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part of the manufacturers to take advantage of the altered situation 

 in order to enhance their profits. 



1 1 is understood that the members of the Rubber Manufacturers' 

 Association were unanimous with regard to the rise, and that only 

 two of the firms who are not actually members of the Association 

 have declined to fall into line with the majority. Standing aloof in 

 a case of this sort implies the possession of a large stock of raw 

 rubber bought at lower prices than now prevail, or else it indicates 

 a desire to take advantage of the situation in order to make an in- 

 creased connection without taking much thought as to the profit and 

 loss account. Of course, this is a matter entirely for individual 

 firms concerned: and if they think they know their own business 

 best, others have no legitimate ground for cavilling. 



Cotton enters largely into mechanical rubber goods such as hose, 

 beltings, packings, etc.; and at the time of the last advance in prices 

 this material was put forward with rubber as a partial cause of the 

 advance; at the present time, however, rubber alone will have to 

 bear the brunr, as the revival in the Lancashire cotton trade pres- 

 ages considerably easier prices for the textile materials so largely 

 used in the mechanical rubber trade. 



No doubt, in spite of our contention that the rise of price in rub- 

 ber goods is amply justified, there will be many who will grumble 

 at it. To these we would put the straight question. What is the 

 alternative? Seeing that the trade is not carried on from Bentha- 

 mite motives, and that, therefore, working at a loss is out of the 

 question, a continuance of old prices means the reduction of quality. 

 I here is nothing else for it. Now, this way of getting out of the 

 difficulty has been tried often enough in the past, and has to a large 

 extent brought discredit upon a reputable industry. We believe it 

 is now being generally recognised by engineers that good rubber is 

 the cheapest in the long run, and since the more general employ- 

 ment of chemical analysis by purchasers, it has become less common 

 for the cheap compounds ©f the unscrupulous manufacturer to find 

 a sale than it was, say, ten years ago. We are not, of course, sug- 

 gesting that goods should be made of pure rubber, nor are we con- 

 demning the use of mineral matters erroneously described by some 

 writers as adulterants. For many purposes a pure rubber without 

 mineral admixture would be not only a waste of money but actually 

 disadvantageous. Our criticism is directed against those who, in- 

 stead of using new, sound rubber, in however small a proportion, 

 replace it by old or " recovered" rubber or oil substitutes. These 

 bodies are not to be generally condemned, for they have their legiti- 

 mate uses. We are not, however, considering these now, our point 

 being to emphasise that they can not take the place of new, sound 

 rubber without considerably lowering the value of the goods. With 

 the present rise in price, therefore, purchasers although they may 

 naturally indulge in a little grumbling, may feel assured that the 

 quality of the goods they buy will remain equal to what it has been 

 in the past, which would be practically impossible if prices remained 

 at the old level. 



