July 1, 1912.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



509 



GENERAL BAKELITE COMPANY STARTS INFRINGEMENT SUITS- 



The General Bakelite Co. has brought suits for hifringements of 

 its Bakelite patents against the Condensite Co. of America and 

 several users of "Condensite"; among them the Dickinson Manu- 

 facturing Co., of Springfield, Massachusetts; the Duranoid 

 Manufacturing Co., of Newark, New Jersey, and Hardman & 

 Wright, of Belleville, New Jersey. 



In relation to this, it is of interest to note that the funda- 

 mental Bakelite patents have been allowed in Germany and have 

 been sustained by the German patent office, notwithstanding the 

 fact of several public contestations. 



A CUSTOMS RULING ON RAINCOATS. 



A customs ruling that will be interesting to importers of 

 waterproof garments was handed down by the Board of United 

 States General Appraisers on June 12 in a decision sustaining 

 protests filed by F. B. Vandegrift & Co., relating to importations 

 of waterproof coats. Duty was exacted on the raincoats at the 

 rate of 50 per cent, ad valorem under the provision in the tariff 

 act of 1909 for cotton wearing apparel. The goods were com- 

 posed of cotton and india rubber, and in the judgment of the 

 Collector cotton was the component of chief value in the mer- 

 chandise. The importers, however, insisted that the value of the 

 rubber was greater than the cotton, and alleged that the duty 

 should be at the rate of 35 per cent, as manufactures of india 

 rubber. The Collector was reversed. 



A CUSTOMS RUUNG ON RUBBER BELTS. 



One of the large dry goods firms of New York recently im- 

 ported a quantity of belts composed of silk, cotton and rubber 

 with ornaments in various designs made of steel points. The 

 belts were assessed by the collector as silk and India-rubber 

 wearing apparel, at the rate of 60 per cent, ad valorem, under the 

 provision of paragraph 402 of the tariff act. The importer, how- 

 ever, protested and succeeded in getting a new ruling which levied 

 a 45 per cent, duty on the belts under the provisions of paragraph 

 199 on the ground that their chief value was of metal. This was 

 a case where the ornamentation materially decreased the cost of 

 bringing in the goods. 



ILLUMINATING STRIPS. 



With the great increase in electrical illuminating devices for 

 decorative uses, there has come into vogue a variety of illumina- 

 ting strips, both for indoor and outdoor use. These were used 

 on a tremendous scale during the coronation exercises in London 

 last summer. They are made in various ways, but those in most 

 general use are made of a flexible vulcanized rubber cable, which 

 is mounted with small lamp sockets holding bulbs of small 



Specimen of Illumin.'^ting Strip. 



candle-power, either clear or frosted or in color effects. These 

 bulbs rest in sockets fitted in the cable at varying distances, from 

 6 inches to 36 inches apart. These sockets are of brass or 

 aluminum, the latter being distinctly preferable for outdoor use. 

 Rubber rings or sleeves are fitted as a covering for the lamp 

 sockets to make them watertight. These cables come in any 

 length desired and are shipped in coils in a size convenient for 

 handling. 



It is stated that two large New York banking houses will take 

 a very considerable part of the new issue of $5,000,000 7 per cent, 

 preferred stock of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., Akron, 

 Ohio. 



PNEUMATIC TIRES FOR ELECTRICAL VEHICLES. 



Building pneumatic tires for electrically propelled vehicles has 

 long been regarded as one of the knotty problems confronting 

 tire manufacturers. It has been necessary to meet two important 

 conditions : First, to make a tire that will give high mileage, and, 

 second, to get a tire sufficiently resilient to keep the current con- 

 sumption down to the lowest point and the radius action up to 

 the highest. 



The ordinary gas-car tire, while suited to the rough work on 

 high-power gas cars is out of place on the electric. This car 

 must have a tire as pliable and resilient as it is possible to make 

 it. A stiff tire not only produces higher current bills, but also 

 increased battery renewal bills, owing to the frequent recharging 

 that it makes necessary. 



The United States Tire Co. has issued an announcement re- 

 garding a new special electric tire just placed on the market. 

 This tire is guaranteed tor 5,000 miles, which in itself is unusual, 

 and furthermore, it has proved in actual tests that it exerts a 

 saving influence on current consumption of from twenty to 

 twenty-five per cent. 



TRADE NEWS NOTES. 



In explaining the desirability of increasing the capitalization 

 of the United States Rubber Co., President Samuel P. Colt 

 stated that it was considered an opportune time for his company 

 to erect a new tire plant, to be the largest tire plant in the world. 

 He estimates the cost of such a plant at between $3,000,000 and 

 $5,000,000. No announcement has yet been made of the probable 

 location of this plant. 



Plans are being prepared by the Federal Rubber Manufac- 

 turing Co. for a six-story addition to its plant in Cudahy, Wis- 

 consin. The new building will be 400 x 100 feet and will give 

 the company more than double its present capacity. This com- 

 pany is the successor of the Federal Rubber Co., purchasing its 

 plant last July. At that time it had a_payroll of thirty-eiglit 

 men ; now, including its factory force, sales force and construc- 

 tion force, it employs over 700 men. Its products include auto- 

 mobile and other tires as well as various other articles. 



There was a fire in the plant of the Stamford Rubber Supply 

 Co., Stamford, Connecticut, on June 10, which crippled the com- 

 pany temporarily, but was not serious enough to shut down the 

 plant for more than a few days. The fire started in the black 

 substitute department and the heat was intense, but as the 

 building is of concrete it remained intact, with the exception of 

 the loss of a number of window frames, and with the further 

 destruction of the machinery in the room where the fire origi- 

 nated. The loss was fully covered by insurance. 



On June 29 the Intercontinental Rubber Co. paid a regular 

 quarterly dividend of 154 per cent, on the preferred stock, to 

 stockholders of record June 19. 



The Board of Directors of the Rubber Goods Manufacturing 

 • Co. on June S declared the 53rd regular quarterly dividend of 

 154 per cent, on the preferred stock, and a dividend of 1 per cent, 

 on the common stock. Both were paid June 15. 



The Republic Rubber Co., of Youngstown, Ohio, makers of 

 the famous Staggard tread tires, have opened a branch in Cleve- 

 land, Ohio, at 5919 Euclid avenue. Mr. B. C. Swinehart, who is 

 in charge, has been at the head of the truck tire sales department 

 of the Republic Rubber Co. for three years, and is thoronglily 

 conversant with every phase of the tire business, both in selling 

 and in caring for users. 



The Diamond Rubber Co., which is soon to have a branch in 

 Omaha, Nebraska, expects to erect its own building and has 

 secured a plot 22 feet x 70 feet at 2034 Farnam street. 



