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of caoutchouc, they are found either to give off a rank sickening- 

 scent, which reduces the value, for the fcetor adheres even to 

 articles manufactured from it; or to present a honey-combed 

 appearance, each cell containing a viscid substance which when 

 brought in contact with the air, decomposes the whole mass, and 

 renders it perfectly useless. Of course, under the present system of 

 collecting caoutchouc in Upper Burma, no better results can be looked 

 for; but the fact I wish to establish is, that the inferiority of the 

 article sometimes produced must not be attributed to the unfitness 

 of the climate to the growth of the Ficus elastica, but solely to an 

 absence of care in the preparation of caoutchouc. 



