134 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[December 1, 1911. 



proved all of the processes, so that the plant is very complete. He 

 studied under the direction of Mr. M. Wachter, an engineer at 

 the Yokohama Insulated Wire Works, and, being possessed of 

 much mechanical al)ility, is accounted one of the best equipped 

 works managers in Japan. The product of the factory today em- 

 braces lighting and power cables, insulated wire, rubber and 

 weatherproof, lead-eovered and armored cables, etc. 



The factory is exceedingly well situated on the Sumida River, 

 the grounds being about three acres in e-xtent. It is on the railroad, 

 and an electric line also runs close to the factory. The motive 

 power is steam. Tlie boilers are Dutch, of the Alban water tube 



BRITISH RUBBER FACTORIES IN JAP.\N. 



Ill considering the incidence of the new Japanees tariff, it 

 should be remembered that out of the total Japanese receipts of 

 crude ruliber in 1910, about lJ/2 million pounds, one-third was 

 imported through Kobe, principally by the two British firms lo- 

 cated near that point (Ingram Rubber Co., at Shirike, Hyogo, 

 and Dunlcp Rulilier Co., at Wakinoham?). The object of these 

 concerns erecting branch factories in Japan, was to produce 

 manufactures of rubber within that country, out of materials from 

 England and the cclonies, and under the sole direction of Eng- 

 lishmen. Thcst arrangements have, resulted in conjunction with 



S. KUROZAWA, 

 [Nippon Electric Wire and Cable Co., Ltd.] 



S. Yamada, 



[Editor of the *"Gomu Sliiinijo."] 



type, the engine (compound) making 150 revolutions a minute. 

 The washers, mixers and caler.ders, as illustrated, were built by 

 Krupp & Co., Germany. The tubing machines came from Ger- 

 many and the United States. The 500 braiders are from the New 

 England Butt Co. The testing apparatus came from Eliot & Bros., 

 England, the saturating tanks from America, the measuring ma- 

 chines from Austria. About 500 hands are employed, 300 men and 

 200 women. The copper wire used is drawn for the company by the 

 Furukawa Mining Co. The customers of the company are the 

 war, navy and railroad departments of Japan, and electric com- 

 panies in both Japan and China. 



the new Japanese tariff, in various articles being now made in 

 that country, which had formerly been imported. 



Another cause of the augmented importation of crude rubber 

 is said to be the increased demand for the tire industry. Many 

 a steel tire has been replaced by a rubber one, this having recently 

 been specially the case with the "Jinriksha." This last-named 

 fashion has apparently come to stay. 



Kobe seems to have received a large proportion of the recently 

 increased Japanese impcrts of crude rubber, which fact clearly 

 indicates the participation in that movement of the two English 

 firms to which reference has been made. 



RUBBER HEELS IN ITALY. 



There is a very active market in Florence, Italy, for rubber 

 heels, and the demand seems to be steadily increasing. The stone 

 pavements and the stone or tiled floors in practically all houses, 

 make their use almost a necessity. In attaching the rubber heels 

 to shoes it is not customary to prepare the heel in any way. The 

 cheap disc style of heel pad is fastened to the shoe by a screw. 

 The heel-shaped pads are nailed but not glued to the heel. These 

 two types of heel are on sale in every shoe and repair shop, and 

 are also sold largely on the street by pushcart men. The disc 

 type varies in size from -54 inch to IJ^ inch, and in retail price 

 from 10 to 30 cents per pair. These pads are of French, German 

 and Italian manufacture. They are of cheap material and are 

 quickly worn out and easily detached. The heel-shaped type re- 

 tails at 17 to 31 cents per pair, and is generally a German or 

 English product. 



RUBBER INSULATION AND FUNGUS GROWM. 



German electricians have lieen discussing the problem of 

 avoiding fungus growth on rubber insulation. This growth 

 takes place sometimes even when the insulated wires are enclosed 

 in a conduit of enamelled iron. The fungus growth, which 

 destroys the insulation, is promoted by iron rust, which, with the 

 consequent fungus growth are impossible except where there is 

 some moisture. The remedy therefore is to insure the dryness 

 of the tube interior by blowing hot air through it, and then all 

 future possibility of dampness must be prevented. If it is im- 

 possible under the circumstances to keep the inside of the tube 

 dry, a good quality of red lead paint is the best preventive of 

 damp and fungi. 



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

 the Tropics." 



