and Magazine of the Ceylon Agricultural Society, 



895 



VISIT OF A WELL-KNOWN LONDON 

 RUBBER AUTHORITY. 



MR. F. DE BOIS MAOLAREN 

 INTERVIEWED. 



Rubber in Malaya, Java, Sumatra and 

 Ceylon. 



A prominent figure in the London Rubber 

 World is Mr P de Bois Maclaren, of the well- 

 known Shoe Lane firm of Publishers, Messrs. 

 Wm. MacLaren and Sons, who among other 

 publications own the "India Rubber Journal." 

 Mr Bois Maclaren, who is Chairman of the Rubber 

 Estates Agency, Ltd., and a Director of the 

 Kepitigalla Rubber Estates, Ltd., and the Shel- 

 ford Rubber Estates, Ltd , has been on a visit to 

 the Malay States, Java and Sumatra, in all of 

 which countries his firm has extensive interests 

 and he is now spending some time in Ceylon on 

 his homeward journey. Mr Maclaren has for 

 many years been in close touch with the India 

 rubber market and in conversation with an 

 Observer representative today be expressed the 

 belief that the market was improving and the 

 outlook becoming brighter. "Several manufac- 

 turers told me," said Mr Maclaren, " that they 

 were using mixtures with their rubber when the 

 price was high, but now that the price has fallen 

 they can use pure rubber and give a better 

 quality article and I believe that is what they 

 will do,'' 



The Best form in which to send Rubber 

 to London. 

 " What do you consider the best form in 

 which to send plantation rubber to the London 

 market ?" 



"The biscuit is in most favour at the pre- 

 sent time, rather than crepe or block. Manu- 

 facturers have, however, been very unsettled 

 indeed in their preference, Sometimes crepe 

 was the favourite form, at other times the 

 biscuit and at one time block found the readi- 

 est sale. Biscuit, the present favourite, is 

 easily made and there is no form of rubber 

 almost in which you can detect impurities so 

 readily as in sheet and biscuit which you can 

 hold up to the light." 



Competition with Brazil. 



" What do you think of Eastern planta- 

 tion rubber's chances in competition with 

 Brazil?" 



"I think you in the East will be able to 

 compete very advantageously. Brazil has been 

 feeling this fall in price very much and the 

 money put up for equipping expeditions for 

 the collection of rubber, as they have to do 

 in Brazil is not forthcoming this year. It has 

 collapeed to a largo extent so that will mean 

 that there will be a smaller quantity of rub- 

 ber coming in from Brazil next year. If 

 that is the case and the American de- 

 mand comes back to anything like its 

 former extent one can naturally expect 

 a considerable rise in the price of plantation 

 rubber, provided, of course, that nothing un- 

 foreseen occurs. 



"What do you consider tho 'killing out 

 price ' for Brazil ?" 



" Well, there has been a good deal of dis- 

 cussion upon that point. At one time Brazil 

 was able to send rubber into the market, and 

 I suppose make a profit at a considerably 

 lower price than at present ; but, now, I would 

 say labour is dearer than at that time and the 

 expenses of firms are much higher than those 

 of native firms which did business in a modest 

 way, and altogether I should not think they 

 would be able to put rubber into the market, 

 unless the export duty is taken off, at less than 

 :2s 6d per lb. Exchange currency has been a 

 very speculative thing out there for many 

 years and when men were not making profit 

 out of rubber they made it by speculating on 

 currency exchange ; but that of course is not 

 sound business." 



Ceylon V. Malaya, Java and Sumatra. 



"How do you think the growth of our rub- 

 ber in Ceylon compares with what you saw 

 in Java, Sumatra and the Malay States?" 



" Very well upon the whole ; but the growth 

 in Ceylon is undoubtedly slower. This is more 

 observable in trees that are of mature age. A 

 tree for instance that is 12 years in Ceylon would 

 not average better than a tree of 9 years in the 

 Malay States, Java or Sumatra in a good situ- 

 ation. I would say the growth in these three coun- 

 tries are fairly equal : one place has not much 

 advantage over the other. In the Klang district 

 in the Malay States where a number of the 

 Companies that have been doing so well are 

 situated the tree cannot get a deep root beoause 

 they get to bad soil at a depth of 5 feet and in 

 that district you often see 



A LARGE PROPORTION OP TREES BLOWN DOWN. 



1 think Sumatra and Java have equally good 

 soil to the Malay States and are minus this 

 dis-advantage." 



Labour. 



" Did you find labour plentiful in all the 

 countries you visited?" 



" Well, the Dutch are always talking about 

 requiring labour for themselves and they hint 

 that some day they will prohibit the export of 

 Javanese labour to the Malay States ; but then 

 there is now a very fair supply of Tamil Labour 

 available so I do not think there is likely to 

 be any serious difficulty on account of labour. 

 There may be temporary difficulties but nothing 

 of lengthy duration. 



" I was very much impressed with Java. It 

 has the soil and the climate and everything 

 one could desire— that is in West Java and 

 Middle J ava — (the East and North of the island 

 are drier); aud there is certainly no cheaper 

 labour to be found anywhere in the world. 

 There are 32 million people in that island 

 which is one of the most densely populated 

 parts of the world. Cheap labour will be availa- 

 ble there. 



" Yes : I think moderately capitalised and 

 well managed properties in Ceylon will always 

 be able to compare favourably with the rest. 

 They may not perhaps give per acre such high 

 returns but the returns will be satisfactory," 



