564 



The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



GROWTH OF RUBBER IN PAPUA. 



Mr. A S Bloomfield writes us from Melbourne, 

 under date 22nd February, stating that he has 

 just returned from a trip to New Guinea, and 

 enclosing some photographs obtained there. He 

 is convinced that the Para rubber tree will 

 grow in New Guinea as well as, if not better, 

 than in any other country in the Tropics. The 

 tree with the native standing by it is three years 

 and one month old, and has a girth at 3 feet from 

 the ground of 24 inches. The other photograph 

 represents part of a small clearing of three years 

 and six months old rubber, which has not had 

 the best of treatment with regard to weeding, 

 yet compares very favourably with trees of- a 

 similar age in other countries. These two photo- 

 graphs were taken on the property of Sir Rupert 

 Clarke's Papua Rubber Plantation Pty., Ltd. 



Photograph No. 3 represents a tree two years 

 Bnd seven months old on the property of the 

 Galley Reach Rubber Estates, Ltd , which ad- 

 joins that of the Papua Rubber Plantation Pty., 

 Ltd., and No. 4 shows a line of trees on the 

 same estates. 



One thousand acres have been planted by the 

 two companies in this locality, and excellent 

 facilities as regards transit are afforded owing to 

 the fact that they are situate only 40 miles from 

 Port Moresby (the capital of British NewGuinea), 

 and produce can be taken from the plantations 

 themselves by water to Port Moresby Wharf. 

 On the Galley Reach Estate lines some 9 feet 

 wide have been cleared down the line of trees, 

 and the intervening spaces between the next line 

 of trees have been planted with sweet potatoes 

 and passiflora, which keeps down the lalang 

 grass. — India-Rubber Journal, April 6. 



TEA AND RUBBER IN JAVA IN 1911. 



The following information is from the report 

 by H.M. Consul at Batavia (Mr J W Stewart) 

 on the trade of Java, Sumatra, &c. in 1911, 

 which will shortly be issued : — 



Tea Exports from Java. 



The exports of Java tea during the years 1910 



and 1911 were as follows :— 



To. 1910. 1911. 



lo. lb. 



Netherlands .. 18,804,300 22,649,400 



United Kingdom .. 18,074,800 15,501,5uo 



Australia .. 2,289,800 6,578,600 



Singapore, for tranship- 

 ment to North China & 



Ku«ia .. 3,973,700 3,237,600 



tlUssia .. 106,600 2,005,300 



Canada and America ,; 193,400 403,800 

 Other countries .. 2,266,70 J i, 142,300 



1'Otal ,„ 41,639,200 5J,518,50O 



Rubber Industry in Java. 



A fair number of the Java rubber estates have 

 now reached the productive stage, but the 

 majority of these only began to tap on an ex- 

 tended scale towards the end of 1911, and no 

 information on the subject of production, cost, 

 &c., has yet been published. 



Some statistics of this nature have been ob- 

 tained privately, but these refer mainly to a few 

 young estates situated in one part of the island. 

 That Java estates can produce rubber of a 

 superior quality is unquestioned, and so far as 

 can be judged from the figures at present avail- 

 able the outlook is by no means discouraging, 

 returns from the more advanced plantations 

 showing a steadily increasing production per 

 tree, and low cost. A few estates complain of 

 labour difficulties, but as the industry develops 

 and the cultivation of rubber becomes more 

 familiar to the natives, these troubles will no 

 doubt gradually disappear. Tapping is readily 

 karnt by the coolies, and managers generally ex- 

 press themselves as satisfied with the daily task 

 performed. 



Exports of rubber from Java during 1911 

 amounted to 982,6001b., as compared with 156,700 

 lb. during the preceding year, but some con- 

 siderable part of this represents wild rubber 

 from outlying islands.— Board of Trade Jour- 

 nal, May 2. 



RUBBER INDUSTHY IN SUMATRA. 



The following information is from the report 

 by the British Vice-Consul at Medan (Mr A L 

 Matheweon) on the trade of the East Coast of 

 Sumatra in 1911, which will shortly be issued: — 



The cultivation of plantation rubber is already 

 one of the most important industries in Sumatra 

 and bids fair to be a factor of very considerable 

 importance in future in furthering the develop- 

 ment of the east coast of the island. It is calcu- 

 lated that approximately five-eighths of the whole 

 capital invested is British. One or two hitherto 

 unexploitod districts have been opened up, and 

 there is little duubt that even more would have 

 been done in this direction had better means of 

 communication by road and rail been available. 

 A large number of companies intend to plant 

 little or nothing further in 1912, but several are 

 preparing to plant considerable areas. 



Reliable statistics as to the amount of capital 

 Invested in the rubber industry in Sumatra and 

 the area under plantation rubber are unob* 

 tainable. Returns show at the end of 1911 ap« 

 proximately 130,000 acres planted, of which ovet 



