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THE CEYLON EXHIBITION. 
We have received the Report on the Ceylon Exhibition of 
Rubber by MR Zacharias, an interesting pamphlet of 24 pages, 
well worth study, an interesting point brought out is the excellence 
of the Duckwari Para biscuits grown at 2,500 feet elevation in 
Ceylon and coagulated with tartaric acid instead of acetic. 1 11S 
seems to show that at certain places at least at this elevation, rubber 
can be grown successfully, but it is only fair to point out that the 
acreage is only'i| acres under cultivation there and that as 
Mr. Zacharias points out the excellence of the sample may be due 
to the use of tartaric actd. It must also be remembered that t e 
Ceylon exhibits were only 5 lb. exhibits. Whether the rubber is 
actually better, and can be produced in as large quantities over 
2,000 feet elevation remains to be , seen. Perhaps also it is worth 
while again pointing out that actual elevation of feet from sea level, 
is by no means the only factor to be taken into consideration in 
mountain cultivations, temperature, prevailing winds, humidity and 
probably other factors as yet obscure come into play, and I have 
reason to conjecture are of more importance than altitude in feet. 
Ceara rubber produced quite a sensation at the show. 1 he best 
trees were grown at elevations of 1,500 to 3,000 feet in Ceylon. 
The rubber was considered by the judges equal to or better than 
Para rubber. The best sheets, from Kondesalle, however, were only 
the produce of 300 trees, from 8 to 20 years old. Here again one 
* would like to see more the results of extensive cultivation and 
larger samples. That .in some places there is a distinct held for 
Ceara rubber one cannot doubt. That rubber of first class quality 
in spite of its excess of resins can be procured from it, is proved by 
these samples. But one must remember the immense amount of 
Ceara rubber which has been at different times planted throughout 
the East and the very ‘few trees which survive. 
There is an old tree of Ceara rubber in the Gardens which 
constantly fruits. Ic grows ill a sandy patch where many plants 
will not grow. Herb' and there however seedlings have come up 
and grown one or two with fair sized trees, but exclusively on the 
few sandy spots in the neighbourhood. In the richer soils where 
Para rubber is doing well, it seems to fail, either not germinating at 
all or when grown dying away. 
A large number of prizes were offered for machinery and 
methods, many of which were not competed for, some of the classes 
were indeed rather vaguely described, and of some, e.g., best machine 
for destroying stumps, and best machine for uprooting stumps, 
practically the same thing, the well-known American stump rooters 
would do just as ‘well for Para rubber trees as for any others. A 
silver medal was awarded to Mr. Bird for using cream of tartar 
instead of acetic acid. The use of tartaric acid and its effects on 
rubber was pointed out by Ch. Weber many years ago. Acetic 
acid was substituted for it chiefly on the ground of expense. 
Brown & Davidson’s smoking machine and that of Macadam, 
seem very ingenious as is Mr. Bamber’s curing house to judge 
from the description, but whether these expensive apparatus 
(as one judges they must be) will ever be practically of use remains to 
