104 



into another a size larger, and so on, till the covered pail of largest size 

 is filled and ready to be strapped on to the saddle of a mule for removal. 

 By this plan the natives are saved the trouble of condensing and pre- 

 paring the milk for the market, by smoking. The large can of rubber 

 milk on arriving at the magazine, is emptied into a bath of water, the 

 temperature best suited to the rubber being a matter of experience. 

 The lumps of rubber that fomi in the bath are immediately pressed into 

 thin flat sheets, and carefully wiped. By this means the acid is forced 

 out of the cells or pores in the lump, thus preventing the so-called 

 " rotten" appearance. 



Propagation. — Propagation may be by seeds or by cuttings. Seeds 

 are the most convenient, but they soon lose their vitality. Cuttings are 

 made from twigs that have begun to harden. 



Trees in Jamaica. — There are young trees at both the Castleton and 

 Hope Gardens, but they have not yet yielded any rubber. The bark is 

 about \ inch thick, and the lactiferous vessels lie in the inner half of the 

 bark. From examination made in the gardens, it would appear that 

 this tree will succeed only in Jamaica grown as a forest tree with its 

 bark shaded, and its roots in a soil which is constantly wet. It is quite 

 possible that these conditions are mere important than the rainfall, and 

 that the tree might be grown in the swamps along the South Coast. 



Para Rubber rar Ceylox. 



As stated in the Kew Report for 1876. p. 8, Mr. H. A. TTickham, a 

 resident on the Amazon, was commissioned by the India Office, to col- 

 lect seeds of Hevea brasiliensis. He arrived in England on June 14th 

 with 70.000 seeds obtained on the Bio Tapajos, and on August 12th 

 following, about 2,000 plants raised at Kew froni these seeds were des- 

 patched to Ceylon in 38 Wardian cases. finely per cent, of the plants 

 reached their destination in perfect condition. A further consignment 

 of 100 plants was sent in 1877. making the total number of plants 

 transmitted to Ceylon 2,119 (Kew Report. 1877, p. 15.) 



The following correspondence gives the first result of the experiment 

 which affords anything like commercial data for deciding whether the 

 cultivation of this staple would be a paving enterprise in the Old 

 World:— 



Dr. Trimen to Royal Gardens, Kew. 



(Received February 6th, 1893.) 

 India rubber (21b) from Hevea brasiliensis grown in Heneratgoda 

 Botanic Garden, Ceylon, in 1892. 



The tree from which this was obtained is now 15 years old, and the 

 stem has a circumference of 6 ft. 5 in. at a yard above the ground. 



It has now been tapped three times, and has given the following 

 yield : — 



In 1888 it gave lib. llf oz. 

 " 1890 « 21b. 10 oz 

 " 1892 " 2lb. 13 oz. 

 Making a total of 71b. 2f oz. of dry rubber in five years. 



The tree is in no respect the worse for its treatment ; the rest in al- 

 ternate years permitting the scars on the trunk to become completely 

 healed. 



(Signed 



Hexry Trimen. 



