August, 1912.] 



Ill 



four to six weeks to eradicate them. I 

 had one very strong colony of the best 

 Italians last summer, in a new hive with 

 beautiful frames of brood that became 

 infested, and I removed, in all, 114 worms 

 from beneath the eappings of the brood. 

 It required six weeks to eradicate them. 

 I would find from four to fourteen worms 

 at an examination. 



The Best Tool to Operate 

 with is a delicate sharp-pointed hook 

 formed on the end of a steel wire 

 about 6 inches long. With this you can 

 rip up the runways from end to end 

 without injury to the brood, and turn 

 out the worm. When operating, turn 

 the worm loose among the bees and see 

 how they will pounce upon it and attempt 

 to sting and carry it away.— Gleanings 

 in Bee Culture. 



PLANTATION VS. WILD RUBBER. 



" Gummi-Zeitung " remarks that owing 

 to the production of rubber in other lands 

 under different conditions, Brazilian 

 minimum prices do not affect the 

 question. Not only is wild rubber being 

 exploited in Africa, East India, Central 

 and South America, but plantation is ex- 

 tending in Malaya, Ceylon, Africa, &c. 



" Pure Para " is being used on a dimin- 

 ished scale and requirements are in a 

 few years likely to be met almost 

 exclusively from plantation rubber. 

 According to German opinion the out- 

 look for Brazilian rubber is by no means 

 hopeful, since plantation rubber costs 

 less to produce. 



Rubber Investments, and Production. 



Today there are 700,000 acres planted 

 with rubber, of which 450,000 are in 

 Eastern Asia and its Islands. It has 

 been estimated that there are in Great 

 Britain and the colonies over 1,200 com- 

 panies employed in the industry, with a 

 normal capital of 250 million dollars. 



The shipments from the F. M. S. for 

 the first 10 months of the last 3 years 

 were— 4,831,823 pounds in 1009, 9,824,605 

 in 1910, and 15,443,154 in 1911. 



Germany has a capital of 12,500,000 

 dollars invested in rubber. In 1909 

 German East Africa exported 218 tons of 

 plantation rubber, and 255 of wild rubber. 

 In 1910, that Colony had 41.000 acres in 

 rubber; Kamernm 10,000, New Guinea 

 5,500, Samao, 2000; Togo, about 375. Of 

 this acreage only about 1/Gth is in bearing. 

 The total exports of rubber and gutta 

 percha from the German colonies was in 

 1909, 2150 tons, value 2,875,000 dollars : 

 the value for 1910 being about 3,750,000. 



In 1916 or 1917 we shall probably see 

 which comes out top — whether wild, 

 plantation, or artificial rubber. The 

 victory will lie with material which gives 

 the manufacturer the best quality at the 

 lowest price —India Rubber Journal. 



RUBBER PRODUCTION CONSIDERED 

 IN RELATION TO HEALTH. 



It has been said that every ton of 

 rubber costs a human life. If this be so 

 then in the country of Amazon there 

 must be a sacrifice of 40,000 souls each 

 year — which is hardly thinkable. Con- 

 sidering existing conditions, however, it 

 is not improbable that at least half that 

 number of human beings succumb each 

 year to the attendant hardships. Fever, 

 beri-beri, wild animals, snakes, poisonous 

 insects, bad food and water and the lack 

 of lemedial and preventative measures 

 all contribute to this end. 

 Plantation Conditions Favourable. 



Against this must be contrasted the 

 favourable conditions as regards diet 

 and sanitation on plantations. Here 

 rubber growing instead of being des- 

 tructive to life is a preserver of health. 

 It is not to the point to enquire whether 

 this is due to humanitarianism or to 

 commercial policy. 



Though conditions in wild-rubber coun- 

 tries aie undoubtedly improving every 

 year, it will never be possible to render 

 such regions as immune from risks as 

 plantations. The increase of plantations 

 not only makes for the commercial 

 stability of the industry but for it9 

 humaneness.— (Summarized from India 

 Rubber Journal.) 



