442 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



f September i, 1910. 



Forest Rubber Exploitation. 



RECENT DEVELOPMENT IN PERU. 



MANY reports agree as to the recent development, on a larger 

 scale than previously, of the rubber interests of Peru. 

 Mention is made in recent South American journals of the 

 completion of the mule road undertaken by the Inca Rubber Co. — 

 an American corporation with headquarters at Bradford, Penn- 

 sylvania — in return for important franchises from the govern- 

 ment. This road has now been declared open to trade generally, 

 so that, in addition to its use by the Inca company, important 

 preparations for increased traffic have been made by E. Braillard 

 Brothers, a French concern established on the river Beni since 

 1882. They have engaged 1,500 mules, enabling them to carry 

 toward the Beni 140 tons of rubber in a year, and to convey 

 inland a corresponding volume of imported merchandise. 



Recently another attempt has been made in London to float 

 The Peruvian Rubber Co., Limited, the first prospectus of which 

 was mentioned in The India Rubber World, December I, 1907 

 (page 87). The basis of this company is an important concession 

 from the Peruvian government to Miguel Forga & Sons, trans- . 

 ferred to La Compania Gomera Villamayo, Limitada. As in the 

 case of the Inca Rubber Co., the concession of the last named 

 company provides for the building of roads to connect with 

 streams which converge in the Madeira, this connecting with the 

 Amazon and Para. 



An interesting statement in the prospectus of the Peruvian 

 Rubber Co. is that "the well known Inca Rubber Co., of America, 

 which owns large territory in the vicinity, has imported 500 

 Japanese, and the results have been quite satisfactory." And 

 the Lima publication, Peru To-day, says that splendid progress is 

 being made throughout the Madre de Dios region, adding: "The 

 same may be said of the Tambopata region [where both the 

 Inca and Peruvian companies have interests], where numerous 

 Japanese have established themselves, with definite landed prop- 

 erties, which they devote especially to the cultivation of rice and 

 cattle breeding." 



NATIVE RUBBERS OF PORTUGUESE AFRICA. 



The rubber resources of Angola (Portuguese West Africa) 

 are treated at length by the British consul, Mr. Mackie, in his 

 report for 1908. It seems that the colonial government has em- 

 ployed expert botanists for stimulating interest in the collection 

 of rubber and the forming of plantations, and also the introduc- 

 tion of agriculture. Over a half dozen latex yielding plants 

 are recognized in the province, several of which have contributed 

 to the already important production of rubber, including the grade 

 known as "Benguclla." Angola rubbers, as well known, are 

 chiefly of the class known as "root rubber," or caoutchoucs des 

 herbes. 



Two of the more important species, according to this report, 

 are the Carpodinus gracilis and the Landolphia chylorrhiza. 

 These plants attain "but a meager growth above ground, but 

 the subterraneous development is important, producing hori- 

 zontal trunks or rhizomes much branched and several feet in 

 length, a few inches below the surface. It is generally these 

 rhizomes that the natives collect for extracting the rubber. Only 

 the biggest rhizomes are pulled out of the ground; the smaller 

 ones and the branches remain in the earth. From these new 

 plants spring up, and in from 8 to 10 years furnish rhizomes of 

 sufficient thickness for extracting rubber. A native produces an 

 average of 7 ounces of rubber a day without overworking 

 himself." 



In evidence of the tenacity of life of these plants it is men- 

 tioned that, although Portuguese stores have been in existence 

 near Cassuango for some nine years in a populous center de- 



voted to the rubber industry, these shrubs are still abundant all 

 around — a circumstance, in the opinion of the botanist, that would 

 seem to upset the theory that the rubber producing areas are be- 

 ing devastated by the native population. The consul is of the 

 opinion that the employment of machinery might facilitate the 

 production of rubber, but thus far little enterprise has been 

 shown in this direction. 



Regarding the "Ecanda" {Raphionacme utilis), first reported 

 on by Professor Mello Geraldes [see The India Rubber World, 

 July 1, 1907 — page 200], the consul in Angola mentions the ship- 

 ment of several tons of the bulbs of this plant to Great Britain, 

 with the idea of extracting rubber from it there, but very little 

 arrived in a fit condition, owing to the rotting that took place in 

 transit. The consul adds : "It may nevertheless be concluded, 

 from the continued interest manifested by the firm in this 

 product, that the result had proved satisfactory." 



LARGER DIVIDENDS OF A DUTCH COMPANY. 



At the last annual meeting of Nieuwe Afrikansche Handels 

 Vennootschap (Rotterdam, July 1), accounts were presented 

 which permit the following comparative figures to be given. The 

 company is the oldest trading on the Congo, having established 

 a branch at Boma before the Belgians became established there. 

 Lately the company have held 340 of the 2010 shares in the 

 Cie. du Kasai (Kasai syndicate). Rubber has figured largely in 

 the operations of the company. The dividends derived from 

 the Kasai holdings, which form only part of the company's profits, 

 have been (for fiscal years ending October 31) : 



1906 286,882.00 florins [=$115,326.56] 



1907 121,992.45 florins [= 49,040 96] 



1908 67,446.64 florins [= 27,113.551 



1909 132,965.18 florins [= 53,452.00] 



The yearly dividends declared by the N. A. H. V. and the rate 



were as follows : 



1906 358,453.50 florins ( 17 per cent.) 



1907 168,684.00 florins ( 8 per cent.) 



1008 105,427.50 florins ( 5 per cent.) 



1909 231,940.50 florins (11 per cent.) 



The N. A. H. V. have become interested in the Cie. Franchise 

 de l'Ouhame et de la Nana, in the French Congo, the operations 

 of which are now profitable. The proceeds of the Dutch com- 

 pany from this source during the year were 80,779.39 florins. 



GOOD RESULTS OF THE MABIRA FOREST COMPANY. 



The directors of Mabira Forest (Uganda) Rubber Co., Lim- 

 ited, report very favorable results for the year 1909. The output 

 of rubber was 82.424 pounds, against 35,007 pounds in 1908. Dur- 

 ing the business year the company sold 59,010 pounds, at the 

 average price of 6s. 5'4t/. per pound. On October 19 Mabira 

 rubber fetched at the London auction qs. 4% d. [=$2.28] per 

 pound — a higher figure than the current rate for fine hard Para. 

 The net profit for 1909 amounted to £17,018, and after writing 

 off expenditures incurred during the development stage there 

 remained a balance of £10,107, out of which the directors recom- 

 mended the distribution of a dividend of 10 per cent. The Mabira 

 Forest company deal with native Funtumia trees, of which at the 

 end of the year they had exposed and prepared for tapping 

 442.207 above 18 inches in girth. The company are gradually 

 clearing out the intermediate forest trees and planting rubber. 

 At the end of the year they had transplanted 289,449 Funtumia 

 trees and 14,600 Hevea. [See The India Rubber World. March 

 I, 1910 — page 202.] 



A book for rubber planters — Mr. Pearson's "What I Saw in 

 the Tropics." 



