July 1, 19i;.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



611 



Rubber Planting Notes. 



JAPANESE RUBBER GROWERS IN MALAYA. 



THE declaration of officials in the Federated Malay States that 

 no persons other than natives, British and naturalized citi- 

 zens will be allowed to lease State lands, is a severe blow to 

 Japanese rubber growers in those territories. Japanese planters 

 were exceedingly prosperous and owned rich plantations, the larg- 

 est of which is capitalized at $2,492,500 and has an area of 10.000 

 acres. 



It is stated that the Kuhara Mining Co. intends to form a 

 rubber company. The two companies will be separate, but the 

 older one is to be the larger shareholder. Meanwhile, it seems 

 that 2,560 acres of land in Borneo, planted with rubber trees 

 of 1 to 5 years' growth, have already been acquired and that 

 this holding will be enlarged. 



GERMAN NEW GUINEA UNDER AUSTRALIAN DOMINATION. 



Several years before the war broke out, German New Guinea 

 was beginning to be a promising source of rubber and gutta 

 percha. Under the Germans Ficus and Castilloa were being 

 thrown out and Hevea and coconuts planted instead. Although 

 no new rubber has been planted by the Australians, that existing 

 is receiving attention so that the exports for August, 1915, were 

 valued at 2.000 marks, an amount which increased to 22,898 

 marks in September. At present, tapping has been suspended and 

 the trees allowed a period of rest. 



The labor shortage, aggravated by inadequate shipping facili- 

 ties and the prohibition of recruiting in certain districts, is viewed 

 with considerable concern, but when it decreases the prospect for 

 Hevea cultivation is thought to be good. 



In general it is stated that Australia has taken up her task in 

 a broad-minded manner and that the country is prospering. 

 Shipping to and from Australia is frequent and regular, a radio- 

 telegraph station has been installed at Rabaul, a sutilicient circu- 

 lation of money has been provided for and a branch of the Aus- 

 tralian Commonwealth Bank has been established. 



RUBBER IN BRITISH NEW GUINEA. 



The Galley Reach Rubber Estates, Limited, in Papua, owns 

 about 404 acres of cultivated land, half of which is covered with 

 rubber seven years old and over. For the year 1916 the yield 

 was 27,499 pounds, or 2.06 pounds per annum per tree in bear- 

 ing. The total cost per pound of rubber is at present 42 cents 

 (U. S. currency), but it is hoped to reduce this considerably 

 when all the trees are in bearing. In spite of the high cost 

 and the initial difficulties which young enterprises always ex- 

 perience, the company recorded a profit of il,104 for the year, 

 which is being carried forward. The crop for 1917 is estimated 

 at 33.00(J pounds, and the cost, f. o. b. Port Moresby, at 29 

 cents per pound. 



RUBBER SAMPLES FROM NORTHERN NIGERIA. 



The Imperial Institute, London, England, recently published 



the results of experiments with a sample of rubber produced in 



Northern Nigeria. The sample lost 26 per cent in weight after 



washing, due to the large amount of impurities. Analysis of 



the residue gave: 



Caoutchouc 49.2 per cent 



Resin 47.7 per cent 



Proteins 2.4 per cent 



Ash 0.7 per cent 



The caoutchouc thus separated was almost black and its 

 physical properties were poor. From the analysis it was con- 

 cluded that the sample probably came from the Ficus vogelii. 

 Samples of this rubber from Gambia and the Gold Coast had 

 previously been tested at the Imperial Institute. 



COCHIN CHINA RUBBER PRODUCTION IN 1916. 



According to -the Annates dcs Planteurs de Caoutchouc de 

 I'lndo-Chine;'-^ 'the amount of plantation rubber exported from 

 this French colony during the first eleven months of 1916 was 

 489,000 kilos [1,075,800 pounds]. The exports for the whole 

 year may be assumed to have been 530,000 kilos [1,166,000 

 pounds]. The total for 1915 was 573,440 pounds. 



INDO-CHINA TRADE BUREAU. 



Before his departure from France, the new Governor of Indo- 

 China, Albert Sarant, discussed with Colonial Secretary Dou- 

 mergue plans for establishing an Indo-China trade bureau at 

 Paris. Trade experts will be at the head of this bureau and 

 their duty will consist in circulating throughout the French 

 commercial and industrial world a knowledge of the natural 

 resources and trade possibilities of Indo-China. Promotion of 

 the plantation rubber industry figures largely in the plan. 

 Large credits will be drawn for this purpose. The bureau 

 will work along practical lines and be absolutely independent of 

 the Colonial department. 



THE NETHERLANDS RUBBER INDUSTRY. 



The Amsterdam rubber market, normally important, suffered 

 in 1916, when both imports and exports were prohibited. The 

 prohibition on imports went into effect November 26, 1915, but 

 shipments leaving the Dutch East Indies (which supply prac- 

 tically the whole market) prior to that date were admitted. 

 Accurate figures of the stock on hand, imports and sales are not 

 available, but it is said that the supply met the domestic demand, 

 which is steadily increasing. Prices for Hez'ea Standard Crepe 

 No. 1, the principal grade, varied from $0.80 to $1.04 per one- 

 half kilo [1.1 pounds]. 



The regulation prohibiting the export of rubber from the 

 Netherlands became effective January 26, 1916. A few shipments 

 to the United States, amounting to $164,689, were permitted. The 

 exports to that country were valued at $98,960 in 1915, and at 

 $534,805 in 1914. It is claiined that 1916 shipments would have 

 been much larger but for the high quotations. American im- 

 porters preferred to place their orders at the London and Dutch 

 colonial markets, obtaining more favorable prices. Amsterdam 

 brokers say that after the war it will require strong and united 

 efforts to regain the trade of the American market, practically 

 lost through existing circumstances. 



^arious new rubber factories that are likely to be permanent 

 have been established in Amsterdam and vicinity as a direct 

 result of reduced imports. Among them is a company producing 

 rubber raincoats, other waterproof garments and various kinds 

 of clothing. 



NETHERLANDS PLANTATION COMPANIES MOVE. 



The following plantation companies have recently moved their 

 offices at The Hague from Kneuterdijk 13 to Bezuidenhout 11, 

 'S-Gravenhage : Vereenigde Indische Cultuur-Ondernemingen 

 (United Indian Plantations) ; Nederlandsche Oliepalmen Cul- 

 tuur-Onderneming (Netherlands Oil Palm Plantations), and 

 Maatschappij Voor Koloniale Ondernemingen (Colonial Plan- 

 tations Co.) 



NETHERLANDS STATISTICAL TAX ON IMPORTS AND EXPORTS. 



A statistical tax at the rate of one-tenth per cent ad valorem is 

 now leviable on all goods imported into, or exported from, the 

 Netherlands, in order to defray the expenses connected with a 

 bureau which has been established to compile customs and other 

 national statistics. 



