1. The great difference between the age and girth of the trees 
selected ranging from 6 to 15 years, and girth ranging from 
1 ' 8" to 5 ' t ", 
2. As the experiment was not' 4 carried out long enough in the best 
season (2. e from when the new leaves appear and before the bloom 
commences) it is as yet uncertain at what number of tappings the 
largest yield could be obtained. 
At the present stage of the rubber planting industry most planters 
are anxious to know what they may expect to get from 6 to 7 year 
old bees. Now, as you mentioned (page 46, Agricultural Bulletin 
S. S. and F. M. S.) 25 trees out of two hundred were under two f eet in 
girth and young trees of 6 to 8 years of age. 1 would propose that you 
authorize an experiment to be made on these trees, and also invite 
planters that already have Para rubber trees of about two feet girth 
more or less to publish their experiments in the Agricultural Bulletin 
for the benefit of the community : personally I would be only too 
pleased to contribute, but unfortunately my oldest Para rubber trees 
are only four years old and not ready for tapping. 
May I suggest that the experiment may be done something 
similar to as follows : — 
1. Select trees ranging from about 18" to 26" mentioning the age. 
2. Make 2 or 3 incisions 2" in length (possibly 3 would be too 
many on such small trees) commencing the first day at about 6 feet 
from the ground, and make new incisions daily about one inch under 
the other cuts so that the tree could be tapped at least 70 times 
before reaching the base. 
3. Mention which kind of tapping tool is found to be the best for 
making the small incisions. The E. P. & E. Coy. s’ patent tapping 
knife ought to be just the thing for this kind of tapping. 
4. Tap between when the' new leaves appear and before the 
bloom commences, and if possible again in September, October. 
5. Tap daily, for, (1) by previous experiments of Messrs. Arden 
and Derry, page 312 and 328, Agricultural Bulletin Vol. 1, noth- 
ing is gai ned by allowing an interval. 
(2). By tapping daily much confusion would be avoided when 
working on a large scale. 
Feeling assured that such an experiment would be extremely 
useful to the majority ol rubber planters, and would also prove 
what your first experiment left uncertain, and if planters with avail- 
able trees of different ages and girth were to iap them, keeping the 
records separately of trees ranging from 18" to 243 24" to 30", 
30" to 36", etc,, we should then find the true value of this method of 
tapping to compare with others. 
I have, etc., 
W S. TODD. 
