590 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[September 1, 1912. 



Recent changes in the management of this company have 



been a topic of interest in the trade. For considerations of 



health, Mr. Baker returns to London, 



THE NOKTH BKiTisH ^^j j^ succeeded in the works man- 



RUBBER CO,, LIMITED. ^^^^^^.^ ^^ j^^^ Johnstone, his former 



lieutenant. Mr. \V. A. Williams, from being assistant general 

 works superintendent, becomes general works superintend- 

 ent. Mr. Williams, who is a fellow of the Chemical Society, 

 was formerly head of the laboratory, and it is undoubtedly 

 an advantage for the works' superintendent to be in a posi- 

 tion to direct and understand laboratory procedure. 



In an interesting paragraph on emery in Pearson's "Crude 

 Rubber and Compounding Ingredients," it is stated that in 

 rubber mills the substance is chiefly 

 EMERY yggj ;„ jj^g manufacture of what are 



WHEELS. known as vulcanite emery wheels. 



With regard to the manufacture of these wheels in England, 

 although I cannot say for certain, yet I imagine that it is 

 not carried on in any of the rubber mills. As far as I am 

 acquainted with the business, it is carried on as a special 

 branch of certain engineering works, more particularly in 

 Lancashire and Yorkshire. These works have a complete 

 equipment of washers, vulcanizers, etc., to make the finished 

 wheels from the crude rubber. With one exception sulphur 

 is the only chemical used, though I may say that linseed oil 

 is an important component of the mixing, the exact details 

 of which are considered a trade secret by the several manu- 

 facturers, and this in spite of the oft repeated statement 

 that there are no trade secrets left in the manufacture of rubber 

 tpday. Although the manufacture is by no means an ex- 

 tensive one, there is nothing like a monopoly; and there are 

 sufficient people engaged in it to cause considerable com- 

 petition for the business to be done; and one hears complaints 

 that the resulting profits are not what they were, or ought 



to be. 



1 suppose I ought to take as a delicate compliment the fact 

 that [ am continually receiving letters from various parts of 



the world, thanking me in advance 



for some free information desired. 



All the same I may say that I have 

 no desire to enter into competition with the editors of 

 technical journals, who are supposed to stand alone as pur- 

 veyors of free information. It is remarkable with what cheer- 

 fulness readers' demands are met by editors, even when the 

 latter have a profound conviction that the enquirer has read 

 the journals in a free library, and has not expended a coin 

 of his own. I am not going to enlarge upon the various 

 enquiries of this sort that I have had, though I may perhaps 

 say that a recent one from America calls for a suitable pro- 

 cess whereby the old rubber in a laboratory can be re-made 

 on the spot into articles such as stoppers. I believe that in 

 America the success which has attended the reclaiming of 

 waste rubber is largely due to the extensive scale on which 

 the business is conducted, and I imagine that the magnates 

 of the industry would not approve of a plant being erected 

 for an output of a few pounds. 



Another chapter in the melancholy history of this wild 

 rubber concern is now finished, and I note that it has been 



decided to reduce the original capi- 

 THE LiBERiAN ^^^ f^^^^ £2/0,000 to £27,000, to give 



RUBBER CORPORATION. , , ,, . r -u 



up the attempted collection oi wild 

 rubber, and to continue for the future as a plantation proposi- 

 tion only. Most of the influential men, whose names figured 

 in the prospectus six or seven years ago, have retired, and it 

 goes without saying that the results of the enterprise to date 

 have been a source of great concern to Sir Harry Johnston, 

 who was so prominently concerned with the venture. The 

 inherent difficulties in the way of collecting the wild rubber 



SEEKERS FOR 

 INFORMATION. 



at a profit seems to have been treated much too lightly by 

 those whose experience in West Africa inspired investors 

 with confidence. Apart from this, however, the flotation of 

 the corporation by the agency of the Consolidated Rubber 

 Syndicate, at a huge profit to the latter for doing practically 

 nothing, is a matter which in the opinion of many people 

 ought to be investigated in the courts. Whether anything 

 will be done in the matter is doubtful. In this case, as in 

 that of the United Malaysian Rubber Co., where share- 

 holders are clamoring for a Board of Trade enquiry into the 

 details of the promotion, it seems that there are no existing 

 powers to enforce, unless the company is in compulsory 

 liquidation. What makes the shareholders in these two, and 

 also in other companies I have not mentioned, so angry is 

 the fact that they went in entirely on the faith of the promi- 

 nent names on the directorate. Mere titles on a directorate 

 have been used as a lure for the public, and the astute com- 

 pany promoter therefore likes to get the assistance of people 

 well known either as politicians, administrators or business 

 men. In the above cases the promoters were successful, but with 

 unsatisfactorv results to the investors. 



DERMATINE COMPANY, LIMITED, LONDON. 



This company's report for the year ending June 30 shows 

 the gratifying result that, after providing for the preference 

 dividend, fifteen per cent, will be paid upon the common 

 stock. The reserve account stands at £5,000, invested in 

 municipal securities. 



THE RUBBER TIRE TRADE IN GERMANY. 



Our Consul General in Berlin in a recent report sent to the 

 State Department, which gives a general review of German 

 trade and industries, doesn't paint the rubber tire industry in 

 Germany in very glowing colors. Here is a paragraph on the 

 subject taken from his report: 



"In the rubber industry business was brisk throughout the 

 year, and there was a demand from both the home and for- 

 eign markets. Competition, however, reduced the prices of 

 many articles to such an extent that there was but little profit 

 either to the manufacturer or to the dealer. Manufacturers 

 of rubber tires for motor vehicles suffered greatly from this 

 cause. To meet the radical cut of one company it is estimated 

 that it cost the German tire manufacturers millions of dollars. 

 The unfavorable situation was still further accentuated by the 

 great fall in the prices of crude rubber, which decreased the 

 value of tlie stocks of raw material on hand in nearly all of 

 the factories. Most of the companies were obliged to reduce 

 their dividends as compared with 1910. The outlook for the 

 present year cannot be considered bright, not on account of 

 lack of orders, but owing to the tendency of the manufac- 

 turers and dealers to cut prices." 



THE PROPOSED TARIFF REFORM IN HOLLAND, 



The proposals now under consideration by the Dutch govern- 

 ment for changes in duties include the following alterations : 



India Rubber, Gutt.a Perch.\: Present Proposed 



Rates. Rates. 



Sheets, plates ; and all unmanufactured 



india rubber and gutta percha Free Free 



Rods, pipes, cords, tubes, hose-pipe or 



tape, not specially mentioned 5% 3% 



Tires for bicycles and carriages 5% 10% 



Manufactures not separately mentioned 5% 12% 



Replete with information for rubber manufacturers: Mr. 

 Pearson's "Crude Rubber and Compounding Ingredients," 



