in 
producing  rubber  and  bind  weed  become  exhausted?  Several 
trips  to  Madagascar  and  two  voyages  to  Brazil  for  the  purpose  of 
exploring  the  forests  may  permit  me  to  express  an  opinion  on  this 
subject.  I believe  that  certain  species  will  disappear  in  Africa, 
Madagascar  and  Brazil — in  fact,  in  all  the  regions  producing  rub- 
ber now  exploited. 
Landolphias  will  disappear  both  in  Madagascar  and  on  the  con- 
tinent of  Africa,  by  reason  of  the  barbarous  methods  of  extraction 
employed  by  the  natives,  which  consist  in  tapping  the  bind  weed 
close  to  the  place  where  it  issues  from  the  ground,  dividing  it 
afterwards  into  sections  about  20  inches  in  length,  from  which  the 
milk- is  drained  by  placing  the  sections  upright  in  a gutter  of  split 
bamboo  supported  above  the  receiving  pail  by  two  wooden  forks. 
'I'he  Eiiphorbiacea  intisy  will  also  be  exterminated  in  the  southern 
part  of  Madagascar.  The  intisy  yields  a milky  juice,  as  rich  as  that 
furnished  by  the  Hevea  brasiliensis,  but  it  is  impossible  to  obtain 
it  pure,  as  the  natives  allow  the  juice  to  flow  to  the  ground,  where 
it  at  once  makes  an  amalgam  elastic  only  in  name.  Besides,  in 
iheir  greed  to  obtain  the  maximum  yield,  the  natives  do  not  hesi- 
tate to  tap  even  the  tubercles  of  the  roots,  thus  killing  in  one  mo- 
ment what  nature  has  taken  a century  to  produce. 
Other  varieties  will  also  disappear.  But  there  is  one  not  indi- 
genous to  either  .Africa  or  Madagascar,  which  will  not.  It  lives  in 
the  forests  which  are  included  between  8°  north  latitude  and  8° 
south  latitude.  It  is  a native  of  Brazil,  Peru,  Bolivia,  Ecuador, 
Colombia  and  Venezuela.  The  species  is  called  Seringa  in  the 
Brazilian  tongue.  The  botanical  name  is  Hevea^  one  of  the  large 
family  of  the  Euphorbiacea  which  comprises  a dozen  varieties.  The 
product  of  these  trees  is  known  on  the  markets  of  Europe  by  the 
name  of  Para  fin,  from  the  town  of  Para,  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Amazon,  through  which  all  the  gum  passes.  The  denomination 
Para  fin  is,  however,  incorrect.  The  State  of  Para  produces  some 
rubber,  but  the  greater  part  comes  from  the  district  of  Amazonas, 
from  Peru,  etc.  ‘ 
In  these  countries,  the  Hevea  has  fortunately  been  protected. 
The  extractors  have  every  incentive  to  preserve  the  trees  from 
injury,  in  order  to  insure  an  annual  yield  which  I estimate  at  from 
§290  to  §347  for  one  hundred  days  of  acmal  labour.  Some  affirm 
that  the  gatlierers  average  from  ^8  to  f 10  per  day.  This  estimate 
is  exaggerated.  • The  exploitation  of  the  Heveas  and  other  rubber 
trees  of  South  America  supports  some  100,000  people.  One  can 
judge  from  this  of  the  importance  of  this  industry.  The  rubber  tree 
is  carefully  treated  here.  Already  the  two  States  of  Brazil,  Para 
and  Amazonas,  have  regulations  for  the  distribution  of  lands.  Both 
have  taken  measures  to  protect  their  natural  resources,  in  order  to 
preserve  the  immense  revenue  obtained  from  them.  Manaos,  the 
capital  of  the  State  of  Amazonas,  a town  of  60,000  inhabitants, 
alone  recives  48,000,000  francs  ($9,264,000)  revenue  from  the 
export  duty. 
I can  affirm  with  certainly  that  the  States  of  South  America  includ- 
ed within  these  latitudes  have  inexhaustible  riches,  if  they  continue 
