November 1, 1914.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



65 



liquid each cup will contain a neat li 1 1 1 1- white cake oi cheese 

 like consistency; the natives attribute this coagulation of the 

 latex to the action of the wind, but the real cause maj be traced 

 to the multitude of small particles of bark and twins that have 

 fallen into the cup; if the cake be cut open, a great many im- 

 purities will be found imbedded in the interior like raisins in 

 a muffin. 



Great care must be exercised in smoking the latex oi Hevea 

 If allowed to stand too long, the finished product will contain 

 numerous small holes, like a cheese, and x\ ill be graded as oi 

 inferior quality. If prepared while perfectlj lush, it is smooth 

 and firm and of the best quality. In preparing rubber in the 

 old way — that is by pouring the latex ovei a paddle and revolv- 

 ing it in a column of smoke until a ball weighing several hun- 

 dred pounds had been Eormed there was always a considerable 

 amount of loss to the producers, and for the following n i on, 

 It required the run of main- days to produce a ball of this size 

 with the result that on some days the latex was prepared prop- 

 erly and a perfect layer was added to the rapidlj growing ball, 

 while on other 



days the layer 

 added was of 

 a porous con- 

 sistency. When 

 the ball was 

 finished and cut 

 for in- 

 spection the 

 two qualities 

 showed plainly 

 and the whole 

 ball, including 

 the first-class 

 layers, was 

 classed as 

 entrc - Ana o r 

 second quality. 



T h i ■ \ . 1 1 

 company h a s 

 evolved a 

 method of 

 working up the 

 latex that elim- 

 inates all this 



loss. Instead of the paddle, a wood cylinder nine or ten inches 

 in diameter and a foot wide is used; there are low flanges on 

 the ends, and the whole resembles a shallow spool. After hav- 

 ing been smoked the cylindrical piece of rubber is slipped off 

 the form and cut open, resulting in a flat slab. This process 

 possesses many advantages. Each slab represents one day's 

 work for one man; the quality of the rubber is immediately 

 visible, and the surface presented to the smoke is so large that 

 it takes less time to prepare the latex. The flat slabs pack 

 easily and save all the space that is lost in packing the lai 

 unwieldy balls; there is no possibility of mixing the two qual- 

 ities, and the slabs dry perfectly and cut down the dead weight 

 of water. In smoking the latex of Hevea St ij the nuts 



of Attalea Excelsa are used exclusively for the smudge. 



Although there is no scarcity of Hevea, Castilloa is not ovei 

 looked. The trees arc cut down and a deep spiral is cut in the 

 trunk; basins are set underneath to catch the sap. That which 

 adheres to the trunk is pulled off in long strips and wound into 

 balls; the milk caught in the basins is coagulated by dropping 

 into it the juice of a vine called "batatarama" and a small quan- 

 tity of common soap.* 



On the Machado f saw an ingenious way of transporting rub- 



ber down river from the camps m the interior. Formerly boats- 

 had been used cntircb for this purpose, which method incurred 

 heavj expense on account of the great weight of rubber. Large 



crews bad, of cause. In be maintained for the purpose of looking 

 after the boats, to say nothing of the cost of the boats them- 

 selves; now, all this is changed. The rubber is rafted down the 

 stream. A strong rope is passed through the hole in the center 

 uli bolhon and the ends are then tied togethei so that 



they resemble a string of massive beads \ number of these 



strings are placed one within tin other as shown in the photo- 

 graph. Then a single ball is inserted in the center, with a flag 

 stuck in it, and the "raft" is cut loose On it floats with the 

 current, slowly where the water is quiet, and dashing madly 

 through gorges and over rapids. Two men follow leisurely in 

 a small dugout, always keeping the bobbing flag in sight. At 

 thej paddle up to the raft and tie a lantern to the flag- 

 pole; then thej follow the light. When the floating mass reaches 

 the end of the joun istened to it and it is moored 



at the lauding, fished OUt and prepared for the steamer. 



_^_^_ Taken alto- 



i, the life 

 of the rubber 

 collector is one 

 of hardship 

 and depriva- 

 but it is 

 let without its 

 bright side, and 

 as a general 

 rule is not 

 nearly so bad 

 as often repre- 

 sented. The 

 care - free life 

 and the charm 

 of the bound- 

 less wilderness 

 act as a power- 

 ful magnet that 

 attracts, year 

 after year, men 

 who know ex- 

 actly what to 

 exp e c t. We 

 must also not forget that usually we are judging according to 

 our own standards of comfort and luxury, conditions which do 

 not exist in the regions in question and of which nothing is 

 even known. Life at its best among these primitive folk ap- 

 pears decidedly uninviting to us. but not to them. They are 

 living the life of their fathers, the life that was intended for 

 them and for which thej are adapted, and separated from which 

 there would be only discontent and unhappiness. 



nterior oi Rubber Camp Paraquette, Vi \> i 



DR. MANUEL L0BAT0 RESIGNS EDITORSHIP OF F0LHA DO NORTE." 



The "I'ollia do Norte" of September 8 contained an announce- 

 ment of the resignation b) Dr. Manuel LobatO, of the editor- 

 ship of that journal, and an appreciatory notice of his ser. 

 I >r l.obaio has also resigned the post lie had occupied in the 

 municipality of Para. His name will be recalled in connection 

 with the New York Rubber Exposition of 1912. 



*A complete collection of the various qualities of Mncliado rubber and 



the utensils used in its collection and manufai iiol to the 



American Museum by Asensi & Co. ; it is now on .exhibition in the mu- 

 seum in the Bronx Botanical Gardens. 



PLANS APPROVED FOR NEW B0LSA BUILDING AT BUENOS AIRES. 

 Plans for the new I'.olsa building, to lie erected in Bui 



ii ill: oiner oi Sarmiento and Paseo de Julio, have been 

 approved by the municipality of the citj These plans call for a 

 buildii i atei height than the regulations of the city per- 



mit. b"Ut~m view of the public nature of the institution an ex 

 ej.i i, .ii i, being made. 



