328 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[March 1, 1919. 



and at the present price they are not inclined to look at it, 

 though the case might be different if it were half the price of 

 solvent naphtha. This question of the supply and price of 

 solvents is closely connected with pleasure motoring, about the 

 immediate revival of which quite diverse opinions are ex- 

 pressed. I am disposed to agree with those who say that it will 

 be some time before we see anything like the pre-war rate of 

 pleasure motoring because the prices all around, including hotel 

 accommodations, are much higher and the increase in the 

 taxes is not to be ignored. 



THOSE RUBBER TEATS. 



A good deal of correspondence, of course politically flavored, 

 has been going on with regard to the sending to Germany of a 

 million rubber teals by the Women's International Association. 

 I do not know the name of the British firm which filled the 

 order, but it must be one of three or four which I have in 

 mind, because these goods are not made in many of our works. 

 I understand that the distribution is in the hands of the Red 

 Cross. I have not made any calculation as to what weight of 

 rubber is involved, but I think that those people who imagine 

 that a large number of motor tires will promptly make their 

 appearance in Berlin are alarming themselves needlessly. Any- 

 way, the house to house collection and subsequent reclaiming 

 will not be done in a day. 



, BARYTES. 



The price of barytes has gone up very much during the war, 

 owing to the imports from Germany aind Belgium having ceased, 

 and it is a matter of importance to British users to see what is 

 going to happen under peace conditions. A rise from i2 to i8 

 is no trifle, as the principal users who are in the paint trade 

 have found. The main facts as regards British production are 

 that there is plenty of the raw material at home and that the 

 output has increased by about 30,000 tons in the last three 

 years. A large amount of this was used in the rough for 

 lithopone manufacture, a material for which the large demand 

 in the rubber trade has now declined. A large number of new 

 mines have been started and several new grinding mills put up. 

 Only a certain proportion of the British output is the best white 

 quality and the makers are apprehensive that they will not be 

 able to keep their present profitable business unless they are 

 secured by tariff against foreign imports. The paint trade and 

 possibly the rubber trade are not so keen against foreign com- 

 petition and as far as I can judge the situation the authorities 

 are inclined to conjure the British producers to see if they cannot 

 manage to meet foreign competition better than they did before 

 the war, especially if improved transport facilities become avail- 

 able. This barytes question, of course, is only one of many 

 industries in which producers have for the first time formed 

 themselves into an association for the furtherance or protection 

 of their interests and which interests are not those of the 

 consumer of these products. 



TIRE IMPORTS IN BRITISH SOUTH AFRICA. 



During 1917, tires were supplied to British Soiiith Africa by 

 the United Kingdom of a value of $1,374,227, Great Britain 

 being the principal source of supply, with 53 per cent of the 

 total imports to its credit. Imports from the United States in- 

 creased from $692,114, in 1916, to $705,681, in 1917. and a ma- 

 terial gain resulted to French and Italian manufacturers, imports 

 of their goods increased by 71 per cent compared with the figures 

 of 1916. 



LATEX-COLLECTING CUPS. 



IN the development of the plantation rubber industry, quality 

 ■'■ of product is recognized as an important factor in the realiza- 

 tion of profits. This has led to the utilization of carefully 

 devised tools, machinery, and methods for every phase of the 

 working processes, from the latex to the finished material packed 

 for export to the rubber goods manufacturer. 



In the scheme of development the simple latex cup employed 

 at the tree for collecting the latex, has received considerable 

 attention. Satisfactory latex cups are now obtainable, prin- 

 cipally of English manufacture, in a variety of forms, dimen- 

 sions, and materials. 



VARIETIES OF CUPS. 



The forms are commonly circular with tapered sides, to admit 

 "nesting," and have inside rounded bottom. 



Some are convex tapered and others arc oval like the blossom 

 end of a half lemon. Some forms show a flattened or inwardly 



VENEZUELAN BALATA EXPORTS IN 1917. 



During the second half of 1917, balata ranked fourth in value 

 among the products exported from, Venezuela, the total amount- 

 ing to 3,719,633 bolivars, equivalent to $717,889.17 in United 

 States currency, a bolivar amounting to $0,193. 



Types of Latex-Collecting Cups. 



curved surface on one side for close accommodation to the 

 tree trunk, and others are provided with a hole for nailing to 

 the tree. 



The dimensions are variable from three to four inches in 

 diameter. Tlie porcelain cup used on certain large estates has 

 the following measurements : diameter of top, four inches ; 

 diameter of bottom, 2j4 inches ; depth, three inches ; thickness 

 of wall, ^-inch. The materials from which latex cups are made 

 are tin, iron, aluminum, glass, porcelain, and earthenware. 



In use the cups to receive the latex flow rest on the ground 

 under the spout or are supported against the tree by a wire or 

 cord encircling both cup and tree trunk. Many estates have the 

 initials of the company on the outside surface of their cups. 

 Prominent among many different styles and sizes of cups used 

 in the Far East may be mentioned the half-round porcelain 

 form. This cup is four inches across the top and two inches 

 deep, with i^-inch walls and flat outside bottom to prevent its 

 overturning when placed on the ground. 



METHOD or USE. 



The method of using the latex cup varies on different estates. 

 As received, cups come in boxes containing about 500. They 

 are unpacked, inspected, and marked at the coagulating station. 

 The cups, when distributed to the different trees, one for each, 

 are hung on a piece of wire from the tree, or on top of a 

 sharp-pointed stick stuck in the ground near by. After the 

 tapping cut has been made the cup is placed underneath the 

 sheet metal spout, either on the ground if the tapping is low 

 or on wire formed into a loop encircling the tree. 



The latex thus collected in the cup is emptied out and as much 

 as possible removed with a squilgee. Tlie cup is then washed 

 in clean water and returned to the wire holder, or pointed 

 stick, with the mouth down. 



Several American concerns have recently given their attention 

 to the manufacture of latex cups for which there is a large 

 demand from rubber planters. 



