December 1, 1914.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



103 



SOME RUBBER INTERESTS IN EUROPE. 



RUBBER IMPORTS AT BORDEAUX. 



IMPORTS of rubber at Bordeaux for 1913 represented 2,343 

 * tons against 3,484 tons in 1912. 



The reduction in quantity was due to the fall in prices, which 

 dropped during the period from March to September, many im- 

 porters ceasing their operations at sources of supply. Business 

 in Guinea and Ivory Coast rubber only recommenced towards 

 the close of the year, when the natives were willing to sell in 

 small lots. Imports of balata in 1913 showed a marked increase 

 over the quantities of 1912, but prices were unsatisfactory owing 

 to the irregularity of quality. 



THE B. F. GOODRICH CO. EH FRANCE. 



The French factory of The B. F. Goodrich Co., at Colombes, 

 is now being operated under the direction of the Government 

 of France, and its entire output of tires is being used on Gov- 

 ernment automobiles. 



A GERMAN RUBBER FACTORY IX FRANCE CLOSED. 



The plant of the Continental Societe Anonyme, at 146 Avenue 

 Malakoff, Paris, has been closed by order of the French Govern- 

 ment. This company is a branch of the Continental Caoutchouc 

 & Gutta Percha Compagnie, with headquarters in Hanover, Ger- 

 many, and its factory' has been looked upon with suspicion for 

 the past two years by some of the leading French concerns, 

 who claimed that it was being used as a base of operation for 

 an extensive spy system particularly interested in military' and 

 aeronautic operations. On the outbreak of the war all the Ger- 

 man members of the firm went back home, the only French 

 member. Maurice Echalie. being left to conduct the operation 

 of the plant. Its entire output and stock have been requisitioned 

 by the government. 



RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT IN THE MARKET FOR AEROPLANES. 



Robert Pluym, who visited New York early in November, 

 registering from Petrograd, is said to have announced his 

 purpose in visiting this country' to be the purchase of auto- 

 mobiles and aeroplanes for the Russian Government. 



AMSTERDAM RUBBER IMPORTS. 



While in 1907 the receipts of plantation rubber at Amsterdam 

 only amounted to a nominal quantity, the total for 1913 rose to 

 1.039 tons, composed of the following sorts: Hez-ea, 839 tons; 

 Ficus, 151 tons; miscellaneous varieties, 49 tons. This result is 

 ;ted by the British Consul to the increasing production of 

 Dutch Indian esi -.veil as to the favorable prices realized 



under the system of inscription sales at Amsterdam. 



DENMARK'S RUBBER AND CABLE INDUSTRIES IS WA3, TIMES. 



In reply to a circular inquiry from the Danish Industrial 

 Council, the Scandinavian Rubber Co. of Odense reported in 

 September that rubber had been ordered from England and it 

 was hoped to get it through by one of the Danish steam lines. 

 Other raw materials were in stock to the extent of six months' 

 requireme Sales of rubber manufactures were difficult and 



large ked for. 



The Northern Cable & Wire Works, of Copenhagen, stated 



that it wj- : well provided with work. At the outbreak 



e war it had large cable orders on hand, which were in- 



crea; her contracts I consequence of the 



- and the lack of communication wit: 



' es of su; 



ITALY'S RUBBER IMPOSTS 



According to a cc r imports of crude r 



and gutta perc' 



ites equaled : 

 mported for five months 



1914, : _ 



THE GENERAL SITUATION IN GERMANY. 



T ETTERS received in this country' from Germany show that the 

 ■*— < German rubber industry has stood the shock of war fairly 

 well, but is far from good except in certain lines. The great de- 

 mand for tires has favorably affected the tur 



and many of them have actually now more work on hand than 

 would be the case under normal rman war 



office, when war seemed inevitable, made arrange:- 

 of the leading firms to supply all tires in stock ar. 

 tion large orders for immediate delivery'- Thi 

 ing stocks of tires in Germany have been compelled to hand these 

 over to the government. 



The fertile mind of the German rubber manufacturer apparently 

 has accommodated itself quickly, with that adaptation which is one 

 of the main reasons for the enormous development of German 

 exports during the last years, to the conditions created by the war 

 and soon the trade press began to carry advertisements of supplies 

 of war material. A great demand for surgical instruments and 

 rubber sheets has arisen, and will most likely continue until cessa- 

 tion of hostilities. Germany has been in the habit of buying large 

 quantities of surgical instruments from England, and even Amer- 

 ican houses have been able to send such goo^- any. The 

 large demand which has sprung up during the last months must 

 now be covered by home production entirely, which puts consid- 

 erable pressure on the rubber manufacturers, especially as they 

 have to solve the problem of larger production with a reduced 

 number of workmen. 



Germany has bought large quantities of rubber g< 

 year from England, the United States, Belgium, France and Italy. 

 Even taken in consideration that the demand which has increased 

 in some departments has fallen off in others, it is clear that a 

 large part of those goods which came formerly from the coun- 

 now at war with Germany will either ha ipplied by 



friendly countries or must be manufactured in Germany. The last 

 eventuality alone seems to have been sufficient to balance the 

 n the home trade. 



Nevertheless, there has been an enormous falling off in manu- 

 facturing activity, as practically the whole of the export trade 

 has come to a standstill. The inability of Germany to hold the 

 sea has made it impossible or at least difficult to carry on direct 

 trade with neutral countries. In addition to that Germany misses 

 the support of the London market in the business which formerly 

 has been arranged by London merchants for German account or 

 has been supplied by Germany filling orders for London shippers. 

 German manufacturers are of the opinion that most of this trade 

 will come back after the war, as it will be difficult for other coun- 

 tries, with the exception possibly of the United States, to replace 

 those goods. 



Nearly all the leading firms are keeping their works going, but 

 in a few cases it has been necessary' to shut down some of the 

 departments. 



A NEW GERMAN SEAMLESS DRESS SHIELD. 



A sample has been registered by Ferdinand Henke, of Han- 

 over, of a system for making seamless dress shields by means of 

 a flat dipper made of wood or glass, provided with a handle, the 

 head of which is rounded off and the lower edge cut out Any 

 desired number of dippers can be fastened on a shaft and dipped 

 I :tion. The solution adheres to the dipper 

 when removed, being dried and subsequently vulcanized. The 

 layer of rubber formed on the dipper is rerr means 



roller. In this wa 



t ;,iece is produced. 



SAVING IN TEAR OF RUBBER HEELS. 



h sample 

 Bach, of I at the po:- -.vear. 



-mall pieces of metal are intr: 

 sunk heads to prevent them falling out 



