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RUBBER PLANTING ON THE 



and scarred by the natives, to appreciate the fact that the planters will 

 need better work and greater care of their trees. If all of the natives 

 were expert machete men, and good climbers, the problem would be easily 

 solved, but the real good men in this line are scarce. It is a most inter- 

 esting sight to see a skillful tapper, armed only with a rope and 

 machete, cut the channels so that the sap runs from one to another with 

 scarcely a drop spilled, every stroke of the machete being just right. It 

 is also equally disgusting to see a native who claims he knows how to 

 tap mangle the bark, and able to climb only a foot or two without slipping 

 down. The practical solution is going to involve two things : one is, 

 the invention of a simple tool that is foolproof, and that cannot in any 

 way injure the tree, and the second is a light, safe ladder that will allow 



THE TEHUANTEPEC MARKET. 



the mozo to reach the upper part of the trunk. Most of the planters plan 

 to bleed the trees twice a year, in May and October. Some, however, 

 hold that they can stand tapping much oftener, and most interesting 

 experiments are being inaugurated in the exploitation of this theory. 



The latex flows apparently as freely at one time of the year as it 

 does another, but the dry season is undoubtedly the best for tapping, as 

 there is no rain to wash away the milk, and the tree is resting then. If 

 the cutting is done well, the scars soon fill in with new, smooth bark, 

 which in no way interferes with later working. The natural way, 

 however, will be to drain one side of the tree at one time, and another 

 at a subsequent tapping. The planters are ailready planning as to the 



