Gums, Resins, 



370 



[Nov, 1906. 



BISCUITS AND SHEET. 



The former of these I am convinced, will, when the industry developes, have of 

 necessity to be abandoned in consequence of the length of time and amount of labour 

 in preparation, but while you can still send biscuits and sheet you will, I think, find 

 buyers. 



In conclusion, the industry regarding actual plantation rubber is young ; so 

 until shipments come in more important lines, it would be unwise to definitely decide 

 on any one system of preparation for the London market. We at home in London 

 watch with keen interest the development of this industry, and I can only say we 

 like Eastern plantation rubber and want more, and hope that nothing will happen 

 to make the prospects of good supplies less hopeful than they are now. (Applause.) 



THE DISOUSION. 



Dr. Willis : — Ladies and gentlemen, we have listened to two very interest- 

 ing papers on rubber, and I feel sure they will provoke a most interesting 

 discussion. I would call on anyone in the room to offer any remarks they may 

 have to offer. 



Mr. James Ryan :— I should like to ask Mr. Brett and Mr. Smithett a 

 question a propos of the price of rubber in London. I take it that the Ceylon biscuit, 

 which is now getting a price of very close on 6s., is, from information just given me, 

 getting about 6d. a lb. better than fine Para, which Mr. Brett has just told us shows 

 about 20 per cent in the matter of impurities, in some cases 40. 20 percent of 5s. is Is., 

 and we are exporting pure rubber and getting a 6d. for our shilling. That appears to 

 be the differential value, and I take it that the rubber imported into London from 

 Para is subjected to the expense of washing which will give the manufacturer a 

 great deal more, and yet he is able to give us 6d. instead of a shilling ; so that we may 

 bear in mind that whether it be due to superstition or not, the London manufacturer 

 is not prepared to give us the full benefit of our manufacture in the form of hard 

 cash, and that is the way we want it. (Laughter.) 



Mr. Spencer Brett : — I assure you the reasons for the difference in price 

 Mr. Ryan has just referred to, are far more tangible than supersition. In the first 

 place it must be borne in mind that I gave the figures of the actual rubber contents — 

 that is, not the actual figures showing loss in washing from the manufacturers' point 

 of view. The manufacturer does not look entirely on pure rubber contents. What 

 he has to do with is loss in washing ; because Para, fine hard-cured South American, 

 may only possess 77 per cent of pure rubber, it does not follow that it is going to 

 lose this 23 per cent in manufacture. In fact the rough average of the loss of 

 washing in finehard Para, I think, is 15 to 18 per cent. That is one point of 

 importance. The next is rather more complicated. In the first place, as I have been 

 trying hard to impress upon you, your industry is very young, and I have made 

 particular note that with other grades of rubber it has taken some time— a consider- 

 able number of years in soma instances— before the methods of preparing these 

 grades have been perfected ; and until that has baen done, you cannot arrive at a 

 proper standard of the value. In the third place, as you all know, the importations 

 of plantation rubber have been extremely small in comparison with the world's 

 consumption, and to give you an idea I may say that the amount of plantation 

 rubber from Ceylon and Malaya exported into London last year was 171 tons as 

 compared with the total production of 60,000 tons, and that is spread all over the 

 world. I think you will all agree that it gives very small scope for experiment and 

 commercial using ; so I think it is only reasonable to expect that some time must 

 elapse and large quantities must be handled by the manufacturers before you can 

 have all the qualities of your produce fully recognised and appreciated. (Applause.) 



