July, 1912.] 



Saps and Exudations, 



as in former years. In Trinidad, for 

 instance, there are two large trees, 

 planted many years ago, which for some 

 time have produced an annual yield of 

 ten pounds each ; they were ready this 

 year, each with its ten pounds of rubber, 

 just as if the rainfall had been frequent 

 and copious. 



The exports of balata from British 

 Guiana for the first three months of the 

 year dropped to 23,000 pounds from 

 nearly 73,000 pounds, the production for 

 the same three months last year. This 

 marked shrinkage was not because of 

 the decreased yield of the trees, but 

 almost wholly because the drying up of 

 the rivers — the only means of communic- 

 ation between the balata forests and 

 the export point — had rendered it 

 impossible in many instances, and 

 difficult in all, to send the usual expedi- 

 tions to the balata camps, or to bring 

 the rubber down to port after it had 

 been secured. 



While the meagreness of the rainfall 

 during the last eight months has played 

 havoc with many of the plantation 

 activities in the West Indies and 

 adjacent shores of South America, it 

 certainly has given strong encourage- 

 ment to rubber planters in that section, 

 for it has proved, that in rubber 

 they have a tree that will weather, 

 unimpaired in condition and in yield, a 

 season of marked disaster to other plant- 

 ing industries. 



HEVEA IN JAVA. 



(Prom the India Rubber Journal, 

 Vol. XL1IL, No. 6, February 10th, 1912.) 



Java still appears to be in a doubtful 

 state with regard to the cultivation of 

 Hevea brasiliensis. It is said that during 

 the last few years, and especially when 

 boom conditions were prevailing, Dutch 

 planters and merchants owning worn-out 

 coffee estates took full advantage of the 

 opportunity to sell, sometimes at fabulous 

 prices, their estates to British companies. 

 It was- sometimes sufficient if the estate 



possessed a large enough number of 

 Hevea trees of a specified age, the con- 

 dition of the soil or the over-planted or 

 weedy state of the property not being 

 taken into consideration. While these 

 criticisms admittedly apply to many 

 Java companies 'registered in Great Bri- 

 tain, it is obvious that they do not hold 

 good for others which, by their crops and 

 dividends, have already proved their 

 general soundness. In fact the poor 

 show made by some Hevea estates in 

 Java can be attributed to quite other 

 causes than these mentioned above. 



Inexperience in Tapping Methods. 



One of the most important points to 

 be borne in mind in connection with 

 Hevea in Java is that there are very few 

 planters in that land who possess a 

 thorough practical knowledge of the 

 systems of tapping in vogue in other 

 countries, the yield of rubber obtainable 

 per coolie per day, or the up-to-date 

 methods of coagulating, washing, drying, 

 and packing. What knowledge the 

 planters in general possess is largely of 

 a theoretical character and has rarely 

 been acquired by actual work on the 

 plantations of Java. The few good 

 Hevea planters in that island have more 

 work before them than they can possibly 

 undertake ; for this lack in number in- 

 vestors in this country must necessarily 

 suffer. 



Lack op Confidence in Hevea. 

 It may be reasonably asserted that 

 this phase must have been passed 

 through in Malaya, Ceylon, and Sumatra, 

 and that matters will right themselves 

 in course of time. While admitting that 

 this view is partially correct we must 

 say that the transitional stage from 

 apathy to alert efficiency was by no 

 means so drawn out in other countries 

 as it promises to be in Java ; and it was 

 not accompanied by that frequent 

 change of management which has been 

 so noticeable of late in Java. What, 

 then, is the cause of this slackness ? One 

 of the reasons why better yields have 

 not been obtained is because the present- 

 day Hevea manager finds it difficult to 

 forget his doleful experiences with 



