309 
HAWAIIAN RUBBER GROWERS' ASSOCIATION. 
Address by the President. 
Honolulu, November 18th, 1908. 
To the Members of the Hawaiian Rubber Growers' Association: 
Gentlemen : — On behalf of the officers of your Association, I 
beg to extend to you a hearty welcome to this our second Con- 
vention. 
This Association as you probably know was formed on Maui 
in the month of June, 1907. A convention was held in October of 
last year at Nahiku where by-laws were adopted and routine busi- 
ness transacted, and this year your executive committee deemed 
it best to name Honolulu as the meeting place. 
The primary objects of this Association are to footer and safe- 
guard the interests of the rubber industry of these Islands ; to 
secure, if possible, Federal and Territorial aid in solving the 
problems that naturally arise in a new industry and to bind the 
various companies together for mutual improvement and pro- 
tection. 
Just what the scope of this organization will be, has not yet 
been determined. It may be wise at some time in 4 he future to 
vest it with power to levy assessments on the different plantations, 
should it be found necessary to raise any considerable fund, but 
at present no great expenditure seems necessary and small assess- 
ments on the individual members will probably meet all require- 
ments. Your executive committee levied a $1.00 assessment re- 
cently. This action was necessary owing to the fact the Terri- 
torial Board of Agriculture did not see its way to pay the full 
cost of publication of the report of Fred T. P. Waterhouse, on 
his recent trip to various rubber growing countries, together with 
the cuts of the numerous photographs. Your committee deemed 
it necessary that these cuts should be published, thereby greatly 
enhancing the value of the report, and made an arrangement with 
the Board of Agriculture to pay one-third of the cost of publica- 
tion with the condition that a certain portion of th~ issue be set 
aside for the use and benefit of this Association. This report is 
now before you and we trust you will find therein much interest- 
ing data and comment and also derive therefrom comfort in the 
fact that, taken as a whole, the growth of the rubber trees in 
Hawaii compares very favorably with that of other countries 
where rubber is now grown on a highly profitable basis. 
We have also this year, through the good offices of Dr. Wilcox 
and Mr. R. A. Hosmer, been able to secure assistance from the 
Federal and Territorial Stations to conduct a series of practical 
experiments, relative to tapping of trees and coagulation of latex. 
These experiments are now being carried on at Nahiku bv 
