194 



The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



January, 1908, 5,000 Ceara seeds, 400 Para seeds 

 and 4 lb. of Ficus seeds have been sowed in 

 boxes or prepared patches in the nursery, the 

 results of which have yet to be seen, 



[It has since been reported that 2,533 Ceara 

 seedlings have come up. No Para seeds have 

 germinated, the seeds being unsound.] 



A prominent feature in the Mulund nursery 

 and plantation has been the success obtained 

 with the Ficus seed, partly due to better quality 

 of seeds having been obtained; but I consider 

 mainly due to the correct medium for promoting 

 the germination of the seeds having been worked 

 out and employed. Mr Madanhas formed great 

 expectations regarding the Ficus plant and con- 

 siders it may prove to be the most paying rub- 

 ber plant for this part of the country, being 

 only delicate in its very early stages, and well 

 suited to the climate and soil of Thana. 



The expenses which have been incurred upon 

 the Mulund nursery and plantation include a 

 considerable sum, viz., R790 on account of capi- 

 tal expenditure and Rl,059 on account of the 

 acquisition of land. The latter may be left out 

 of the account because even if from any causes 

 it should be necessary to abandon this rubber 

 experimental plantation, the land will remain as 

 an asset of full value. Including the former, 

 however, a total sum of Rl,393 has been ex- 

 pended up to the end of March, 1908, and in view 

 of the success which has attended the plantation 

 the amount must be considered very small. 



In future, if the plantation is maintained, there 

 will be payments to be made to the Bombay 

 Municipality for water supplied from the Tansa 

 duct. This water will be required for about 

 seven months in the year and is to be taken 

 at the reasonable charge of four annas per 1,000 

 gallons. The expenses on this account will in- 

 crease as the plantation is extended and may be 

 expected to vary from R15 per month in the 

 present year to R45 per month as the probable 

 maximum in the future. For the present the 

 total annual expenditure on the nursery and 

 plantation will probably not exceed Rl,000. 



I consider that the result of the experiments 

 at Mulund show that all four of the principal 

 rubber -yielding plants can be grown successfully 

 in Thana ; though it is early yet to say with 

 certainty which kind will give the best results, 

 and the future growth of the plant must be 

 judged. There is every prospect that if con- 

 tinued and developed the plantation will prove 

 a financial success, and I beg strongly to re- 

 commend that these rubber growing experi- 

 ments should be continued and the Mulund 

 plantation 



MAINTAINED AND EXTENDED ON PBESENT LINES. 



On the above Government has issued the 

 following Resolution. — "The Governor in Council 

 concurs in the views expressed by the conservator 

 of Forests, N.C., in paragraphs 4, 5 and 10 of 

 his letter, and is satisfied with the success 

 attained in South Thana, and the efforts to 

 attain it in Central Thana. 



" His Excellency in Council appreciates the 

 action of the Bombay Municipal Corporation 

 in supplying water at a low rate for the Mulund 

 plantation." — Bombay Gazette, July 15, 



THE SEKONG RUBBER CO. 



LATEST BORNEO FLOTATION. 

 The capital of this Co., for which the list of 

 applications closed on Wednesday, July 1st, is 

 £80,000, divided into 80,000 shares of £1 each, 

 of which 15,000 will be held in reserve for 

 further working capital. The present issue of 

 65,000 shares, of which 15,000 are taken by the 

 vendors in part payment of the purchase price 

 of the property, and 50,000 are now offered for 

 subscription at par, 25,000 have been under- 

 written, thus ensuring a minimum of £20,000 

 for the purposes of the Co. and working capital. 



The Directors — are :— Thomas Ball Silcock, 

 B.Sc, M.P., Walden, Widcombo Hill, Bath; 

 the Hon. Everard FeildiDg, 320, St. James' 

 Court, London, S.W. (Chairman of the Kuala 

 Lumpur Rubber Co., Ltd.) ; William Edward 

 Roberts, 70, Bishopsgate Street, London, E.C. 

 (Director of the North Borneo Trading Co., 

 Ltd.); Vincent Richard Wickwar, 17, Bucking- 

 ham Gate Gardens, London (Chairman of the 

 Banteng (Selangor) Rubber Estates, Ltd.); Her- 

 bert Wright. F.L.S., Assoc. R.C.S., Amersham, 

 Kent, (late Controller Government Experiment 

 Station, Peradeniya, Ceylon, and Director of 

 the Langkat Sumatra Rubber Co., Ltd). 



The Agents are :— London. — Messrs Thomas 

 Barlow and Brother, 38, Eastcheap, E.C. 

 Singapore. — Messrs Barlow & Company. 



The Produce Brokers are : — Messrs Gow, 

 Wilson & Stanton, Ltd., 13, Rood Lane, E.C. 



The Secretary and Registered Offices (pro 

 tem) are:— R Lawrence Spicer, F.C.I.S., 3 and 

 4, Great Winchester Street, London, E.C. 



This Company has been formed to acquire, 

 work and further develop 8, 771 acres selected from 

 the Sekong Rubber Estate, which comprises, 

 according to the Oflicial Survey, 11,271 acres in 

 British North Borneo, held upon a 999 years lease 

 from 10th J uly, 1888, direct from the British North 

 Borneo (Chartered) Company, free of all rent. 

 The estate is exceptionally well situated, being 

 within two-and-a-half hours by steam launch 

 from the Port of Sandakan, the port of call 

 for ocean-going steamers. The cultivation of 

 rubber on this property was commenced by the 

 North Borneo Trading Company, Limited, in 

 1898, but owing to lack of working capital the 

 estate has hitherto only been developed on a 

 comparatively small scale. On the area to be 

 acquired by this Company over 75,000 para trees 

 have been planted (12,500 being now over eight 

 years of age), in addition to which there are over 

 100,000 strong plants in the nurseries available 

 for immediate planting. 



The well-known expert, Mr M Kelway 

 Bamber, p. i.e., m.r.a.c, M.R.A.s.Eng., Consult- 

 ing Agricultural Chemist, Colombo, Ceylon, 

 who has had wide experience with Tropical 

 products, writes as follows : — 



9, Victoria Street, London, S.W., 2Uth March, 1908. 

 To the Directors of The City Association, Limited. 



Re Sekong Rubber Estate. 

 Dear Sirs,— Having thoroughly studied the reports and 

 other documents placed at my disposal, I am now in a 

 position to advise you as to the probable yield of rubber 

 which in my opinion may, with careful tapping and good 

 cultivation, reasonably be expected from the trees now on 

 the Estate. 



