60 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD. 



[November 1, 1911. 



{Heveas), forming as nearly as possible a circle or a figure 8, 

 in order that, starting from any part of the estrada, the 

 seringueiro will always find his way back. There, the seringueiro 

 builds himself a hut covered with "Paxiuba or Ubiissu" that 

 protects him poorly against the elements. 



Besides these huts, which are located in the working estrada 

 of the seringueiros, there is the "Centro or Barracao do Patrao" 

 (or the house of the foreman), containing generally a shop, 

 where commissaries, munitions and working tools are supplied, 

 and where all the rubber of the estrada is gathered. 



The working material of the seringueiro is very simple and 

 cheap. The necessary tools are : A small machadinha. weighing 



Rubber Gatherers' C.^mp, Showing Furn.\ce for Smoking. 



125 gra.nis (4.4 oz), having an edge of 0.25 mm. (0.01 inch) to 

 which a handle is affixed, the length of which depends upon the 

 necessities of the work; a zinc bucket of 6 to 8 litres (1.58 or 

 2.11 gallons) to gather the latex, 500 to 600 tijellinhas (tin cups) 

 with a capacity of 2(X) cubic centirnetres (12.2 cubic inches) and 

 a basin of zinc, where the contents of the buckets are deposited 

 before the defumacao (smoking). 



The work starts early in the morning, the seringueiro armed 

 with his machado and carrj-ing a bag of tijellinhas (tin cups) 

 on his shoulder, is exploring the estrada and works at each tree, 

 as high as possible, cutting oblique incisions (taking the upward 

 direction) through all the thickness of the bark. Below each 

 of these incisions he immediately inserts a tijellinho, introducing 

 its edge by an inside depression into the bark, or he hangs it up 

 with damp argyl. 



The number of horizontal incisions varies in accordance with 

 the thickness of the tree. At 10 a. m., when the dropping has 

 nearly ceased, the seringueiro leaves the hut again with the 

 bucket in which he pours the contents of all the tijellinhas and 

 which he leaves at the bottom of the tree upside down on small 

 sticks which are standing in the ground for this purpose. When 

 returning to the "centro" the defumacao is started. 



The smoker, protected from the weather by a few palm leaves, 

 is placed near the hut. It is a straight truncated cone, generally 

 made of iron, 50 centimetres (19.68 inches) wide. The 

 seringueiro places it on two stones and builds a fire underneath 

 feeding it with "coco" (the urucary or the inaja) which, on 

 account of its rich smoke containing antiseptical qualities, coagu- 

 lates the rubber. It is with a kind of cane terminating in a 

 round and straight shovel, similar to the paddles of the canoes 

 used on the Amazon, which lies on a pitchfork at the bottom of 

 the fire, that the seringueiro makes the defumacao (smoking 

 process). First he passes this cane over the smoke then dips it 

 in a basin close by, which is full of latex, passes it again over 

 the smoke and the first layer appears to be coagulated, then, 

 with a cuia (cup or gourd) he throws over that another layer 



and so on successively till the pellc is formed, which represents 

 a ball weighing approximately from 6 to 8 kilos (13.2 to 17.6 

 pounds), or from 30 to 35 (66 to 77 pounds) at the heaviest. 



The well defumated rubber is called "borracha fina" (fine 

 rubber). The rubber by which the coagulation has been badly 

 made, or by which the defumacao (smoking) took place a little 

 late, when the milk was already a little coagulated, is called 

 "borracha entrefina" (entrefine rubber). 



The sernamby rubber is the naturally solidified rubber, on the 

 ground, in the trees, in the tin cups, in the buckets, etc. It 

 consists of threads or pellicles, mixed with more or less earth 

 refuse or other foreign substance. Its value is estimated to 

 be 30 per cent, less than the fine rubber. 



The harvest and the smoking, in other words, the manufacture 

 of the rubber, lasts from six to seven months a year and during 

 the other months of the very dry season the trees are not touched. 

 At the overflowing time the harvest is rendered impossible on 

 account of the waters inundating the igapos. It is calculated 

 that the average yield of each tree is 44 grams (1.55 ounce) of 

 latex per day, but one rarely gets more than 5 kilos (11 pounds), 

 wliich per man, represents yearly 450 to 500 kilos (900 to 1,100 

 pounds) fine rubber and 90 kilos (198 pounds) of sernamby. 



After the manufacture, the rubber is taken to the hut of the 

 foreman, and from there sent to Manaos to the aviador, who is 

 the supplier of the provisions and of the goods to the seringaes, 

 and who, for the most part, is the real proprietor of the seringal. 



From the aviador the rubber is sold to the exporters who send 

 it to the consuming markets of the world. 



These exporters are the people who make the "beneficiamento," 

 consisting in opening the pelles in qualifying them (rubber fine 

 and entrefine) and in packing them up in solid pine cases to be 

 then embarked at the Manaos Harbor on board the trans- 

 atlantics, which take it to the ports of destination. — Reznsta 

 Literaria Artist ica. 



THE BALATA INDUSTRY OF BRITISH GUIANA. 



(By a Special Correspondent.) 

 AT a recent meeting of the legislature of British Guiana, a bill 

 ** was passed entitled "The Balata Ordinance, 1911." In the 

 ordinance "balata" includes rubber and any like substance. 



Of late there has been a good deal of dispute among licensees 

 as to the boundaries of their grants and the ownership of certain 

 quantities of balata, etc. No regulation existing to govern sucli 

 disputes, recourse has often had to be made to the lawr courts, 

 with consequent delay and great expense to the litigants. The 

 interests of various licensees being of a common nature, the Law 

 Officers of the Crown, on representations made by the British 

 Guiana Balata Association, drafted the bill which has become law. 

 It is very simple in its nature. It sets out that in all cases of dis- 

 pute as to the boundaries of any grant or grants, the Commis- 

 sioner of Lands and Mines shall, on request, cause a survey to be 

 made, and such survey and boundary line "shall be conclusive." 

 The expenses of these proceedings shall be determined by the 

 Commissioner, whose decision shall be final, and shall be borne 

 proportionately by licensees of the adjourning grants. 



In case, however, of disputes as to the ownership of balata, the 

 same procedure has to be followed as governs disputes regarding 

 gold, viz. : the person claiming the balata must file his claim in 

 writing with the Commissioner, who, after hearing evidence and 

 making investigation "personally or by means of any oflScer of his 

 department, shall have power to make such order as to the disposi- 

 tion of the balata and as to the costs of the inquiry as he may 

 deem just." From the decision of the Commissioner on this 

 point there is, of course, the right of appeal to the Supreme Court. 



This is the essence of the whole bill, which also empowers the 

 Governor and the Court of Policy to make regulations "for any 

 of the purposes of this ordinance." 



