PREFACE 



In the present book INIr. Harold Brown gives a succinct 

 and, within the limits of such a volume, a full account 

 of the present position of the production of rubber, with 

 particular reference to West Africa. Although Hevea 

 hrasiliensis, the Para rubber tree, holds a predommant 

 position as a source of rubber and considerable attention 

 is naturally given to it in this book, the other principal 

 rubber-producing trees, Funtumia, Manihot, Castilloa, 

 and Ficus, are all dealt with in some detail, as are also 

 the Landolphia vines and other minor sources of the 

 material. 



As regards the prospects of rubber-growing in West 

 Africa, apart from the mdigenous Funtumia, it will be 

 seen that the introduction of Hevea hrasiliensis has 

 been attended with success in the Gold Coast and in 

 Southern Nigeria. Several samples of sheet rubber 

 obtained from Hevea plantations in Southern Nigeria 

 have been recently examined at the Imperial Institute 

 and found to be equal in quality to the best plantation 

 Para from the East. 



The book is written partly for the student and partly 

 for the planter, manufacturer, and merchant. The 

 characteristics of the trees and the prmcipal features 

 connected with their natural occurrence and their culti- 

 vation in plantations are therefore included, as well as 

 the more technical questions connected with the tapping, 

 the collection and the preparation of rubber. 



In dealing with the various aspects of the rubber- 



