236 OTHER Ai^RICAN SPECIES OF FICUS 



It will be seen that the percentage of caoutchouc in the 

 different specimens ranges from about 50 to 66 per cent, 

 and of resin from about 30 to 48 per cent. Owing to the 

 large amount of resin present, the rubber is usually de- 

 ficient in elasticity and inclined to be soft and sticky. 

 It can, however, be utilised for mixing purposes in rubber 

 manufacture, and a definite demand now exists for the 

 " Niger balata," which is regularly quoted on the Liver- 

 pool market. Its value in Liverpool on July 1, 1913, 

 was Is. Id. to Is. Sd. per lb,, with lump Funtumia rubber 

 at Is. 4:d. to Is. 9d. per lb. and fine hard Para at 3s. lOd. 

 per lb. 



African Species of Ficus yielding Gutta-like Products. 

 — The latex of a number of the African species of Ficus 

 furnishes a hard resinous product, possessing in some 

 cases a fair amount of tenacity and exhibiting a super- 

 ficial resemblance to gutta percha. The material, however, 

 contains no gutta, the characteristic constituent of gutta 

 percha, but a quantity of caoutchouc, and is, therefore, 

 more allied to rubber than to gutta percha. The prin- 

 cipal species which have been reported to yield such 

 products m West Africa are Ficus platyphylla, Delile, 

 Ficus bihracteata, Warb., and Ficus trachyphylla, Fenzl. 



All three species occur in Northern Nigeria, and dm-ing 

 recent years considerable quantities of the product have 

 been exported from that country mider the name of 

 " Niger gutta." It is a hard reddish-brown mass which 

 is obtained by boiling the latex, and is known locally as 

 " red Kano rubber." It is used for mixing purposes in 

 rubber manufacture, and is now regularly quoted on the 

 Liverpool market. Its value on July 1, 1913, was 7^. 

 to 8d. per lb. in Liverpool. The percentage composi- 

 tion of the product is shown by the following analyses 

 made at the Imperial Institute : 



