February l. 1915. | 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



259 



The omission from the list of honors, in connection with the 

 organization of the recent Batavia Rubber Exhibition and Con- 

 gress, of Mr. J. Lieftinck, secretary of the undertaking and one 

 of the hardest workers lor its success, is resented bj planters 

 throughout the archipelago, and h i- proposed, according to the 

 "Straits Times," to show recognition oi his services t" theplant- 

 ing community by a suitable presentation. 



MANURING EXPERIMENTS WITH HEVEA. 



In a report issued hy the International Rubber Congress and 

 Exhibition Eo> 1914 at Batavia, Dr. \. .1. LJltee presents the fol- 

 lowing summary of manuring experiments with Hevea made in 

 Java : 



No manuring experiments hav.e been made yel in which the 

 yield of rubber of manured trees was compared with that of 

 control trees. 



The increase in circumference of the stem has always been 

 taken as a measure for the results, so that it is difficult to form 

 a judgment on the advantage of manuring. The experiments 

 in Java, four in all, were, witli the exception of a single one, not 

 complete; they did not extend further than the comparison of 

 full manuring or of a single manuring substance with un- 

 manured control trees. For the rest they satisfied the condi- 

 tions which must lie applied to such experiments 



In two cases no effect of the manure was noticed, in the other 

 two an increase in circumference, although not considerable, 

 was distinctly observed. 



LIGHT COLORED RUBBER. 



In a similar report Dr. Ultee makes die following observations 

 regarding light colored rubber: 



Although with a single exception there is no relation between 

 the color, and the quality of rubber, the light colored product 

 always fetches a higher price. 



The color is a result of an oxidation process which is accel- 

 erated by the enzymes present in the latex. By rendering the 

 en ymes inactive or by adding reducing substances this reaction 

 may be prevented, while it will proceed less quickly if the rubber 

 is soon dried 



The enzymes may be rendered inactive by heating the latex or 

 the rubber for 15 minutes to 80 degs. Centigrade (176 degrees 

 Fahrenheit). In Java 1 tins process has practically been aban- 

 doned and replaced by treating the latex with sodium bisulphite 

 (NaHSO,). 



That this does no harm to the quality of the rubber has been 

 proved pretty certainly by testing the vulcanized product and by 

 viscosity determinations. The only drawback is that rubber 

 treated with bisulphite dries more slowly, so that one has to be 

 careful in its application. 



About artificial drying, no new points of view have recently 

 been expressed. Whether the quality of the rubber deteriorates 

 by quick drying has still to be proved. 



According to "Der Seifen Fabrikant," the surplus rubber 

 tree seed from the plantations in the East is to be sent to 

 England, where the oil it contains will be extracted by crush- 

 ing. This oil, of which the seed, according to our German 

 contemporary, contains 42.3 per cent., resembles linseed oil 

 in appearance and odor and like it is a drying oil. Experi- 

 ments show that it makes an excellent soft soap and for this 

 purpose it is proposed to use it. 



The "Tijdschrift voor Nijverheid en Landbouw in Neder- 

 landsch-Indie" has issued a special number devoted to the 1914 

 Rubber Congress held at Batavia last Fall and covering the 

 events and achievements of the congress day by day. The book- 

 let is neatly gotten up and well written. It gives special attention 

 to the meetings and the addresses of the notable scientists who 

 gathered, at Batavia to discuss the latest progress in the rubber 

 world. The addresses dealt, with subjects such as diseases of 

 ,//c;vu. experiments with. fertilizer, reducing the cost of rubber. 

 ?nd other practical and scientific aspects of the industry,. 



MORE MONOGRAPHS ON RUBBER INDUSTRY. 



Two more of t In- interesting hand I ks which the ".Gummi 



Zeitung" is publishing on the Various aspects of the rubber in- 

 dustry have appeared. 



The first is "Hartgummi und Hartgummi-Ersatz," by In- 

 genieur V Regler. 



Hard rubber in its many forms has played ol lati I verj large 

 part in the world's trade. Of course a ^n at many of the manu- 

 facturing processes in the producti if hard rubber goods are 



secrel and carefullj guarded by their owners I In- refers not 

 ■ id. io Mai hard rubber, but possibly even more to substitutes, 

 of which a number have gained international tame. In this 

 hand-book the author gives a short description of the different 

 methods employed in the manufacture of hard rubber iubsti 

 dividing tin treatment into two classes — the dry and the 

 wet method. Substitutes, however, occupy only a small part of 

 the book, the main part being taken up with hard rubber proper. 

 It is. ol urse, impossible to describe intimately the different 

 chemical and technical processes in the production of hard rub- 

 ber, and only a short outline is given. The manufacture of 



hard rubber dust out of old. hard rubber waste is given consid- 

 erable space. Especially interesting are the articles on the manu- 

 facture of hard rubber goods of every description. This book, 

 like the remainder of the series, is noteworthy for the. clear 

 presentation of facts and the elimination of unessential matter 



The second booklet .is "Die Reparatur von Autopneumatiks," 

 by Paul Scharffenroth. 



This eleventh volume aims to serve as a practical guide to 

 auto tire repairers. It should prove especially useful at the 

 present moment in Germany, when private owners of motor 

 cars have to he content with the defective tires allowed them 

 hy the military authorities. Quite apart, however, from the 

 necessities of the present moment, auto tire repairing has lie- 

 come a considerable industry during the last few years in Ger- 

 many, and many workmen have found tire repairing and the 

 erection of little shops for til is purpose the stepping stone to 

 independence. According to the author, a repair shop can be 

 started in Germany with a very small initial outlay. A well- 

 equipped shop would require about $1,500. The hints given and 

 the rules laid down in the volume are of a practical character, 

 and the author does not waste much time with scientific ex- 

 planations, but confine's himself to practical information. Of 

 course, the hook does not bring out anything new or startling. 

 All the advice given is along orthodox lines. The advantage to 

 the reader lies hi the fact that everything is clearly and plainly 

 presented. There is a chapter on mistakes in repairing. The 

 chapter on hot vulcanization is particularly well illustrated. 

 Other illustrations show the beginner how a cover can easily 

 be turned inside out. One chapter deals with tools and gives 

 advice as to their selection. 



THE AMERICAN EXPORT TRADE DIRECTORY. 



This hook gives a complete list of the export commission 

 houses, foreign buyers, manufacturers' export agents, foreign 

 exchange banks and marine insurance companies in all the prin- 

 cipal ports of the United States. It is divided into twelve parts. 

 The tirst part, which tills 200 pages, is devoted to an alphabetical 

 list of the export commission houses in Xew York, the branch 

 offices in that city of foreign concerns, and the export houses in 

 Boston. Philadelphia. Baltimore and other ports. 



Part 8 gives a complete review of the steamship service from 

 American ports to foreign countries. Part 10 Contains a list of 

 the consuls of foreign countries in the United States. 



There is a goqd deal of other information of interest to manu- 

 facturers, all classified and indexed for immediate reference. 



It, is a Fourth Edition, compiled hy Olney H^ugh and pub- 

 lished by The, Johnston, Export Publishing Co. 17 l'.att,.> 1'l.u . . 

 New Wk. . ri , 7/ lM 



