102 



building of corrugated iron, with 4 furnaces, 6 feet by 3 feet, on 

 the ground-floor on trolleys, and two stories above for hanging. 

 It is divided across the centre into two divisions, 30 feet by 30 feet, 

 by a partition to facilitate cleaning up from time to time. The 

 full capacity of the building is never required, and by having 

 this partition the place can be kept clean without interx'uption 

 of the work. The smoke house is opened up from 12 noon to 

 3 p.m. only, when the atmosphere is driest, so that the entrance 

 of moisture is avoided as much as possible. If the roof has had 

 the sun on it for half a day there is less chance of condensation 

 of moisture inside, and creasote drip on to the sheets does not 

 take place. The fires are kept going for the rest of the 24 hours, 

 and only rubber trees cut up into short lengths are used. I have 

 tried coconut husks, but have not derived any beneficial results 

 from them. Rubber seeds give a thick smoke but there is too much 

 oil in it, which is easily apparent on the sheets, and the use of either 

 coconut husks or rubber seeds usually means extra expense which 

 has not shown itself to be justifiable. The lower floor is 10 feet 

 above the ground and is covered with mosquito-proof wire netting 

 to prevent sparks and dust going up with the smoke. The 

 netting has to be brushed from time to time to keep it open 

 enough for smoke to get through, and has to be renewed 

 every 18 months, approximately. The trolleys have a sheet of 

 corrugated iron on stays, four feet above the furnace, to deflect 

 direct heat and distribute smoke. During the three hours when 

 the fires are out and the smoke house is open, finished sheets 

 are taken down and the day's make put in, and sheets of the 

 previous four days turned. It is a convenient time to do this as 

 coolies from the coagulating room are available in addition to those 

 in the drying-shed. To check weights and assist monthly adjustment 

 of stocks, a tally is kept of the number of sheets put in and sheets 

 taken out, and each day's rubber is ticketed with the date. Rubber 

 in store can thus be checked after each consignment if necessary. 



Final Washing. 



Finished sheets are washed and dried before packing, scrubbed 

 with a horse brush dipped in clean water and hung on racks, the 

 same as those used for dripping, and sun-dried for about 20 minutes. 

 There is always a certain amount of dust which can be got rid of in 

 this way, and the appearance of the rubber is improved. The sheets 

 must be taken in as soon as they are dry, as they would soon become 

 tacky in a hot sun. 



Packing, 



Before packing, sheets are picked over and any faulty ones 

 separated to be sold as No. 2 sheet. Absolute perfection in methods, 

 of course, precludes any possibility of spoilt sheets, but in practice it 

 will be found that there is always a small percentage that would have 

 a bad effect on a consignment, and it is better to sell these for a lower 



