] 



The sessions of the Regional Congress will continue for 

 four days — February 23 to 26, 1910. The opening session will 

 be on the 22d and the closing one on the 27th. The following 

 subjects will be discussed: 



Commerce. — Development of commerce in the extreme 

 North of Brazil and in the cis-Andine neo-Spanish territory; 

 statistics and tables of imports and exports; the question of 

 long haul freight, coast and river steamers; what changes 

 are to be made in the existing relations between financial 

 backers, producers, and exporters; what would be the best 

 way of establishing among the factors above mentioned a 

 system of reciprocal rights and duties, assuring free and inde- 

 pendent action to each one of them; what would be the advan- 

 tages of "warrants" in this respect; mortgaging the crops: 

 the discounting of bills of exchange at a moderate rate of 

 interest, the syndicates, etc.; the abuse of credit, ways of 

 minimizing its bad effects; retrospective glance at its influence 

 in commercial crises in the Brazilian Amazon, as well as 

 abroad; is any agreement possible between the buyer and 

 seller in the way of rules governing the acceptance and pay- 

 ment of drafts, accounts current, and the legalizing of mer- 

 chandise purchase-memos. at maturity; long haul river- and 

 coastwise navigation; measures to be taken for cheapening 

 freights and the reaching of reasonable understanding be- 

 tween carriers and ship owners; how far can the protection 

 of the government and the intervention of private capital go 

 in this respect; will not the clearing of river courses and 

 channel cutting solve in a large measure the scarcity of 

 freight and the problem of more rapid river communication; 

 methods of developing the merchant marine and the coast- 

 wise steamer traffic in the Amazon valley. 



Products of the Soil.— Will planting perhaps be the surest 

 way of making solid and enduring the primacy of the Amazon 

 rubber in the market of the consumers? What methods 

 should be employed to demonstrate to producers that the 

 value of their property will be increased more by planting 

 rubber, thus rendering their profit more certain and less sub- 

 ject to speculation in the markets of the consumers? Are 

 there any new methods of coagulating and perparing rubber? 

 Is there any advantage in the replanting of caoutchouc? Is 

 the area devoted to this purpose still of great extent? What 

 is the approximate area in the three states of the Amaz. n. 

 the territory of Acre and the cis-Andine neo-Spanish terri- 



