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The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



reproduce) and observes that the cost of pro- 

 duction is naturally very varied. But the price 

 of rubber is so high compared with production 

 costs that the disparity explains the large 

 dividends already paid by some Middle East 

 companies almost as soon as they started to 

 market the product. 



The interviewer made inquiries as to Mr. 

 Engeringh's opinion of the standard of value. 



" Will Para," he asked, "always be the stan- 

 dard for plantation rubber ?" 



" On the contrary," said Mr. Engeringh, 

 " there is generally a margin in price in favour 

 of plantation rubber, as it is purer. In any 

 case, the better grades are never sold cheaper 

 than Para." 



" In such case," continued the interviewer, 

 "the plantation investment appears to be so 

 inviting that more will be started, so there 

 might easily be a danger of over-production ?" 



"Up till now there is nothing to fear," re- 

 plied Mr. Engeringh. " Stocks do not grow, 

 and, as a matter of fact, the Middle East plan- 

 tations are at present supplying a very small 

 quantity compared with the world's total. But, 

 allowing for a rapid increase, this will only pro- 

 vide for the growing consumption, and it will 

 no doubt be easily absorbed." 



Our authority does not believe that the forest 

 production will remain at its present level, but 

 that, on the contrary, it will decrease, which 

 tendency it is clearly showing, with the excep- 

 tion of certain regions— for example, the Congo, 

 where both the French and Belgian Govern- 

 ments have made wise provisions in the con- 

 cessions as to the re-planting of the rubber areas 

 as they are used up. This will no doubt ensure 

 the maintenance of the level of production in 

 Africa. But it is not so in South America, 

 where the tendency to fall off in the production 

 is very significant. 



The Future of the Middle East. 



•f But again, as to the indefinite increase of 

 the plantations in the Middle East, that,'' said 

 Mr. Engeringh, " is impossible. They require 

 special clearly defined conditions for their suc- 

 cess, and these conditions will only be found in 

 a limited number of areas. The best lands are 

 already taken. The existing plantations that 

 have reached, or very nearly reached, the pro- 

 duction stage may be called privileged. They 

 have not any serious competition to fear, and, 

 in spite of the efforts made to increase their 

 yield, they will do no more than meet the de- 

 mand that is growing so wonderfully. I do not 

 believe there is any cause to anticipate an accu- 

 mulation of stocks. I believe present prices 

 will be maintained, and, if the present growth 

 in the demand, estimated at the moderate rate 

 of 50 per cent in 10 years, continues, the planta- 

 tions which have yielded 2,500 tons last year 

 will have to give us 35,000 tons in ten years. 

 Those who like to juggle with figures will no 

 doubt be able to show that in 10 years their 

 yield will be 70,000 tons. But allow me, as a 

 man understanding the business, to doubt it. 

 Remember what I told you — that rubber re- 

 quires special conditions ; besides, we must take 



into account with the rubber plantations the 

 usual mistakes that occur on the average with 

 industrial enterprises. The liability of humanity 

 to err must be taken into account. In fact, we 

 must reconstitute methodically the accumula- 

 tion that Nature has taken many years to per- 

 fect in the immense forests that are now being 

 exploited. That will take time. . . . One thing 

 is certain ; the future of the rubber plantations 

 is assured for a long time, and the centre of 

 production is being gradually shifted towards 

 them." — Financier^ Dec. 13. 



RUBBER PROBUCTION IN ANGOLA. 



The following information is from the report 

 by H.M. Consul at Loanda (Mr. H G Mackie) on 

 the trade of Angola iu 1908, which will shortly 

 be issued : — 



Wild Rubber. 



Careful investigations have been conducted 

 by a Government botanist in the regions lying 

 between the rivers Cutato and Outchi and the 

 Cubango and Cului on the plateau of Ben- 

 guella. Among the numerous latex-yielding 

 plants collected, the most promising rubber 

 plant is said to be a shrub [carpodinus gracilis) 

 growing in shady places on a soil with no 

 rocks or stones, but having a deep layer ot 

 sand free from stagnant water. This shrub 

 furnishes a rubber of good quality, which is ex- 

 tracted by the natives by beating the rhizomas 

 (horizontal trunks) between two pieces of wood 

 — one having a flat surface and the other shaped 

 like a mallet. The bark is thus separated from 

 the wood and reduced to fragments held together 

 by the rubber tissues, the globules of caout- 

 chouc coagulating as soon as they come in 

 contact with the air, and thus none of the 

 latex is lost. As soon as the bark that con- 

 tains the rubber is peeled off, the native con- 

 tinues the beating operation until the whole 

 is reduced to a spongy elastic mass, known 

 in the trade as a " manta " or sheet. The 

 "manta" at this stage consists of the rubber 

 threads binding the broken bark that has been 

 reduced to dust. It is now worked in cold 

 water and again beaten. Repeating this wor- 

 king and beating process, the native is able to 

 prepare a physically almost pure rubber -by 

 means, however, of great labour. For this last 

 reason it does not always pay him to clean the 

 rubber too much. After this working and 

 beating process the spongy mass turns into a 

 flaccid rubber sheet of less than half-an-inch 

 in thickness and sometimes as much as 4 feet 

 square. This rubber sheet is now steeped in 

 boiling water for some five minutes, when it 

 becomes quite plastic, and in this state is shaped 

 by hand into its characteristic sausage- like 

 form of about 10 inches in length. Although 

 the water is pressed out as much as possible 

 during the modelling operation, the rubber 

 still contains 30 per cent of moisture, which 

 must, of course, be evaporated if the rubber is 

 to be preserved from damage. The drying of the 

 rubber has to be attended to by the buyer. 

 The native frequently collects big loads of stems 

 and rhizomas i n the cold and dry season far away 

 from his village. These loads are brought in and 



