July, 1911.] 



Saps and Exudations 



germinating power in the seed that is 

 eventually borne. The improbability of 

 the correctness of such a suggestion is, 

 however, pointed out. 



The finftl conclusions from the in- 

 vestigation are given as follows : — 



(1) Seeds of Hevea brasiliensis lose 

 weight rapidly after maturity, the loss 

 being apparently due to desiccation. 



(2) The loss of weight appears to coin- 

 cide with loss of germinating power. 



(3) Desiccation apparently takes place, 

 in some instances, even before dehiscence 

 of the capsule. 



(4) Probably, without special pre- 

 caution, Hevea seeds will lose their 

 germinating power within two or three 

 weeks after the ripening of the capsules. 



The matter of practical importance 

 that can be deduced from these results 

 is that no Hevea seed should be sold 

 until it has been selected rigorously by 

 weight and there is the additional 

 indication that no unnecessary exposure, 

 or loss of time in planting, should be 

 allowed after the seeds have been 

 received. 



NEW USES FOR RUBBER. 



Use of Para Rubber Seems to Have 

 No Limit— A Perfectly Sound 

 Investment. 



The field for the use of Para rubber 

 seems to have no limit, according to a 

 report made by Consul-General James 

 T. DuBois, Singapore, to the Depart- 

 ment of Commerce and Labour. 



Consul-General DuBois claims that 

 money put into sound rubber companies, 

 and managed on good business princi- 

 ples, is as sound an investment as can 

 be found in any country. He speaks of 

 the supply and demand in a manner that 

 is encouraging to investors in rubber. 

 His report is as follows : 



As the area of Para rubber culture 

 increases in the Malaysian Archipelago 

 at the rate of several millions of trees a 

 year, the question arises, will not the 

 supply so far surpass the demand that 

 the price will fall below the profit- 

 giving line ? 



As the soil of most of the Malaysian 

 Archipelago is well adapted to rubber 

 culture, and as rubber can be produced 

 at a cost of 25 cents a pound and the 

 field for the consumption is extending 

 rapidly throughout the world, it would 

 seem that there is no valid cause for 

 alarm among those who are interested 

 in rubber estates which have been 

 started right and are managed right, 



The uses of rubber are becoming so 

 varied that the supply must constantly 

 and largely increase in order to meet 

 the demand. Aviation affords a new 

 and ever augmenting field for the con- 

 sumption of rubber, The tire industry 

 is as yet in its infancy. Food and liquid 

 preparations, which are ever increasing, 

 need rubber to keep the jars air-tight. 

 Formerly balloon fabrics were manu- 

 factured solely of varnished silks, now 

 rubber-coated cottons are coming into 

 use, three plies of which weigh less than 

 5 ounces per square yard and stand afar 

 greater strain than varnished silks. The 

 patent pipe lighters have rubber plugs. 

 The shock absorber to reduce vibrations 

 on all kinds of vehicles as well as machin- 

 ery, is made of rubber. Ladies ' dresses 

 are trimmed with rubber beads, and 

 white rubber shoes for evening toilet 

 are becoming fashionable. We have 

 rubber stair treads, and all kinds of 

 special rubber shoes and boots are being 

 manufactured and widely sold. The 

 fuses used in mining, flooring for various 

 buildings is a probability, and even an 

 adulterated rubber is proposed for pave- 

 ment. Rubber tips for chair legs and 

 toe caps for boots will come into com- 

 mon use. 



The field for the use of Para rubber 

 seems to have no limit, and the money 

 put into sound rubber companies which 

 have bought land by the acre and not 

 by the square foot, and are cultivating 

 it with care and managing the estate on 

 good business principles, is as sound an 

 investment as can be found in any 

 country.— Manilla Bulletin. 



CONFERENCE ON CASTILLOA 

 RUBBER IN JAMAICA. 



By W. Harris, f.l.s., 

 Superintendent of Public Gardens. 



(Prom the Bidletin of the Department 

 of Agriculture, Vol. I. Mo. 4.) 

 On January 3rd, 1911, a conference of 

 Departmental officers and planters inter- 

 ested in the culture of Castilloa rubber 

 in Jamaica was held at Hope at the invi- 

 tation of the Director of Agriculture, 

 The objects in view were first to report 

 progress as to the yields of rubber that 

 had been obtained from established trees 

 in various parts of the island, secondly, 

 to consider the question of varieties and 

 the desirable species for trial in Jamaica 

 and lastly for demonstrations of tapping 

 by the most experienced operators. 



A summary of the facts thus made 

 available is here recorded' 



