57 



was dropped, but the treatment of the latex by diluting with 

 water still remains. There is abundant evidence that 

 water, in any form, added to the latex of Hevea is a mis- 

 take. Castilloa and Hevea are two totally different rub- 

 bers, and I suggest that the addition of any water to Hevea 

 latex, (sooner or later) polymerises the molecule, and the 

 effect is, limp rubber. I pause to mention that I was as- 

 sured by the Principal of one of the largest firms of Con- 

 tinental manufacturers that different results were obtained 

 from a ball of 'fine grade Para' when treated in Hamburgh, 

 Harburg, and Vienna. I wonder on how many estates in 

 the colony or F. M. S. the water is alike. Rubber, Para 

 Rubber, is a highly complex compound and its best method 

 of preparation — in view of obtaining a uniform standard — 

 must of necessity be a common one. It is an immense sub- 

 ject, but I believe — and Mr. Ridley takes that view — there 

 is a solution of many of the problems of the treatment of 

 rubber by the process of coagulating by smoke. I carefully 

 inquired from leading manufactures what they expected or 

 required in plantation rubber — and the manufacturer is the 

 master of the rubber market — their formula was: — latex as 

 you get it from the tree without any chemicals cured by 

 smoking as is done in Brazil. 



Hitherto — owing to the omission of what might appear 

 a trifling detail — we have failed to cure cultivated Para 

 by smoking — we can do it now, and are doing so, experi- 

 mentally, at the Singapore Botanic Gardens, and when the 

 novelty of a new process — in this country — has worn off, 

 we hope to be able to prepare good marketable samples. 

 Coagulation of latex, can be done on films of smoke, but it 

 is necessary to start on films of smoke. It must be re- 

 membered that rubber is a crop, and few plants if any crop 

 similarly all through the year. The latex at any given 

 time may be immature as a rubber producer and it by no 

 means follows that the method of coagulating by smoke can 

 be carried on with equal success on trees of all ages and at 

 all times of the year. The effect too of continuous tapping 

 of a tree will have to be taken into account. However, in- 

 vestigations on these lines are being now carried on and 

 we shall hope to publish the result of these at a later date. 



