24 



which will stand more expensive labour than almost any other 

 tropical product, even if we had a drop of over 50 per cent, in the 

 present market prices. 



In tapping a Castilla tree all the latex exudes from the wound 

 in a time varying from 20 minutes to two hours. After that time 

 very little latex appears. Two days after tapping all wounds are 

 inspected and cleaned of scrap. If an incision has been too deep, 

 penetrating into the wood, the wound is disinfected by the scrap 

 collector, who for that purpose carries a brush and a can with a 

 mixture, the application of which prevents fungi from getting a 

 foothold. A normal wound, where the wood is still covered by 

 cambium, heals quickly and is not, as a rule, attacked by borers or 

 fungi. 



The amount of latex obtained from a single tapping is so large 

 that on old trees quite good-sized cups are needed. The system 

 of pushing the edge of the cup under the bark is not suitable on 

 Castilla, as latex will run to waste from the wound made, and the 

 hold of the bark on the rather large cups is not sufficient. They 

 sometimes drop, and this must be prevented. Driving nails into 

 the trunk results in bad cankerous wounds, and with the system of 

 tapping employed the number of nails on each trunk would soon 

 be considerable. The cup is made with one side slightly curved 

 inwards to suit the trunk approximately, and from one side of the 

 edge of the cup a string is led round the trunk, and with a hook 

 fastened to the other side of the cup. The placing of a cup on the 

 trunk is done with less manipulation than is needed to press the 

 edge under the bark or driving in a nail and hanging a cup on this. 



The latex is emptied from the cups into small galvanized cans 

 holding 2^ gallons each. These are carried to the nearest collect- 

 ing depot, never more than 600 yards away, where the latex is 

 weighed and collected into big cans, somewhat like the large milk 

 cans used in dairies. From here the latex cans are transported 

 on wagons to the rubber factory. All cans and cups are rinsed 

 with clean water at the depots, and at the end of the day's work 

 placed in a small shed, erected at each depot. Here are kept all 

 the tools needed, in order to save the transportation back and 

 forth every day to head-quarters. As the latex from young trees 

 is very apt to coagulate before reaching the factory, a small 

 amount of formaldehyde is added to each can by the foreman in 

 charge of the depot, where collection has been made. One depot 

 is the central station for each series of four blocks, and thus the 

 depots are placed at every second crossing along alternate avenues. 

 Communication between the depots is made easy and one assistant 

 is able to supervise the work at a larger number of* depots, than if 

 they were scattered about the plantation. In the office every 

 depot is known by a number, marked on the map, and during tap- 

 ping control can easily be kept of the returns from each depot. 



The rubber plantation will further be divided into four fire 

 districts, each with a patrolling watchman, who by easily accessible 

 field telephones can quickly report to head-quarters when necessary. 

 The labourers are at present divided into two camps, one at the 

 "iinca" as the buildings of an estate are called in Mexico, the 



