210 



plants already known in so far as it is a dwarf herbaceous plant 

 with a fairly large snbterrestrial tuber abounding in caoutchouc. 

 As practically all our knowledge concerning the distribution, 

 properties of the plant, and the process of working it, is at present 



confined 



from 



ira 



"The interest attaching to the 'Ecanda' or 'Marianga' rests 

 not only on the fact that we have to deal here with a new 

 species and moreover one which is morphologically different 

 from all the other known rubber plants, but also, and more 

 especially, as I believe, on its capacity of producing first-class 

 rubber and the facility of working it, in which respect it has no 

 rival. 



- 



" The ' Ecanda ' is a herbaceous, stemless plant with a tuber- 

 shaped root fairly large and rich in latex. 



" From experiments made in the interior of Benguela in order to 

 find out the best process for the preparation of Ecanda rubber, I 

 came to the conclusion that the only rational and practical method 

 is by crushing the roots and treating the latex thus obtained by 

 one of the processes of ' lato-borrachificacao externa' (coagulation 

 of the latex after extraction). It is evident that the method of first 

 extracting the latex very much simplifies the preparation of 

 rubber and clearly results in considerable economy. The ' Ecanda ' 

 or 'Marianga'* is found in the treeless, sandy and alluvial 

 tracts (anharas) of Bailundo and Bihe and the Xanes (sandy 

 and treeless tracts) of the region between the rivers Kwanza 

 and Zambese (Ganguellas), the home of the Otarampa (Carpodinus 

 chylorrhiza)j Those tracts occur locally, as a rule near the 

 headwaters and along the banks of the rivers, occupying, some- 

 times, vast areas, and it is in their drier parts that the « Ecanda ' 

 thrives. The altitude of the region where the ' Ecanda ' grows is 

 from 4,000 ft. (Ganguellas) to 5,500 ft. (Bihe). 



" As stated, the laticiferous tubes of the ' Ecanda ' are found 

 spread all over the pulp of the root ; at the same time the latex, 

 being very concentrated, coagulates rapidly in contact with air. 



it is therefore not possible to extract it entirelv ' *^" ™^ a 



by means of incisions. 



■ 



"The extraction of the rubber direct from the roots necessitating, 



IJL^a' t P ro . lon g ed boi ling and then crushing, followed by 

 repeated washing is not practical since, apart from the tediousness 



nri., e £ r ° CeSS ' xt * m P lies necessarily the use of chemical agents in 

 E^H 6 v e com P lete separation of the caoutchouc from 

 dtari Sf«5 1 dl8 ? r f ani f ation of its tissues. And even so, unless 



ShS 7™« US6d v' the P urific ation, the rubber remains some- 



what impure as may be well imagined. 



Bi^S^^^th^SSl^r^'S 6 »P"i*» (which occurs in Bailundo and 



the iSSkSw? ^the i a ?i c ;: n rr ? iha T' and *u* r aMM *' identicaI with 



t I suppose that th, "vZ, a, e8 t ( Gan ff uellas) as ' Marianga.' 

 of the Zam bU wh Sh I W * a ^<^««s intheXanaof Xifumage (an affluent 



the north-eaTof thfdLtSo'rR-^ a 1 * M V«» U * 8 . 8and and h ™™ 3 pIai ° *° 

 had set fire to it JfoZ^J^T*}*'. .? at wh . en I Versed it, the natives 



from 



