October i, 1909.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



21 



The Editor's Book Table. 



ANALYSE DU CAOUTCHOUC ET DE LA GUTTA PERCHA. _ PAR 



Maurice Pontio- - - • [In the Encyclopedic Scientifique des Aide-Memoire 



— Leaute.] Paris: Gauthier-Yillars. 1909. [Paper. i6mo. Pp. 170. 

 Price, 2.50 francs.] 



THE author of this work is an expert chemist in the 

 service of the French office having charge of posts and 

 telegraphs, and the fact of his having been selected to 

 prepare a volume on the chemistry of india-rubber and gutta- 

 percha, in the important series to which this work belongs, is 

 in itself a high testimonial to his professional standing. Be- 

 ginning with a general account of the sources of rubber, of 

 the nature of latex, and the different methods of coagulation, 

 the author proceeds to the discussion of physical character- 

 istics of the leading grades of rubber, after which he takes 

 up the methods of analysis by the leading authorities, to 

 wliich he adds some of his own. The book deals with 

 physical tests as well as chemical analyses, and one-fourth 

 of its space is devoted to gutta-percha, which is natural in 

 a work from this source, on account of the importance of 

 this material in electrical insulation. 



LECTURES ON INDIA-RUBBER. BEING THE OFFICIAL ACCOUNT 

 of the Proceedings of the Conference Held in Connection with the Inter- 

 national Rubber and Allied Trades Exhibition, London, September, 1908. 

 Edited by D. Spence, ph.d., f.i.c. - - - London: International Rubber 

 and Allied Trades Exhibition, Limited. [1909.] [Cloth. Svo Pp. 334. 

 Price, 10/6, net.] 



The notice of this book in the last India Rubber World was 

 based upon advance sheets, without having before us the title 

 of the book, which is here reproduced for the sake of having it 

 in the record, so to speak. In addition to the features of the 

 work mentioned already in these columns, Dr. Spence's compila- 

 tion embraces reports on the social functions in connection with 

 the International Rubber Exhibition, most of which were men- 

 tioned currently in The India Rubber World. These affairs 

 particularly merit a record in this stately volume, since they con- 

 tributed so conspicuously in aiding the representatives of so many 

 rubber planting countries to become personally acquainted — by- 

 no means the least valuable result of the Rubber Exhibition. 



RUBBER SHARE HANDBOOK. DETAILS OF COMPANIES OWNING 

 iber and Other Produce Properties in Ceylon, the Malay Peninsula. 



i: Nortl Borneo, Sumatra. Java. Africa and South America. 



don: Financier aiid Bullionist. 1909. [Boards, irmo. Pp. 317- 

 ' ice, 2 shillings.] 



Tins, the third edition of a work already favorably com- 

 mented upon in these pages, is the best book of its class 

 which has yet appeared, both because it is the latest in 

 the field and because it contains details in respect of 

 more companies than any preceding compilation. Statis- 

 tics are given of 290 companies devoted wholly or in part 

 to rubber planting, the same being located in a score of 

 colonies and countries. The work appears to leave nothing 

 to be desired in respect of accuracy. The directors of each 

 company are named on the page devoted to the company, 

 and at the end appears a directory of directors — 483 names 

 in all — with the companies with which each i- connected. We 

 notice that there are individuals connected with the boards 

 of nearly a score of companies each. 



MANUEL PRATIOUE DE LA CULTURE ET DE L'EXPLOITATION 

 des Essences Caoutchoutiferes Indigenes et Introduites au Congo 

 Beige. Brussels: A. Lesigne. 1909. [Cloth. 8vo. Pp. 126.] 



This work, issued under the auspices of the Belgian 



minister of colonies, is an elaboration of a manual issued 



under a similar title several years ago. It relates in detail 



to (i) rubber trees, (2) lianes, or vines, and (3) caoutchoucs des 



herbes, or "root rubber." Following a brief description in 



plain language of each species is an account of the habitat, 



including conditions of soil and the like, with suggestions 



for propagating the species, and for its cultivation. Finally 



are suggestions based upon practice for collecting latex, 

 whether from trees, vines, or roots; the coagulation of the 

 same, preparation for market, and transportation. Experi- 

 ments in rubber cultivation in the Congo country, particularly 

 at Coquilhatville and Eala, not to mention work done on 

 rubber concessions, have been carried on to an extent which 

 provides not a little material for a practical manual such as 

 this is designed to be. Prominence is given in this book to 

 the native Funtumia and Hcvca among trees, Landolphia 

 Klainei among vines, and Landolphia Thollonii of the "root 

 rubber" species, though the cultivation of several other 

 species is regarded with favor. The interest and value of 

 the book are enhanced by the introduction of 29 plates, illus- 

 trating botanical specimens and methods of tapping and the 

 like. 



ANNUAIRE UXIYERSEL DU CAOUTCHOUC, DE LA GUTTA- 

 Percha, et des Industries qui s'v Rattchent Paris: La Caoutchouc 

 et la Gutta-percha. 1909. [Paper, Svo. Pp. 167. Price, 6.50 francs.] 

 Our excellent contemporary, the organ of the rubber trade 

 in France, lias brought out the second annual edition of 

 its Universal Dictionary of the rubber and allied indus- 

 tries. The general character of the work is the same 

 as last year, but it appears in a more convenient form. By 

 increasing the number of entries on each page the work has 

 been brought into smaller bulk, which is an advantage. Nat- 

 urally the lists are fullest for France, but manufacturers 

 and dealers are included for the other leading countries of 

 Europe and the United States of America. The editor has 

 not always distinguished properly between makers of goods 

 and dealers, and the book bears evidences of having been 

 set up by printers unfamiliar with the languages in which 

 some of the firm names are expressed. We do not doubt, 

 however, that the trade will accept the invitation to suggest 

 corrections where any may be needed, and that the work 

 will become increasingly valuable with each new edition. 

 Strangely enough, no American manufacturers are mentioned 

 under" tlie heading of Tires. The fullest department, per- 

 haps, is that of firms in the crude rubber trade, the list of 

 which, filling 16 pages, relates to every country or colony 

 now producing rubber commercially. 



DE BALTA-INDUSTRIE IN SURINAME rSURIXAM: 1909.] [PAPER. 



Svo. r cix.i 



This is a government publication, which has grown out of the 

 interest in the products of Dutch Guiana, stimulated by the ex- 

 hibit made at the International Rubber Exhibition of 1908, where 

 the colony was represented by a subcommittee of the Netherlands 

 committee already mentioned at length in The India Rubber 

 World. The secretary of that subcommittee was Dr. J. Sack, 

 who is chemist at the Surinam experiment station of the colonial 

 department of agriculture. Dr. Sack is the editor of this 

 brochure on balata, which is devoted to the history of the de- 

 velopment of this product in general and in Surinam in particu- 

 lar. The existence of Mimuscps balata was recognized in the 

 colony practically as soon as in any other region, but the expor- 

 tation of its product was not developed without considerable 

 delay. The exports have grown from 166 kilograms in 1881 to 

 454.194 in 1908. The history of the concessions system is given, 

 and the regulations adopted at various times for encouraging the 

 industry while conserving the supply. Chapters are devoted to 

 the botany and chemistry of balata. 



THE VISCOSITY OF INDIA-RUBBER AND INDIA-RUBBER SOLtJ- 

 tions- With Special references to its Bearing on 'he Strength or 

 "Nerve" of Crude Rubber. By Dr. P. Schidrowitz and H A, Golds- 

 brough. [Reprinted from the Journal of the Society of Chemical In- 

 dustrv, London Section, January 15. I9°9-1 [Paper. i2mo. Pp. 14.J 



