May 1, 1912.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



379 



on board vessels, developing a speed in the air of as high as 70 

 miles per hour, and on the surface of the water, as high as 45 

 miles per hour, give conclusive proof of the practical nature of 

 the hydro-aeroplane. This proof has been further strengthened 

 by the fact that Lieutenant EUyson and J. T. Powers, in their 

 trip down Chesapeake Bay stopped their engine and allowed the 

 hydro-aeroplane to settle on the water, and then changed the 

 gear to the propellor shaft and ran the machine ashore ; and by 

 the exhibitions given at over 200 American cities, flying at times 

 when the weather conditions were decidedly adverse. These 

 achievements demonstrate the advisability of the use of the 

 hydro-aeroplane as an auxiliary to naval vessels for recognizance 

 and conveying dispatches, and for light transportation in war 

 and for attacks from overhead. The governments most advanced 

 in naval architecture have taken a decided step in exploiting the 

 use of these machines. Even the Russian government has or- 

 dered hydro-aeroplanes to further Russia's military and naval 

 power. 



The high efficiency of the present aeroplane and hydro-aero- 

 plane is due partly to the great care on the part of the various 

 rubber manufacturers to secure the highest quality of rubber 

 goods that is possible to be made for aerial purposes. 

 * * * 



The original research work carried on in the various Akron 

 factories, in rubber and articles entering into rubber goods, is 

 equal to, if it does not surpass, the greatest universities, not only 

 in this country, but also abroad. Experts are obtained not only 

 from this country, but from foreign countries along the various 

 lines that enter into rubber goods. These men are masters in 

 their line. Although within the hum of the machinery, their re- 

 search is carried on as exclusively as if they were in the labora- 

 tories of the great American, German or English universities, 

 where they secured their original training. This is not only true 

 of the composition of rubber and its compounding, but is true 

 of the cotton fibre, wire and the various other elements that 

 enter into rubber manufacture. Not only are these experts em- 



CuRTis Hydro-Aeropl.'\ne Over Sax Diego Bay. Cal. 



' ployed to aid the factory in the technical work, but otlier special- 

 ists are employed to aid the purchasing and sales departments. 

 Men are hired in these factories who are able to talk and inter- 

 pret practically every language spoken by civilized nations, 

 whether it be the language of the coolie of Bombay, the Spaniard 

 of Mexico, the Japanese of Yokohoma, the Portuguese of South 

 America, the Russian of St. Petersburg or Odessa, the Chinaman 

 of Peking or Hongkong, or the Brazilian along the Amazon. 

 * * * 



E. W. Snyder, the chemist of The American Tire and Rubber 

 Co., has obtained success in compounding Para and mineral rub- 

 ber. This company is using his method of splicing by steam 

 curing, thus strengthening the splice. 



THE RUBBER TRADE IN BOSTON. 



By a Resident Correspondent. 



TRADE is very generally satisfactory in this city. In some 

 lines it opened late, owing to climatic conditions, but, as a 

 rule, all lines are now busy. Particularly so is the tire business, 

 which never showed such large sales in the first quarter of any 

 previous year. The spring has been backward, but sales of hose. 

 both of the garden variety and for industrial and fire use, are 

 reported excellent. Belting sales are fair, and though the tend- 

 ency is toward smaller orders, the aggregate business is satis- 

 factory. Druggists' hard and soft rubber goods seem to be hav- 

 ing a boom, if the present busy condition of the factories is any 

 criterion. Boots and shoes have been ordered in larger quanti- 

 ties and further in advance than in the last few years, for two- 

 reasons; first, because of the long lingering of winter in the lap 

 of spring, and second, the change back to the former policy of 

 allowing an extra 5 per cent, discount for early orders. 



* * * 



The annual meeting of the Rubber Club of America, called 

 for Monday, April IS, at the office of the Hood Rubber Co., was- 

 attended by only a few members. It was adjourned without do- 

 ing any business, the election of officers being deferred until the 

 adjourned meeting. This action was taken in the hope that at 

 this later date ex-President Henry C. Pearson would be present 

 and tell his fellow members of his recent trip up the Orinoco- 

 River, and illustrate his talk with lantern slides from photographs 

 taken on the trip. 



At the office of the Tremont Rubber Co. in this city there is 

 being shown a special rubber boot manufactured by the L. Candee 

 & Co. for the Japanese trade. It is quite a little shorter than the 

 regular short boot, a No. 4, measuring 12 inches high from heel 

 to top. Every customer grabs this boot and asks about the new 

 style as soon as he sees it, and explanations are so frequently 

 called for that it is suggested that a full descriptive ticket be at- 

 tached to save repetition. 



:ii * * 



The new headquarters of the Beacon Falls Rubber Shoe Co. 

 are being put into proper shape for the business of the. house. 

 The first floor has been lowered to a few inches above the street 

 level, the brick dead-wall on Purchase street has been entirely 

 replaced by plate glass windows, and a new front shown on the 

 Congress street side. Manager Gray will have an establishment 

 to be proud of when he moves in next month. 



* * =f: 



The Boston Belting Co. has appointed a new manager for the 

 New "V'ork office, Mr. 'W'. E. Greene, who was formerly with the 

 W. Bingham Co., Chicago. He has already assumed his new 



position. 



* * * 



Frank Appleton is a busy man these days. His factory is 

 uirning old rubber into new and the demand for his product 

 keeps him hustling. But in addition to this, which is enough to 

 keep half a dozen men busy, he is preparing to take a hundred 

 or more members of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery to- 

 Europe next month. They will dine with King George the 

 Fifth and a number of lesser notabilities in England, and then 

 make a tour of continental Europe. Mr. Appleton is pre- 

 paring a few speeches for the prandial occasions, and studying, 

 foreign languages so as to talk shop to fellow members of th* 

 rubber and reclaiming trade abroad. 



* * * 



There are now on exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts in- 

 this city the successful competitive designs for the tile decoratiorr 

 of the children's room at the Forsyth Dental Infirmary, that 

 noble memorial to the well-known rubber men of that name. 

 The designs chosen are "Roxbury Giant," "Rip Van Winkle" and 

 "Hiawatha," by Miss Florence Lilly Young of Boston, who re- 



