INTRODUCTION 



A GREAT deal has been written concerning the 

 rubber plantations of the Orient and the phenom- 

 enal expansion that has taken place during the past 

 five years ; of the Amazon Valley industry, however, 

 very little information has been published, in spite of 

 the fact that it was the dominant feature in the rubber 

 situation of the world until the end of 1912. While it 

 is clear that Oriental developments have altered com- 

 pletely the conditions of production, the annual output 

 of the Amazon Valley is still a very important factor in 

 the market, and it will continue to be so for some time 

 to come, on account of the high quality of the latex 

 extracted from the thoroughly matured trees of Brazilian 

 forests. During my investigations as chief of the Com- 

 mission working in the Orient in 1911-12 in connection 

 with the conditions of the rubber industry, I was con- 

 fronted frequently by the erroneous impressions pre- 

 vailing amongst Eastern planters in regard to Brazilian 

 methods and resources ; I propose now to describe the 

 essential conditions so as to enable accurate deductions 

 to be drawn, and a correct comparison made between 

 the plantation industry of the East and the production 

 of wild rubber in the Amazon Valley. That the Orient 

 has still something to learn from Brazil is evidenced by 



ix 



