Gums, Resins, 466 | Dec 1!)06 



The N, O, and P. trees were then reached. 



Mr. Wright remarked that there they had the full spiral tapping from the 

 base up to 30 feet in the trees marked P which had been tapped on seventy-eight 

 occasions and given an average yield of 10 lb. 14 oz. per tree, and the number of times 

 Avhen the latex could not be coagulated was sixteen. That was the maximum number 

 of times when the latex could not be coagulated. 



Mr. Parkinson :— Have you any reason to account for that ? 

 Mr. Wright :— It is very peculiar. The material seems to have the caout- 

 chouc, but it does not appear to have the material for collecting it into one mass. 

 Mr. Parkinson :— Has the latex been chemically analysed ? 

 Mr. Wright :-Yes, it has been sent to Mr. Bamber. 

 Mr. Ryan :— Have you tried evaporating it ? 

 Mr. Wright :— No, that would char it, would it not ? 

 Mr. Ryan :— I do not think so. 



Mr. Wright:— It is very interesting. If you take a young stem you know 

 you get a viscous substance that will not coagulate ; but then that is only when the 

 stem is a few inches in diameter ; the part of this tree from which we got the 

 uncoagulable latex must be 35 inches in circumference. The circumference of the 

 narrowest part is much greater than that of six, eight or even some ten year old trees. 



Mr. Parkinson :— In Ceylon? (Laughter.) 



Mr. Wright :— I beg pardon, Federated Malay States. (Laughter.) I do not 

 know how you can explain it. You would expect the bark to be normal when the 

 circumference is so large. 



Mr. Wright next pointed out another tapping above 20 feet which had 

 given 8 lb. 11 oz. with uncoagulatable latex on two occasions. 



FREQUENCY' OP TAPPING. 



The visitors were then taken to the division of trees where experiments had 

 been carried out to determine the frequency with which trees might be tapped with 

 the best results. 



Mr. Wright explained that the trees marked D which were first viewed 

 had been tapped up to 6 feet only, every day from September 25th of last year. They 

 had been tapped on 270 occasions. The lines were originally 12 inches apart, and 

 only on two occasions had they got latex which had refused to be coagulated. This 

 had proved far too rapid a process of excision altogether. He would next take them 

 to the other tree marked E with which he was making a comparison. The latter 

 had been tapped on alternate days and had given 12 lb. 8 oz. in 136 tappings, whereas 

 those tapped daily on 270 occasions had only given 11 lb. That was a curious result. 

 In the daily tapping they had cut through the whole of the bark. If they studied 

 the nature and origin of the latex tubes of Para rubber, they would find that the 

 whole thing was a question of the time required for decomposition. They might cut 

 the bark one day and find no latex. If it were allowed to remain a sufficiently 

 longtime for decomposition to take place, you finally obtained latex. Evidently by 

 tapping daily you cut through the bark at too rapid a rate for the developing capa- 

 city of the laticiferous system. 



In reply to a question, Mr, Wright said they used the paring knife and the 

 pricker alternately in each ease. They saw there what they must expect if they 

 tapped 270 times in eleven months. He would certainly not propose to tap the 

 renewed bark under three or four years. One cortical stripping every four or five 

 years was quite enough. They saw the effect on the bark. It was drying and was 

 quite sound underneath. 



