58 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[October 1, IVAJ. 



Declared exports of nilyber and gutta to the L'nited States 

 from Singapore for the years 1917 and 1918 were as follows: 



1917 1918 



X -^ -^ 



Articles Quantity Value Quantity Value 



Gutta. ilongkong./'ouiidi *'•!*' ^'I'^'i'! 



Gutta Jangicar.. 45,733 $5,398 1,598 9,861 



Ciutla Jelutong 10,108,209 871,959 4,043,625 338,916 



Guttapercha 2,212,719 281,940 848,506 173,446 



Gutta. reboilcj 304,659 30,008 19,661 4,648 



Gutta, sialc 2,346,405 314,286 1,429,397 201,912 



Gutta, untreated 764.169 51,950 „i;Vi;>;, 



Rubber. Para 167,742.830 87,232.774 173,968,167 62.372.809 



The United States was the largest purchaser of rubber from 

 the Straits Settlements, whilt tlie l'nited Kingdom led in the 

 purchase of gutta pcrcha. 



Exports of rubber to the L'nited States as declared at Penang, 

 were 25,474.672 pounds valued $14,103,936 in 1917, and 21,472,640 

 pounds valued $5,479,827 in 1918. The decrease in export values 

 was largely due to the sharp slump in the price of rubber dur- 

 ing the year. 



THE RUBBER INDUSTRY IN MALAYA 



/>y (J Spiuial Concspondrnt 



THERE is a general feeling of soreness here among rubber 

 producers over the fact that w'hereas most articles have 

 risen in price, rubber is a great exception. The opinion is that 

 tins has been caused by outside control of the market, many 

 openly saying that America is controlling the market and is 

 refraining from buying until prices suit her. 



Various remedies have been offered by those that feel most 

 strongly about the matter. .■Ml clamor for some kind of com- 

 bination. One suggests that "the Rubber Growers' Associations 

 obtain the combination of all members of their association to fix 

 a minimum price of 2s. 6d. per pound for the lowest grade of 

 rubber." Another wants to fix the price at 4s. per pound, yet 

 another calls in the help of the Government which is to buy up 

 all rubber at a fixed price, ranging from 80 cents (Straits) 

 downwards and is to refuse to let a single pound out of the 

 country under 5j-. per pound. This latter scheme reminds 

 us somewhat of the famous Brazilian rubber valorization scheme, 

 which cost the government a mint of money and was such a 

 ghastly failure. 



After all this feverish agitation, the ^thoughtful editorial in 

 the issue of July 31 of the Malayan Tin and Rnhbcr Journal is 

 particularly gratifying. The editor points out that if the two- 

 thirds of Malayan planters belonging to the Rubber Growers' 

 Association formed a combine, an equally strong combine of 

 Iniyers. watching proceedings, would buy up as much rubber as 

 possible before the planters' combine had a chance to operate. 

 and would be able to go on for several months with these pur- 

 chases. Meanwhile, the producers' combine would not find a 

 market for their high priced rubbers; the planters would have 

 on hand an increasing stock of rubber — an article extremely 

 liable to deterioration. Thus after four or five months, they 

 would he only too glad to sell at any price. 



Of course, all producers are not joining the alarm; the follow- 

 ing extract from a recent company report is further proof that 

 there are still people capable of seeing things as they are : 



The really remarkable thing is that, with the world in its 

 unsettled state, the demand for rubber should have kept pace 

 with the greatly increased production. Here, I think, the low 

 prices have been an aid to the industry ; at least they have scotched 



the synthetic bogey Low prices have led to the most 



careful thought being given to working expenditure, until today 

 well-managed estates can produce at a price never thought of in 

 the good old days of 5-shilling rubber. 



SELANGOR RUBBER COMPANY'S MAJORITY 



The Selangor Rubber Co., Ltd., has just celebrated its 21st 

 birthday. Begun in 1899, it claims to be the first British company 

 formed to cultivate Para rubber on a commercial scale. It 

 bought 3.927 acres of land in Malaya, approximately 200 acres 



of which had been planted by the former (iwners in 1898. At 

 present the company owns 2.631 ^^ acres, of which all that could 

 be used for rubber, 2,51 lj<i acres, has now been planted. 



The first rubber sold was a small consignment of 342 pounds, 

 which brought 6s. \]4d. per pound. The costs and yields of so 

 old a company are undoubtedly interesting. The total yield 

 was 888.830 pounds of dry rubber during 1919; the cost of pro- 

 duction alone was just over 6]4d. per pound, against 6%^. per 

 pound the year before. As for yields per acre, some of the 21 

 year old rubber gave up to 500 pounds an acre, and none of it 

 gave less than 350 pounds. Some of the newer rubber fields 

 yielded well over 650 pounds per acre. 



Against these figures it is interesting to put those of another 

 well-known company — the Seafield Rubber Co. Here the pro- 

 duction costs, including export duties, was about 8d. per pound, 

 against 8ygd. the year before. The older portion of the estate 

 covering about 826 acres yielded 634 pounds per acre, one field 

 giving 816 pounds per acre. The new portion with an acreage 

 of 1,248 averages 501 pounds per acre. 



Production on most estates in Malaya ranges from about 450 

 ]iounds to 250 pounds, while all-in costs are generally around 

 I.J. per pound. On some of the new'er estates all-in costs run 

 as high as \s. 5d. per pound. 



ALTERNATE DAILY TAPPING 



Together with prices, the labor shortage and alternate daily 

 tapping are being discussed a good deal at present. The number 

 of planters using the alternate method is far greater than 

 many have thought. Their reasons for favoring the method 

 coincide pretty well ; the general opinion is that by this system 

 the amount of labor required is reduced, while tlie percentage of 

 first late.x rubber is considerably higher, one planter giving his 

 percentage of first latex as over 87.6. Then there is a reduction! 

 in costs, while it is further pointed out that lighter tapping favors 

 the health of the trees. 



NEW RUBBER PACKING CASES 



.\ new solid fiber telescopic chest for packing rubber is l'>eing 

 introduced into the Far East by the Zellerbach Paper Co.. of San 

 Francisco, California. These chests are sent out in the shape of 

 sheets and are riveted, packed, wired, and made ready for ship- 

 ment at the plantation. 



At a demonstration held in Singapore. 250 poinids of sheet 

 rubber were packed in such a chest without much pressure. Iir 

 a Borneo. Momi or Venesta chest but 200 to 250 pounds can be 

 packed. To show the durability and resistance to breakage of 

 these packages two fully packed chests were thrown to the 

 ground from a height of 21 feet. They proved to he resilient 

 as a rubber ball, and except for a small clip flying off. showed no 

 damage. The same test applied to a Borneo chest resulted in the 

 chest being smashed to pieces. Two Venesta cases thus- 

 tested were also badly datnaged. Although the new case, which 

 is made of a composition of fiber and jute, is somewhat more 

 expensive than the other cases, it is felt that its advantages out- 

 weigh this objection. 



THE RUBBER INDUSTRY IN THE FEDERATED MALAY STATES 



According to the reports of Consul Edwin N. Gunsaulus. 

 Singapore. Straits Settlements, while the import and export 

 trade figures of the Straits Settlements embrace practically all 

 the foreign trade transactions of . the Federated Malay States 

 and the entire Malay Peninsula, as well by reason of the fact 

 that essentially all of the incoming and outgoing products hav- 

 ing to do with the Malay States pass through Singapore. Penang, 

 and Malakka, the commercial and trade importance of the Straits 

 Settlements depends to a great extent upon the development 

 and progress of the hinterland, known as the Malay Peninsula. 

 The development of the Malay Peninsula, particularly that por- 

 tion included in the Federated Malay States, is well known and 



