April 1, 1921 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



533 



The chief engineer considers that vulcanizing rubber to concrete 

 piles would be much cheaper than vulcanizing to steel plates, as 

 was done in Southwark, England. 



NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES 

 The publication of the proposed additional taxes on various 

 products, including rubber and tea, in the Netherlands East 

 Indies has resulted in representatives of foreign capital sending 

 in vigorous protests to the authorities. The British Chamber 

 of Commerce for the Netherlands East Indies, the Rubber 

 ■Growers' Association and many prominent rubber exporters 

 have sent protests to the Netherlands House of .Representatives. 

 These latter companies, representing the foreign rubber interests 

 in Sumatra, point out that the new taxes will make taxation in 

 the Netherlands East Indies higher than in any other rubber 

 producing centers; that the cost of production in Sumatra is 

 already higher than in other rubber countries; and that the 

 total taxation should not be higher than that of the world's chief 

 rubber cultivating countries. 



GENERAL SITUATION 



Expenses are being reduced on rubber estates in the East 

 Coast of Sumatra by the curtailment of staff and labor. It is 

 learned that The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has reduced the 

 . salaries of assistant planters by one-third. It is evident from 

 local publications that the degree of distress in rubber producing 

 circles is less in Sumatra than in Ceylon and Malaya. 



The situation in Java seems to be fairly steady, as planters 

 have not had to go to the expense of recruiting labor from 

 neighboring lands. The island produces practically all the food 

 the people — at least the natives — require, and consequently has 

 not experienced the trouble about rice that Ceylon, Malaya and 

 even parts of Sumatra have had. Perhaps the most important 

 point in Java's favor is that it is not a land of one or two 

 main products, like Malaya or, to a certain extent, Ceylon. To 

 be sure, rubber is an important article in Java, but sugar, 

 tobacco, coflfee, tea, cocoa, oils (mineral and vegetable), 

 quinine, spices, are all prominent in her export list. 



Some years ago a hot debate was waged in the pages of the 

 Nedcrlandsch-Indisch Rubbertijdschrift over the relative advan- 

 tages and disadvantages of estates with single crops or with many 

 crops. It would be .interesting to know what the opinions on this 

 subject are today. 



At all events Java planters are trying more new crops and 

 jute and palm oil are being seriously considered. In fact, we 

 learn that the government's caoutchouc estate, at Langsa, which 

 was about to be sold, will now be extended and partly planted 

 ■with gutta percha and oil-palms. 



EECIPEOCITT WITH GERMANY 



It is learned that Batavia brokers are proposing to establish 

 an institute which will exchange crude rubber for the manufac- 

 tured product of German rubber factories, as the Germans need 

 rubber, but cannot buy much owing to the adverse rate of 

 -exchange. 



NETHERLANDS INDIES' LONDON EXHIBIT 



The Netherlands East Indies will be represented at the London 

 rubber exhibition. The director of the government's Institute 

 a* Delft. Mr. van Rossem, has taken the leadership upon him- 

 self. The general experiment station of the Avros (East Coast 

 of Sumatra Rubber Planters' Association) at Medan, will also 

 cooperate. It is planned to send a fine exhibit relating to 

 rubber and oil-palm culture. The Central Rubber Station will 

 be represented by its director, Dr. de Vries. The exhibit from 

 this station will concern preparation mainly. East Java will 

 he represented by Messrs. Hartjens and Vollenhoven. 



NETHERLANDS INDIES RUBBER PRODUCTION INCREASES 



Since 1913 reports have shown a large and steady increase in 

 the production of Dutch rubber planting companies. The figures 

 in the following table cover the reports of companies having 



offices or connections in Amsterdam, the chief market for their 

 l)roduct. The figures represent hajf kilos. One-half kilo equals 

 1.1 pounds. 



Companies 1918 1919 1920 

 Algemeene Belgiscli-Javasche Cnituur Maat- 



schappij ...half-kilos 539,866 497,050 



.\msterd.ini Tananceli , Rubber Cultuur 



Maatschappii 240,000 300,000 369,000 



Batoe Sumatra Ruhher-Mij 47,200 84,308 105,000 



Belgisch-Nederlandsche Cultuur Maatschappij 719.848 812.788 773.550 



Cultuur Mij. "Bnjabang" 609,000 611,800 494,700 



Cultuur Mil. Boekit Lawang 74,200 93,000 115,700 



Cultuur Mij. "de I-ampongs" 212,161 248,994 



Cultuur Mij. Salatri Plantations 34,788 66,873 84,816 



Cultuur Mil. Soerowinangocn 135,800 259,500 301,700 



Kr.-insch-Nederl, Koloniale Cultuur Maat- 

 schappij 534,600 419,300 433.100 



OostBorneo Maatschappij 76,257 71,636 102,850 



Rubber Cultuur Maatschappij "Soengey Raja" 219,621 233,662 



Rubber Mij. "Bpsilam" 338,300 411,600 449,200 



Rubber Maatschappii Tjihantjet 124,240 140,919 140,541 



Sumatra Caoutchouc Mij 1,041,964 1,132,469 1,361,435 



Tabak Mij. "Krapoh" 82,557 103,020 138,886 



Zuid-Pr-anger Rubber Mij 323,493 378,201 411,416 



Totals 4,382,247 5,857,062 6,261,600 



RUBBER COMMERCE OF CEYLON, 1918-1919 

 Imports of raw rubber into Ceylon for the year 1919 were 

 4,644,507 pounds, valued $2,272,311, as against 5,507,346 pounds 

 in 1918, valued $2,080,607. Exports of rubber during these 

 years were 22,738 tons in 1918, valued $22,226,268, while in 

 1919 the quantity increased to 47,406 tons, valued $55,492,495. 

 .'Mtliough Ceylon's commerce in rubber is still controlled by 

 the London market, about 66 per cent of the amount exported 

 in 1919 went to the United States direct, 20,885,382 pounds, 

 valued $7,536,326, being exported to the United States in 

 1918, and 71,386,377 pounds, valued $24,891,754 in 1919. The 

 United Kingdom took ii per cent and the remainder was 

 distributed among other countries. 



Approximately 45,000 long tons of rubber were exported 

 during 1919, exceeding the 1918 exportation by about 120 per 

 cent. The foreign demand was good for all grades during 

 the year. Owing to restrictions on the importation of rubber 

 into the United States during 1918, Canada became a direct 

 importer of Ceylon rubber. In that year 2,500 long tons of 

 rubber were shipped directly from Ceylon to Canadian ports. 

 The exportation practically disappeared in 1919, as Canada 

 again obtained her requirements from shipments originally 

 destined to the United States. 



THE RUBBER TRADE OF SIAM 



According to declared values at the port of Bangkok, rubber 

 goods imported into Siam in 1919-20 included 6,875 kilos of 

 bicycle tires, valued 43,160 ticals (one tical equals $0.3709) ; 

 29,645 kilos of motor car tires, valued 253,839 ticals; 20,354 

 kilos of other tires, valued 54,262 ticals ; and 27,224 kilos of other 

 rubber goods, valued 170,030 ticals. In 1919-18 miscellaneous 

 rubber goods led rubber imports into Siam, 32,069 kilos being 

 imported, at a value of 207,724 ticals; motor car tires were 

 second, with 31,011 kilos, valued 195,357 ticals; 7,159 kilos of 

 bicycle tires, valued 39,246 ticals, were imported, and 42,735 kilos 

 of other tires, valued 117,938 ticals. Both years show a con- 

 siderable increase over the pre-war fiscal year 1913-14, when 

 import figures were: Bicycle tires, 4,906 kilos, valued 34,934 

 ticals; motor car tires, 19,551 kilos, valued 129,928 ticals; other 

 tires, 17,550 kilos, valued 51,320 ticals; and other rubber goods, 

 30,167 Icilos, valued 106,812 ticals. 



Rubber exports from Siam in 1919-20 were 61 short tons, 

 valued 67,684 ticals, nearly twice the amount of 1919-18, which 

 totaled 33 short tons, valued 30,212 ticals. In the pre-war fiscal 

 year 1913-14, 103 short tons were exported, valued 90,355 ticals. 



Imports of rubber goods from the United States into Siam 

 have greatly increased from 1913-14, when the value of these 

 imports was $741. In 1916-17 the value increased to $11,002; in 

 1917-18, $13,648; in 1918-19, $29,531. Figures for 1919-20 show 

 a slight drop to $27,235. 



