August i, 1904.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



373 



fore, much gratified by an invitation from the chief of the 

 agricultural bureau there, Mr. F. H. M. Staples, to pay him a 

 visit. I knew that I should miss the sultan, as rumor had it 

 that he had taken $200,000 in gold and started for Europe for 

 a brief vacation from the cares of state. A brief rickshaw 

 ride from the hotel took me to the Johore 

 and Kranji railroad, where in the " first class 

 waiting shed." as the sign on the wall had it, 

 I waited for my train. When it appeared I 

 got aboard and again waited. After a time 

 the dusky hued station master came out and 

 rang a big dinner bell most energetically, 

 which was the signal to start. Still we 

 waited and waited, but finally reluctantly 

 pulled out. The ride across the island is 

 short and pleasant, and is through many plan- 

 tations and some jungle and terminates at a 

 ferry where a steamer transfers the passen- 

 gers to the domain of the sultan. Mr. Staples 

 was awaiting me and was good enough to put 

 me up at the Johore Club, and I had tiffin 

 with him at the sultan's hotel. In the after- 

 noon we drove out to the rubber plantation, 

 which is some three miles from the town, 

 and which now consists of some 50 acres of 

 Ficus clastica quincunxed with Para. As all 

 the manure from the dairy farm is to be used 

 on this plantation, the rubber should come 

 on very rapidly. In addition to what is al- 

 ready planted, large clearings are being made, 

 corn being first planted with the rubber for 

 shade. On my return I had a look at the 

 native village, went again over to the hotel and club, where I 

 met the postmaster general, the chief electrician, and the Datto 

 Abul Rahmin, admired some fine pictures of the sultan, and 

 returned to Singapore. 



Before I knew it I was facing the new year, and as New 

 Year's day came on Friday, the rest of the week was taken by 

 all as a period of rest. This suited me physically, for I was 

 exceedingly languorous, but not mentally, as I longed to be up 

 and doing. I gave up to the climate, however, and idled. In- 

 deed, the wish to remain quiet grew on me to such an extent 

 that had there been then more days of it I think I should have 

 staid in Singapore. My bedroom boy, Poo Kee, a short, 

 chunky, good humored Chinaman, made everything as easy as 

 possible for me. When I ordered a bottle of Apollinaris he 

 brought ink, and I never could get him out of the habit of start- 

 ing the water running in the bathroom and leaving me to turn 

 it off. 



During my enforced idle- 

 ness I did go down to the bil- 

 liard room and play a few 

 games, but more to hear the 

 markers chant the score in 

 Malay than for the fun of the 

 game. To be sure I roused 

 up one evening and went out 

 to see some fifty rickshaw men 

 try to thrash two Russian sail- 

 ors who would not pay for 

 their rides, but it was more 

 like a game of tag than a fight. 



On New Year's morning 

 there were sampan races in 

 the harbor, where the native 



GUTTA-JELUTONQ TREE. 

 [Botanii Gardens, Singapore.] 



MALAY VILLAGE POLO BRAM," SINGAPORE. 

 [The huts all on supports, over water. 1 



boatmen displayed surprising skill, and the spectators grew 

 wildly enthusiastic in spite of the fact that it was exceedingly 

 hot and the glare of the sun on the water was almost unbear- 

 able. The heavy rain that came up early in the afternoon, but 

 lasted only an hour, did not discourage the merrymakers, and 

 as great crowds were going out to the race- 

 track to see the natives compete with one 

 mother in a variety of sports, I went too. 

 The turf around the track was sodden with 

 water and the track heavy, but in spite of it 

 til there were obstacle races, treacle dipping 

 for silver coins, rickshaw, pony, and hurdle 

 races that were both ludicrous and interest- 

 ing. As on the evening before there had 

 been a great dinner followed by a dance at 

 the Raffles Hotel, and at midnight " Auld 

 Lang Syne " and " God Save the King " had 

 ushered in the New Year, I could not but 

 leel that 1904 had been heartily welcomed. 



In the meantime several warm invitations 

 had come to me from planters up in the 

 " States " to visit them and have a look at 

 their rubber. I therefore decided to go up to 

 Selangor, where as far as I could judge I was 

 likely to see rubber that would typify what 

 that part of the world could produce. Not 

 that the oldest Hevea was there. Indeed some 

 one told me, I do not remember whom, that 

 the largest and oldest Hevta trees in the Fed- 

 erated Malay States were destroyed by mis- 

 take some years before. It seems that a 

 former official ordered some Dyak servants to 

 tap the trees and they, supposing that the flow of latex would 

 be immediate and abundant, as it is with the Fiats, and finding 

 the case the reverse, reported that the trees were barren. They 

 were, therefore, cut down, much to the subsequent regret of all. 

 The boat that was to take me to Selangor is known as the 

 Sappho, and in order to get aboard of her you order a gharri to 

 be at the hotel at 3 o'clock in the afternoon and the man will 

 come at 1 and try to charge you for the two hours' wait. He 

 doesn't really expect to get the extra pay, however, and will 

 respect you much more if you don't give it to him. He leaves 

 you at Johnson's pier at about 3.1 5, where the coolie who takes 

 your luggage in charge informs you that the launch to the 

 Sappho, advertised to leave at 3.30, has gone. It is, therefore, 

 your duty to engage a sampan, and get its owner to put you 

 aboard. This is really more fun than it is to go in the launch, 

 provided it is not raining. All this I did. Once aboard, I 



found that the Sappho was a 

 steamer of 329 net tons, and, 

 according to the written state- 

 ment of some dock official, had 

 sufficient rice, fuel, and water 

 for the voyage. I was, there- 

 fore, content. I had a very 

 comfortable stateroom and 

 soon made the acquaintance 

 of two young English mining 

 engineers who had come down 

 to Singapore for the holidays, 

 were going to get off at Ma- 

 lacca and then ride 50 miles 

 on bicycles, mostly up-hill, to 

 their station. 



[TO BE CONTINUED.] 



