315 



Rubber. 



The quantity and value of cultivated rubber exported give the 

 wonderful increase of 92.31 per cent, and 217.15 percent., respectively 

 — the figures being 6,087,815 lbs., valued at $14,455,982, as compared 

 with 3,165,600 lbs,, with a value of $4,558,026, in the preceding year: 

 the value of this export in 1905 was $529,126. About two-thirds of the 

 rubber exported comes from, or passes through, Selangor, 53,103 lbs. 

 of the rubber produced in Perak and 609,840 lbs. of that produced in 

 Negri Sembilan being exported via Port Swettenham. 



Copra increased to 104,469 pikuls, valued at $726,884. 



Sylviculture. 



The seeds of the best timber trees and of rotan sega were collected 

 and planted in nurseries. 



Para Rubber. 



The Para Rubber Plantations at Pondok Tanjong and Taiping 

 produced, respectively, 22,438, and 7,383 lbs. of dry rubber. 



Chengal. 



Far more satisfactory from the Government point of view is the 

 cultivation of chengal at Bikum and of taban (gutta percha) at Trolak. 



At Bikum 420 acres were planted with chengal, 80 trees to the 

 acre, and at the close of the year there was a nursery of 44,000 trees. 



Gutta Percha. 



At Trolak 1,098 acres were dealt with by improvement fellings, 

 and 566 acres, of the area so treated in previous years, was gone over 

 again. The reserve has a very healthy and satisfactory appearance. 



At the small Waterfall reserve experiments were made in 

 tapping taban (Palaquium): 



"Two hundred pounds of clean gutta were sent to Eng- 

 land for sale, but the results of the sale have not yet been 

 received. The taban merah (red) appears to be excellent 

 quality, but the taban puteh (white) is inferior. One hundred 

 and thirty trees were tapped, their girth measurement rang- 

 ing from 18" to 60": the average tree was 30" at a height of 

 3' from the ground. The average yield per tree was I lb. of 

 well-cleaned gutta, which may be roughly valued at 3.V. per 

 lb. The cost of tapping may be put at 80 cents per tree of 

 average size, exclusive of the cost of tools. The average 

 yield of the ten largest trees was 2^ lbs. each, and the cost 

 (;f tapping was approximately $2 per tree. It was satis- 

 factory to find that trees which were tapped in 1908 yield 

 freely in 190Q partly by the re-opening of the old cuts and 

 partly by new cuts." 



