February 1, 1915.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



247 



Although Bordeaux does not make quite such a good show- 

 ing, a considerable quantity of French colonial rubber has found 

 entry through this port, as will be evident from the following 

 figuri 



1899 387,104 1904 2,6ir,(i-. 1909 4,381,695 



1900 527,972 1905 !,492,56 1910 5,128,781 



1901 517,018 1906 3,510,944 1911 4,041,787 



1902 1,499,808 1907 3,343,099 1912 3,009,081 



1903 2,543,719 1908 2,377,264 1913 2,014,585 



France 1- fortunate in having her own rubber producing ter- 

 ritories and is thus, to a considerable extent, independent of out- 

 side sources This place-, tin- French industry beyond the 

 danger "f lack •>!' raw material and the militarj authorities will 

 always b< able to draw mi the large mpplii available in the 

 French colonies. ["hose in which rubber is produced include 

 I -inn ( hina. the French Congo and other French possessions 

 in Africa and Madagascar, which is a French protectorate, and 

 French Guiana. The extent of the rubber producing capacity 



of th( ! was admirably set forth at the last rubber 



exhibition in London. 



In French Equatorial Africa, wild rubber onlj is produced. 

 lie careful protection of the rubber producing plants, tin- 

 output has been largely increased within the past few years, the 

 laws governing the exploitation of the forests being success- 

 fully enforced. The fact that the exports increased from S46 

 tons, with a value of $400,000 in 1896, to 1,901 tons, of a value of 

 $3,400,000 in 1912, being evidence of the improvement in qual- 

 ity as well a- quantity during the period in question. 



The rubber-growing industry in Indo-China is now nearly 20 

 iri- ilil. Tin- colony produces, from native plants, an excel- 

 lent grade of wild rubber, but by adulterating it with inferior 

 latex the collectors injured its reputation. Rubber planting is 

 imu well established on the southern portion of the territory, 

 and good progress is being made by the plantations. Hevea has 

 given excellent results, as also have some plants of the Manihol 

 class, but Manihot Glaziovii and Castilloa Elastica, which were 

 tried among others, were given up. In 1911 the exports of raw 

 rubber amounted to 245 tons. 



There is also a flourishing raw-rubber industry in Madagascar, 

 the exports, valued at $400,000 in 1902, having increased to 

 $1,800,000 in 1910. Recognizing that this rate of increase threat- 

 em d the exhaustion of the source of supply, the government 

 passed laws controlling collectors and restricting collection, 

 which resulted in a drop in exports to 800 tons in 1911, with a 

 value of only $1,100,000. At the same time, by educating the 

 natives in the art of collecting without sacrificing the producing 

 plant, the industry was placed on a permanent footing. 



From French Occidental Africa, 3,669 tons of rubber were ex- 

 ported in 1913, mostly in the form of plaques or sheets. 



In addition to the trade in crude rubber, there is quite a large 

 business in waste or scrap rubber, in the collection and distri- 

 bution of which about 25 firms are engaged. It is obtained partly in 

 France and partly from abroad, goes to reclaimers at home or 

 in other countries, and is ultimately employed in the manufac- 

 ture of the cheaper grade of goods. From Germany and the 

 United States French manufacturers have learned the use of re- 

 claimed rubber in the production of low quality goods and 

 American reclaimers find plenty of trade among French man- 

 ufacturers. 



Finally, in the manufacture of chemicals and other ingredients 

 used in compounding rubber a number of firms are engaged and 

 a smaller number make a specialty of rubber manufacturing ma- 

 chinery. French manufacturers are also liberal purchasers of 

 these supplies from German manufacturers and sell the latter 

 some of their specialties; and while this trade is at present inter- 

 rupted, it will doubtless be revived when the differences between 

 the two nations have been settled. 



The advantages of organization for the advancement of mu- 

 tual commercial and industrial interests have always appealed to 

 the French and rubber manufacturers and allied interests have 



not been slow in profiting by them. Various societies are in ex- 

 istence for the promotion of the rubber manufacturing indus- 

 try, among which may be mentioned the Association Caoul 

 choutiere Coloniale, Chambre Syndicate des Fabricam 



: lh-u. el Gutta Percha, ' hambre Syndicates d'lnstruments 

 de Chirugie, Chambre Syndicate des Fournitures pour U 

 Chambre Syndicali des Fabricates de Linoleums et Toiles Cirees, 

 Chamlm Syndicate de Pneumatiques, Chambre Syndicale de 

 rissus Elastiques, Bretelles, etc., and the Chambre Sym 

 de \ elements en Caoutchouc et Sportif. 



The value of exports of manufactures of india rubber, from 

 the I baited States to France, for the pasl 



hue 30, 1 ( '14. has been as follows: 



1910. 1911. 1912. 1913. 1914. 



Scrap and old $50,307 $105,172 $119,348 $161,070 $95,567 



R.ei imed 41,550 56,413 50.444 29,525 45,737 



Belting, Kosi I Packing 1,641 3,319 27,448 32,116 62,319 



.t". ::::::::/.y.::::::j ^ 75.885 38.779 {„$ j$* 



E01 An, mi,, biles 185,473 316,629 20.205 5,448 



Ml nil, : 1,, 8,535 13,947 2,626 15,284 



Ml other manufactures of. 168,718 118,775 159,408 140,077 



$290,283 $553,572 $726,003 $413,173 $322,281 



THE WAR'S INFLUENCE ON RUBBER PLANTING. 



Discussing rubber prospects at the recent annual meeting, 

 held in London, of the Rubber Share Trust and Finance Co., 

 the chairman, Mr. A. A. Baumann, expressed himself opti- 

 mistically as to the future of the rubber industry. Hi said 

 he expected to see rubber producers reduce their costs t' 1 

 about 9d. per pound, which would leave a good margin of 

 profit on growing and make rubber shares a very profitable 

 investment. He stated that a company of which he was 

 chairman had reduced its costs of production to Ud. per pound, 

 with only two-thirds of its area in bearing. He admitted that 

 the increase in production had been attended by a reduction 

 of consumption in some quarters. Allowing that the produc- 

 tion of plantation rubber for 1915 would be 85,000. this would 

 be an increase on 1914 of 20,000 tons. Of the 20,000 tons of 

 crude rubber which Germany consumed per year, about 10,000 

 pounds came from the Far East plantations. As a factor 

 against this surplus of production over consumption, would 

 be the increased demand owing to the war; rubber boots 

 being required for the Russians, rubber sheets and garments 

 for the combatants of other nations and by all tires in enor- 

 mous quantities. In the meantime, he pointed out that sup- 

 plies from Brazil and Africa are diminishing and that coun- 

 tries that had formerly obtained their rubber from those 

 sources were drawing, to an increased extent, on British 

 plantation growers. He suggested that a possible excess of 

 supply over demand be met by storing the surplus against a 

 period of shortage and thus providing for a future regulation 

 of the market, which, he urged, was quite feasible, as rubber 

 does not deteriorate by keeping. 



RUBBER ON SEIZED VESSELS. 



Among the articles seized by the British authorities as con- 

 traband of war ma) be mentioned 222 packages of raw rubber. 

 valued at $21,414. forming part cf the cargo of the Norwegian 

 steamer "Sigrun," bound from New York to Malmo and Gotten- 

 burg, Sweden, and taken into Newport, England, by a British 

 cruiser; 200 cases of crude rubber from the cargo of the "Sau- 

 deffjord," a Norwegian vessel bound from New York to Copen- 

 hagen, Denmark, that was taken into Halifax, Nova Scotia, and 

 all the rubber in the cargo of the "Virginia," a Danish vessel 

 bound out from New York and compelled to discharge the rub- 

 ber in her cargo at Newcastle, England, on suspicion that it was 

 intended for an enemy of Great Britain. In other instances, the 

 vessels detained were allowed to retain the rubber in their car- 

 goes, it being evidently not intended for use inimical to Great 

 Britain. 



