Gums, Resins, 



[Nov. 1906. 



you the best quality of the rubber, but at the same time I do not think it will ever 

 point out what the chemical properties will be. As far as I can see, Para rubber will 

 never contain more than 3, 5 or 6 per cent of resin at the very most, and 1 am sure a 

 physical test would show the difference between one and two or even five per cent. 



THE IDENTIFICATION OF RUBBER. 



Mr. Ryan asked how they were to identify their rubber in Ceylon or when 

 it arrived in London as being the original samples shipped, inasmuch as there was 

 a method which was in daily use in some districts for removing estate marks from 

 biscuits, aud which for obvious reasons he would not describe ; but it was a very simple 

 and effective one. If they were to go on producing biscuits, it was evident that they 

 would have to devise a more permanent method of stamping rubber than the present 

 one— impressing a die on it. He thought possibly it might be effected by using a sink- 

 ing die to raise the rubber, because he thought it would be more difficult to reduce this 

 without leaving an impression than to raise the sunken part to the level of the surface, 

 as was done at present. They might have a press with prickers on it, very much like 

 the method used in Army and Navy Stores and by many firms in London for marking 

 Bank notes passing through their hands. Possibly it might be used in conjunction 

 with some chemical, which by analysis would enable them to immediately detect 

 whether the sample in question had come from the estate. He gave that as a special 

 warning to the Kandy district where the wily Moorman had already devised a 

 method of taking their biscuits and selling them in the open market. 



Dr. Willis said it might be interesting to several people to know that he 

 had had it illustrated in that Exhibition that the estate marks could be completely 

 removed from biscuits with the greatest ease. 



Mr. Devitt said he had seen several biscuits with the name cut out and one 

 piece cut into square bits to be put in the scrap. In regard to sending large blocks 

 of rubber, he knew a case of one importer of Para from the Amazon who shipped 

 down 100 tons with his mark stamped on the rubber, and when it got to one port it 

 was found that it only weighed 50 tons, although the number of packages was 

 exactly the came. At some place of stopping they must have taken them out and 

 replaced them with others with the same mark on. 



Mr. Smithett : — Do I understand Mr. Ryan to mean that the brokers are to 

 test every estate mark ? 



Mr. Ryan :— Oh, no ; this is directed against thieves in the island. We have 

 people who have a few trees that give a remarkably high yield, and, of course, we 

 know perfectly well where the rubber comes from. The idea is to put a stop to the 

 thieving of rubber, and that again touches another point which will appeal to 

 planters. We have a Praedial Products Act. I can remember that the tea industry 

 was getting pretty old before we could get that Act improved, so as to make it 

 workable in the case of thieving of green tea leaves, or, very often, of made tea. 

 Our friends the cocoa planters have had even more trouble ; and I think it is just 

 as well to start early in rubber, so that we may be ready and protect ourselves in 

 time- We should approach Government and have legislation and protect ourselves 

 in every possible way before our contracts are of a sufficient size to make the losses 

 material ones. I remember in the case of coffee a few estates showed extraordinary 

 prosperity and plumpness in the neighbourhood, and when the coffee crash came, it 

 gave the quietus to the natives on the neighbouring coffee estates ; they could not 

 steal the European coffee. They were reduced to a state of penury by not being 

 able to steal our coffee which was pitiable to witness. (Laughter.) 



A vote of thanks having been passed to Mr. Devitt for his paper, the meeting 



ended. 



