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THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



March 1, 1921 



A Glossan of \\ ords and Terms Used in the Rubber Industry — IIP 



By Henrj- C. Pears 



AFRICAN RUBBER-WILX> 



AFRICAN rubbers are not only of great historic value but arc 

 still an important market feature. That they have suffered 

 from the abundance and cheapness of plantation rubber and 

 that certain of the lower grades have disappeared from the market 

 was to be expected. Furthermore, the failure so far, of vine plant- 

 ing gives no promise of future Laiidolphia plantation rubber. 

 Whether or not African wild rubber will eventually disappear 

 from the market is something not yet proven. At all events such 

 rubber is still a factor and as a matter of record must be con- 

 sidered in a comprehensive listing of crude rubber sorts. 



African Rubber. Wild rubber from Africa including Mada- 

 gascar, obtained from vines as the Landolphia, Carpodinus and 

 CUtandra; and from trees as the Funtumia and Ficus Vogelii. 

 The latex is collected by natives by tapping or cutting down the 

 trees or vines and is coagulated by boiling, air drying and by 

 the use of astringent vegetable juices. 



Two broad general divisions are made in East and West Coast 

 Africans. The rubber is marketed in the shape of lumps, slabs, 

 cakes, strips, buttons, paste, flakes, balls, niggers, twists, bis- 

 cuits, spindles, nipples, nuts, thimbles, cherries, marbles, sheets, 

 blocks, disks. 



The above names are given because of the physical appear- 

 ance of the rubber as it comes from the hands of the natives. 

 The lump type, for example, is rubber that has been coagulated 

 by boiling and is formed into any convenient shape. Spindles 

 and most balls are made up of strips or filaments of rubber that 

 is coagulated on the vine. 



In some localities as on the Gold Coast, lumps are cut into 

 strips or buttons by machinery and much of the moisture and 

 foreign matter removed. African rubber thus treated is known 

 in England as Liverpool pressed. 



The trade names are usually: (1) the geographical origin or 

 the port of shipment, as Soudan ; (2) the physical shape of the 

 rubber, as balls. African rubbers show a decided loss in wash- 

 ing, the shrinkage being from 7 to SO per cent. The resin con- 

 tent is also large, running from 3 to 30 per cent. 



Accra. Landolphia rubber from the Gold Coast. It is shipped 

 in the form of small brown disks, white in cross section, veined 

 with red and earthy. Accra lump is cut into strips and buttons 

 and is graded as prime, seconds, and thirds. The lower grades 

 are flake and paste. The shrinkage is 30 to 45 per cent. 



AssiNEE. Landolphia, I'icus and Funtumia rubber, from the 

 Ivory Coast, Grand Bassam being the port of shipment. It comes 

 in marbles of ^4 to 1J4 inches in diameter, is brown in color, 

 cuts yellow, and contains almost no impurities. It is firm and 

 of good giiality. It is graded as follows : Assinee-silky, Attoa- 

 boa, Lahou, Bayin, half jack. Shrinkage 25 to 35 per cent. 



Addah Niccers. Landolphia and Ficus rubber from Togo, and 

 graded No. 1 and No. 2. Comes in small balls, dirty, reddish 

 brown in color. Shrinkage 10 to 35 per cent. Known as 

 Quittah and Lomi. 



Adei.t Niggers. See Konakry. 



Alima. .See Congo. 



Ambri. Low grade Angola, chiefly in thimbles or nuts. See 

 Benguela. 



Angola. See Benguela. 



Aruwimi (Mongala, Bumba). Landolphia rubber from the 

 Upper Congo. Comes in large balls, like Equator and Lopori. 

 Is tacky, wet, often fermented and much adulterated. Shrinkage 

 30 to 35 per cent. See Congo. 



Attoaboa. See Assinee. 



'Continued from The India Rubber World. February 1, 1921, rages 325-7. 



Bassam. See Grand Bassam. 



Barab.\ta. See Madagascar. 



Bassao. See Gambia. 



Batta Balls. See Cameroons. 



Bayin. See Assinee. 



Batanga Balls. See Cameroons. 



Beira. See Mozambifjue. 



Benin. See Old Calabar. 



Benguela. Landolphia rubber from Benguela shipped in 

 pressed balls. It is of reddish brown color, contains some vege- 

 table debris, sand and earth, and is of poor quality. Is also 

 graded as sausage and thimbles. Of the latter No. 1 is clean 

 and tough, and No. 2 contains considerable red leaf. Shrinkage 

 20 to 40 per cent. Also known as Loanda and Angola. 



Boulam. See Gambia. 



Brown Cure (Brown Slab). Low grade of Madagascar nig- 

 gers. See Madagascar niggers. 



Bumba. See Aruwimi. 



Cape Coast. See Gold Coast. 



Casamanca (Boulam). See Gambia. 



Cameroons. Rubber both from the Landolphia and the 

 Funtumia in balls, biscuits and twists. Shrinkage. 20 to 45 per 

 cent. 



Caches. See Gambia. 



Congo. A general name for rubber from the Independent 

 Congo State and adjacent territories. The rubber is the product 

 of Landolphias and Funtumia, either alone or in admixture. It 

 comes in the form of buttons, balls, red and black thimbles, and 

 twists. Congo ball, generally known as Kassai, is the best grade. 

 The twists are among the toughest of .•\frican rubbers. The 

 better grades are black or deep brown in color and contain but 

 little moisture. The rubber has a woody smell and the lower 

 grades contain bark and moisture. Shrinkages vary widely from 

 7 to 35 per cent. Some of the well-known grades are Kassai, 

 red and black Kantanga, and Wamba. 



Conakry. See Konakry. 



D.TUMA. See Congo. 



DoNDE Ball^. See Zanzibar. 



DoNDE Marbles. See Zanzibar. 



Equator. African rubber from the Congo, which comes in 

 balls glued to each other, and is much esteemed in quality. The 

 balls are often small and mixed. It is dark, dry and clean, but 

 contains some fermented rubber which smells badly. See Congo. 



French Congo. See Congo. 



Gristly. See Madagascar. 



Gaboon. Landolphia rubber from the French Congo, which 

 comes in short strips or flakes stuck together, but not amal- 

 gamated ; balls, bulky lumps, which assume the shape of the 

 containers, and flake. Large balls are graded as large O balls, 

 and small ones as small O balls. The strip is black and con- 

 tains few impurities. The ball is brown, moist and tacky but 

 clean. Cross-section cuts develop pockets full of liquid. The 

 flake is soft, free from dirt and spong>- Other names are 

 Loango, Mayumba and Congo. Shrinkage, 25 to 45 per cent. 



Grass Rubber. See Root Rubber. 



Gambia. Landolphia rubber from the left bank of the Casa- 

 manca River in British Gambia and Portuguese Guinea. It 

 comes in the form of marbles, weighing from one to four pounds, 

 and in balls and niggers. It is made of latex from different 

 species and loses its value by reason of these admixtures. A 

 cross-section shows concentric circles, either red, brown or white, 

 the center being amber in color. There is little debris in it and 

 it is very moist. Shrinkage is 15 to 30 per cent. Gambia from 



