282 
nary demand and scarcity we see.no prospect of any very serious 
decline at present. 
We should rather indicate as likely a price in the future of about 
%ibd. per lb. than anything approaching 5/6W. at which a tew 
cases Straits-grown Para sold at our la auctions against b { 2 cl\ox 
Ceylon grown; but for the next few months we think something 
near present rates will be maintained, as any large arrivals from 
the Amazon cannot reach Europe for some months. 1 he last ci op 
of Para, Peruvian, Bolivian, etc., amounted to 31,000 tons and this 
crop will be about the same. 
Your readers will therefore readily understand of what magni- 
tude and importance the variation of the price of Hus article is 
when measured by such differences as u. or 2r. per lb. on sud, 
quantities as the Para figures run into, to say nothing of Alt u , 
Congo and other sorts which bring the world s production up to 
about 60,000 tons annually. 
The remarkable feature of this important article is, that although 
the production has increased by leaps and bounds the consumption 
has outstripped the production and resulted during the past two 
years in a large deficit, and an enormous rise in values which 
amount to about 65 per cent. 
It is only reasonable to expect a set back after such an advance 
and planters should not base their calculations for the future on 
anything over $s. a lb. when the production of I ara has caught up 
the consumption as it is bound to do. 
SCALE ON PARA RUBBER. 
While examining some young para rubber trees in Johore, about 
2 or I years old. I observed that the leaves were short wrinkled 
and generally unhealthy looking and the plants seemed general y 
speaking to have been retarded in their growth. This seemed to 
have been caused by the attacks of a black Coccid, or scale insect 
The insect full grown is about i inch long ovoid in outline, with 
the edges minutely ciliate, and shortly conical, dull black in color. 
Beincr adult females they had large numbers of minute whitish 
yellow young ones under the dry carapace ; younger females were 
more of a brown color, rather longer and more elliptic in outline 
with very short white legs. The insect seemed to be leaving the 
Irees and dying out as many trees which had been alfected were 
recovering and no scale was to be seen on them. It would be 
easy to check this pest in young trees by rubbing it off by ' hand 
and it need never be allowed to become serious. Still it should be 
watched and not allowed to spread. Ed. 
BISULPHIDE OP CARBON FOR TERMITES. 
Termites ("White Ants”). In my report for 1901 mention 
was made of some experiments in the use of bisulphide of Carbon 
