May I, 1908.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



269 



THE RUBBER TRADE AT AKRON. 



BY A RESIDENT COREESPONDENT. 



THE greatest activity in rubber manufacture in Akron at pres- 

 ent is in the automobile tire line. In this connection E. C. 

 Tibbits, publicity manager of the B. F. Goodrich Co., said to The 

 India Rubber World representative : 



"Our tire business is better than it was in April of last year 

 and not nearly so bad as anticipated. In the manufacture of 

 automobile tires we are working up to the fullest capacity night 

 and day. The orders which we have received from branch 

 houses are encouraging to us, for the reason that they show an 

 unusually large demand from individual car owners. Manufac- 

 turers are coming in with small orders and many orders that 

 were held up last fall are now going out. In other lines there is 

 a gradual and steady improvement. 



"In addition to this the tire makers have met a condition they 

 had not foreseen. Last year the greater demand was for tires to 

 equip large, high-priced automobiles. This year there has been 

 a decided falling off in the sales of the expensive cars compared 

 with the increase in the demand for the car selling for less than 

 $1500. It was largely for this reason that orders were received 

 for sizes of tires in which manufacturers were not stocked up. 

 In other lines of rubber manufacture the orders aggregate to a 

 good volume, but they are in small quantities. Consumers are 

 timid about stocking up heavily and are buying in a hand-to- 

 mouth fashion." 



The number of men returning to employment in the rubber 

 factories here is becoming larger each month. Employment 

 bureaus are busy looking up old employes and returning them to 

 their positions. The addition of night shifts in the tire depart- 

 ments is helping much in this respect. Elmer C. Shaw, superin- 

 tendent of the Goodrich factory, said that on April i there was a 

 grand total of 3009 men employed in the Goodrich factory — an 

 increase of ico over the number employed on March I. 



Your correspondent was advised by James A. Braden, at the 

 office of the Diamond Rubber Co. : 



"The Diamond, the Goodrich and other tire manufacturing 

 companies here arc hard put to it to' fill the demand for auto- 

 mobile tires. Last fall the automobile manufacturers were at a 

 loss to know how many cars to build for this season. In most 

 cases they decided to restrict their output and consequently orders 

 placed for tires were on the average a third less than the orders 

 usually placed in the fall. These were not sufficient to fill the 

 demand and this spring when the rush of orders came for tires 

 the factories have been enabled to run to the limit again to 

 supply the manufacturers of automobiles." 



The Marsh rim factory, which was purchased by the Diamond 

 Rubber Co. last summer, will be moved from Columbus to Akron 

 during the coming summer. It was intended to make the change 

 of location soon after the factory changed hands, but the time 

 has not yet arrived when the company could afford to suspend 

 the manufacture of the rim for the two months necessary to 

 move the machinery. 



The B. F. Goodrich Co. will be well prepared to take care of 

 their patrons in Europe during the coming season, as well as to 

 meet the competition of foreign makers through their newly 

 established tire depot in Paris and the fully equipped branch 

 house in London. Goodrich officials say that a larger number of 

 American cars will tour in Europe this summer than ever before. 



An injunction suit was filed in the United States district court 

 in Cleveland .-^pril 15 by the Swinehart Clincher Tire and Rubber 

 Co. against the Motz Clincher Tire and Rubber Co., both firms 

 having their factories and offices located in Akron. The suit 

 alleges infringement by the Motz company of patent No. 826,622 

 and asks for damages. The patent is on a tire with side indenta- 

 tions designed to afford greater resiliency. It was secured by 

 J. A. Swinehart. The Motz company is enjoined from manufac- 

 turing and selling tires with this feature. 



William A. Johnston, president and manager of the Rubber 

 Products Co., of Barberton, has changed his residence from 

 Akron to Barberton, that he may be more closely in touch with 

 his factory. The company was reorganized a year ago from the 

 Alden Rubber Co. and the Pure Gum Specialty Co. The gross 

 amount of business done by the consolidated company during the 

 year past, according to the statement of an official, was $300,000. 

 Druggists' specialties are the principal products. 



Charles S. Eddy, who recently left The B. F. Goodrich Co. 

 after having been actively identified with it for 27 years, recently 

 returned from a visit to the plantation of the Ohio Rubber Cul- 

 ture Co., of Canton, Ohio, with which company he will be actively 

 identified hereafter. The president of the company is Dr. L. E. 

 Sisler, treasurer of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Co., and the 

 secretary is G. S. Pike, of Canton. The capital stock is $250,000, 

 distributed among stockholders all over the state. 



The plant of the Hollinger Rubber Co., of Barberton, has been 

 purchased by George N. Eby, of that city. The new owner an- 

 nounces that he will at once reopen the plant for the manufacture 

 of rubber specialties. The plant has been closed for two years. 



The Diamond Rubber Co. had a force of 10 men at the Briar- 

 cliff race course in Westchester county. New York. They were 

 in charge of li. G. Smith, of the Cleveland branch of the com- 

 pany. 



THE RUBBER TRADE IN SAN FRANCISCO. 



BY A REGULAR CORRESPONDENT. 



"T^HE fleet of war vessels from the Atlantic having arrived 



■•■ in California waters, the resulting excitement has 

 reached throughout the entire coast territory, and San Fran- 

 cisco is preparing for a grand reception to the fleet early in 

 May. Business men calculate that at least $1,500,000 of new 

 money will be circulated in this citj' as a result of the coming 

 of the ships ; indeed, one rubber merchant, figuring carefully but 

 more optimistically, insists that $2,500,000 will be nearer the 

 amount. So much new money doubtless will have the effect of 

 relieving the strain of financial conditions, and the money al- 

 ready here will become more available and times will improve. 



There is some complaint owing to the fact that there has 

 been practically no rain for a long time. "But," said Mr. Ralpli' 

 of the new and growing Phoenix Rubber Co., "ever since I 

 have been here there has been the same cry that the state would 

 be a great sufferer from lack of rain, on years when there was 

 a shortage of rain, and yet I have never seen the harm, and 

 the state has always gone ahead, each year better than the pre- 

 ceding. Even in the early days when grain growing was the 

 chief occupation of the farmers, I never saw a dry year do 

 much harm to the state at large. Now grain growing is a 

 secondary matter. We have our orchards and stock raising 

 and artificial irrigation." 



The Plant Rubber and Supply Co. have taken the large three 

 stories and basement building, 45 x 1375^ feet, at Nos. 24-34 

 Beale street, and are moving the stock from the scattered loca- 

 tions about town which the firm has been obliged to put up 

 with since the fire of 1906. They will carry a full line of me- 

 chanical rubber supplies and accessories. This firm is preparing 

 for a very good trade during the coming year. 



Another change has been made in the comparatively new 

 firm of Barton-Squires-Byrne, Inc. A short time ago Mr. 

 Squires retired and started in with some rubber lines on his 

 own account. More recently the remaining interest of Mr. 

 Byrne has been purchased by Mr. Barton, who now composes 

 the whole firm of Barton-Squires-Byrne, Inc. It is reported 

 that Mr. Byrne is going in with Mr. Squires, and so Mr. Bar- 

 ton is figuring on having the firm name changed. 



A. R. Ellert, traveling representative for the Stirling Rubber 

 Co., of this city, has returned from a trip to the Hawaiian Isl- 

 ands, where he found trade conditions very good, especially in 



