TAPPING 



149 



interferes with the smoothness of the bark and, consequently, 

 presents difficulties for subsequent tappings of the renewed 

 bark. These swellings are frequently accompanied by the 

 development of burrs, which are apt to spread over adjoining 

 portions of the stem of the tree. 



It is, of course, essential to see that the tapping is done to a 



FIG. 37. Tree marked ready for Tapping. 



sufficient depth, and one tapping assistant to supervise every 

 250 to 300 acres in tapping is not too many. 



On one East Java estate, where tapping had been in pro- 

 gress for nearly a year, the sheets of rubber were of such un- 

 common strength as to cause general remark. The cause of 

 this apparent anomaly, since the rubber was produced from 

 very young trees, was found on investigation to be that the 



