October 1, 1919. 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



49 



same thing when the volumes occupied by the same weight of 

 each are compared. 



To the best of my knowledge rubber manufacturers who buy 

 light carbonate of magnesia lay far more stress upon the light- 

 ness than upon any other attribute. Indeed, I doubt if any of 

 them ever think about the degree of hydration or the linking 

 of the hydroxyl groups. An eminent counsel declared that there 

 must be some point at which light magnesia merges into heavy 

 and that in the care of such a product it would be impossible 

 io specify or identify it as light or heavy. Scientific evidence, 

 however, has been given that light and heavy have different 

 and distinct characteristics and that there is no such thing in 

 commerce as a half and half product. It occurs to me here that 

 there would be no difficulty in making up a mi.xture of the two 

 if -here was any demand for it and a dispute on a product of 

 this sort would be a thorny matter to tackle. 



With regard to the presence of sulphate of soda in magnesia 

 made by the precipitation process, 1 do not know that there are 

 any permissible limits recognized in the British rubber trade. 

 This probably arises from the fact that attention has not been 

 called to the point owing to the great bulk of the magnesia used 

 in pre-war days being the product of a special process in which 

 sulphates are not employed. 



As to the use of the light and heavy in the rubber trade for 

 bulk compounding, evidence goes to show that the light is al- 

 most generally employed whereas the heavy has but few ad- 

 herents. Whether this preference is based on solid grounds is 

 a matter which does not call for detailed discussion here. With 

 respect to the use of small amounts as an accelerating agent I 

 believe the general opinion is that the two work equally well. 



It is interesting to note that a natural basic carbonate of mag- 

 nesia having the same chemical composition as the manufac- 

 tured article has been found in places in Canada and I believe 

 that a consignment has been shipped to England. 



Normal carbonate of magnesia, or magnesite, is, of course, 

 comparatively common in the world and in the finely ground 

 state it is said to be used to some extent in the rubber trade. 

 As there is no recognized standard for light and heavy basic 

 carbonate of magnesia, and as some makes of light are heavier 

 than other makes of light, it certainly seems desirable that all 

 contracts or rates should be by sample so as to obviate the possi- 

 bility of disputes on delivery. 



THE RUBBER TRUST'S HEAVY LOSS. 



The report of the Rubber Plantations Investment Trust ex- 

 plains why the shareholders will have no dividend for the sec- 

 ond year in succession, though it indicates that a better result 

 may be expected for the present year. The balance at the end 

 of March, 1918, was £119,375, the whole of which was carried 

 forward. In 1918-1919 there was a net loss on the produce from 

 the company's estates of £106,020, reducing the balance to 3,300, 

 which naturally does not permit the payment of a dividend. 

 The report contains the cheering assurance that the adverse war 

 conditions have now been largely removed and that the intrinsic 

 value of the trusts' investments, both in shares and properties, 

 has largely appreciated — a valuation of the investments in 

 shares, debentures, and options made at the end of last March, 

 shows a surplus of £4,289,927 over the £815,647 at which they 

 stand in the balance sheet. In 1910-11 the dividend paid was 15 

 per cent. 



Miscellaneous Foreign Notes. 



FEDERATION OF BRITISH INDUSTRIES INCLUDING RUBBER. 



THE Federation of British Industries comprises 172 associa- 

 tions and 956 individual firms, representing upward of 17,- 

 000 British manufacturing establishments. A plan of or- 

 ganization has been outlined under which the various industries 

 are divided into 17 groups. 



The rubber industry is placed under group 13, which consists 

 of rubber, asbestos, leather and allied trades. The following list 

 of sections in the group will make the system more clear: 



Group 13. Rubber, asbestos, leather, and allied trades: 

 Subgroup 1. Rubber Manufacture— 



(a) General rubber trade. 



(b) Tire trade. 



(c) Proofing and garment making. 



2. Leather production — 



(a) Curriers and light leather manufacture. 



(b) Tanning and heavy leather manufacture. 



3. Leather-goods manufacture — 



(a) Saddlery and harness. 



(b) Boot and shoe manufacture. 



(c) Leather belting. _ 



(d) Bags and fancy goods. 



(e) Batata belting. 



4. Asbestos manufacture — 



(a) Textiles, etc. 



(b) Asbestos cement (building materials). 



C. D. LLOYD RETIRES FROM THE VICTORIA RUBBER CO. 



C. D. Lloyd, for 35 years with The Victoria Rubber Co., 

 Limited, Edinburgh, Scotland, was presented with a gold watch 

 and purse of Treasury notes from the staff and employes on 

 August 14, 1919, when he retired. J. E. Baber, manager of the 

 works, made the presentation speech in the absence of P. M. 

 Matthew, managing director, coinmenting on the fact that a 

 number of other members of the staff have been 30 years or 

 more with the company, and emphasizing the spirit of coopera- 

 tion in the past between the company and its employes as the 

 ideal to be especially striven for in industry at the present 



DISTINGUISHED SERVICE MEDAL FOR CAPTAIN ALCAN. 



Captain Adrien Alcan, a partner in the firm of Alcan & Co., 

 rubber merchants of Paris, France, associated with Hecht, Levis 

 & Kahn, London, England, who for two years has been attached 

 to American Army Headquarters in France, was recently 

 awarded the Distinguished Service Medal by General Pershing 

 in the name of the Government of the United States, with the 

 following text : 



While on duty with the French Military Mission at General 

 Headquarters, American Expeditionary Forces, he rendered 

 services of exceptional value to the United States Army. His 

 ability, tact, loyalty, and untiring efforts proved of inestimable 

 assistance in the successful execution of many important negotia- 

 tions with the French Army. He went far beyond the bounds 

 of duty to help the American Expeditionary Forces, proving 

 himself a willing and devoted friend to their interests. 



SOCIETE INTERNATIONALE DE PLANTATIONS ET DE FINANCE. 



The Socicic Iittcrnationalc de Plantations ct de Finance, a 

 joint stock company with 25 million francs capital, aims to 

 promote the plantation industry, especially the culture of rub- 

 ber, olive trees, tea and coffee, in the various European Colo- 

 nies in Asia, and the financing and administration of the planta- 

 tions already in existence or those to be established. 



Various well-known persons in financial and plantation circles 

 in Belgium, The Netherlands, France, England and Switzerland 

 are members of the board of directors. For the Netherlands 

 they are the Messrs. J. F. van Tienhoven, K. P. van der Man- 

 dele, C. J. den Tex Bondt, O. F. Weise and A. G. N. Swart, 

 the latter as a member of the Committee of Direction The 

 main office is at Antwerp, Belgium, and a branch office will be 

 opened at 's-CravcnIiage (The Hague), Holland, while in Su- 

 matra, Medan, the Federated Malay States agencies are being 

 established. 



