582 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[Septembes 1, 1912. 



ticity; while, in natural rubber, it is this 'nerve,' which is the 

 life and vitaHty, and, in my opinion, cannot be obtained by 

 synthesis. 



"But, it may be urged, what about gutta-percha? It is true that 

 there exists an excellent formula for synthetic gutta-percha, 

 but, I again reply, that in gutta-percha this vitality is not re- 

 quired ; in fact an elastic gulta-percha would no longer be 

 regarded as good. 



"This does not amount to saying that all ■ these chemical re- 

 searches have been fruitless. Absolutely not so. I render 

 homage to all these zealous investigators, for many of these 

 synthetic products find industrial applications in compounding." 



Commenting upon recent sensational discoveries M. Van Den 

 Kerckhove remarks that capitalists who have been led to think 

 we are approaching the end of rubber planting and the ruin of 

 the Amazon and the Congo, will soon find that this so-called 

 "artificial rubber" is neither better nor worse than some hundreds 

 of other patented rubbers. 



He suggests that capitalists, to whom a synthetic rubber is 

 submitted, should insist upon likewise receiving a vulcanized 

 sample of the article ; putting both samples in their safe for 

 six months. At the end of this time, the writer remarks, nine 

 times out of ten the crude synthetic rubber will have become 

 hard and friable, while the vulcanized sample will, in all cases, 

 have hardened and become brittle. These remarks apply, he 

 adds, to synthetic rubber not containing an admixture of natural 

 rubber. 



In conclusion M. Van Den Kerckhove says: "Rubber planters 

 need not be alarmed. ... In spite of the interesting work being 

 pursued in England, in Germany, in France, in the United States, 

 in Italy, and even in Belgium, the synthesis of rubber is a 

 mirage. . . . Seen from the distance it looks something, when 

 approached it is nothing." 



THE ALL-CEYLON EXHIBITION. 



/^NE of the most interesting events in the industrial history. 

 ^^ of Ceylon has been the "All-Ceylon" Exhibition at 

 Colombo, held during the first week of July last, after months 

 of laborious preparation. While tea, cocoa-nuts and other 

 Ceylon products were fully represented, rubber occupied a lead- 

 ing and conspicuous position. The rubber exhibit was under the 

 auspices of the Ceylon Agricultural Society, with the co-operation 

 of the thirty or more local planters' associations. 



THE EUBBER EXHIBIT. 



Among the special features of the rubber exhibit was a large 

 block of Lanadron rubber, which was exhibited at the Ceylon 

 Rubber exhibition in 1906 and has since been exposed to light 

 and air at the Peradeniya Museum. The placard was labelled 



"Will Plantation Rubber Keep?" 

 and the answer was supplied by the rubber itself, which appeared 

 to be in good condition, while another sample was from Hen- 

 aratgoda, from one of the original trees, which had been kept 

 for 29 years. This, of course, had very little of the appearance 

 of rubber about it, but it showed to what an extent rubber will 

 keep. Some hard Para rubber was also displayed; samples of 

 biscuit, crepe and sheet rubber also being shown together with 

 a biscuit of mud rubber. The results of slow drying were 

 depicted by several pieces of rubber treated differently. Another 

 specimen illustrated tacking produced by oxidation with potas- 

 sium permanganate. Some Ficus rubber from the 1906 Ex- 

 hibition and Hevea latex preserved by formalin and ammonia, 

 were interesting; as were also the exhibits of Castilloa, Ceara and 

 Manihot Dichotoma, crepe rubber, and some of the record yields 

 from Henaratgoda. 



Diseases of Robber Plants. 

 To the planter perhaps the most interesting portion of, the 

 exhibit was that relating to diseases. In this section were cut- 



tings and branches showing the ravages of insects on rubber 

 trees. Shot hole boring beetles, as shown, are also responsible 

 for a good deal of damage ; while there was also a good illustra- 

 tion of the "Nodule" disease in rubber trees. Carpenter bees 

 are wretched pests and the tremendous holes bored by these 

 insects were indicated in sections of trees, specimens of the male 

 and female of the bees being shown. The huge cocoanut beetle 

 and other insects interested those anxious to deal with these 

 pests. There were also exhibited specimens of the old rubber 

 prickers, and tapping knives; the latter being shown in their 

 various stages up to the modern implement. 



Various important official functions marked the course of the 

 exhibition, such as the annual meeting of the Ceylon Agricul- 

 tural Society, dealt with elsewhere. Ceylon and its officials, from 

 the Governor downward, are to be congratulated on the success 

 which has attended the "All-Ceylon" Exhibition. 



RUBBER MACHINERY AWARDS. 



Special interest attached to the exhibits of rubber machinery, 

 for which the following prizes among others were awarded : 



MACHINERY EXHIBITS. EXHIBITORS AND PrIZES 



Awarded. 

 David Bridge's Rubber Wash- Special Silver Medal, Colombo 



ing Mills. Commercial Co. 



Michie-Golledge Rubber Ma- Gold Medals, Walker Sons & 



chinery. Co., Ltd. 



Shaw's Creping and Rolling Silver Medal, Walker Sons & 



Machinery. Co., Ltd. 



Model Rubber Factory. Gold Medal, Walker Sons & 



R. Boby's Rolling and Creping Co., Ltd. 



Machinery. Certificate of Honor, Eastern 



Siriwasa Smoke Drier. " Produce Co., Ltd. 



Cup, Siriwasa Estate (Dr. W. 

 A. de Silva). 



The awards for rubber demonstrated the further success of 

 Bridge's Improved Rubber Preparation Machinery, including the 

 following prizes for rubber prepared with the Bridge machinery: 



Pambagana Estate, Cup and Gold Medal for thick blanket 

 fine amber crepe, being the best rubber in the show. 



Talagalla Est.'\te, Silver Medal for scrap rubber in crepe 

 form. 



Troy Estate, Silver Medal for crepe rubber. 



It will be noticed that the Pambagana Estate produced with 

 Bridge machinery the best rubber in the exhibition. 

 AWARDS TO BRIDGE MACHINERY. 



The direct and indirect honors lately obtained by David 

 Bridge & Co., Ltd., of Castleton, Manchester, at the Colombo 

 "All-Ceylon" Exhibition, follow up numerous previous successes 

 achieved elsewhere. This company was awarded two "Grand 

 Prix" diplomas at the 1910 Brussels International Exhibition, 

 for rubber-preparation machinery and driving mechanism. It 

 likewise obtained the First Prize Medal at the Coomassic Agri- 

 cultural Show of 1908, for rubber-preparation machinery, as well 

 as the Gold Medal for the same class of machinery at the Mex- 

 ican E.xhibition, held at the Crystal Palace in 1908. The same 

 company also exhibited at the London Rubber Exhibitions of 

 1908 and 1911, but on the two last-named occasions it was dis- 

 tinctly understood that no awards would be granted. 



CEYLON AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY AND THE NEW DIRECTOR OF 

 AGRICULTURE. 



One of the principal features of the recent ".\ll-Ceylon" 

 Exhibition at Colombo, was the annual meeting of the Ceylon 

 Agricultural Society, held under the presidency of the Governor 

 during the first days of the exhibition. 



In the annual report, the services of Dr. J. C. Willis, the 

 former organizing vice-president and director of the Ceylon 

 Botanic Gardens, who lately retired from the British govern- 

 ment service, to take up the directorship of the Rio de Janeiro 

 Botanic Gardens, were appropriately referred to. 



