76 
tions in China, came to the conclusion that the Black Sea would be an 
excellent place for rubber cultivation and a group of Capitalists have 
met to organise an enterprise for this purpose. Where are the 
dilferent 'rubber plantations of China and what rubber is cultivated 
there ? 
Somehow the “ frosty Caucasus ” does not seem altogether an 
ideal place for Hevea Braziliensis, but where will not people try to 
grow rubber now-a-days ? 
Dieback. 
We have received the number of the Annals of the Royal Botanic 
Gardens Peradeniya for September, 1910, Vol. IV., part VII., contain- 
ing a long article on Lasiodiplodia by Mr. T. Petch. He reduces several 
described species including Diplodia rapax to Botryodiplodia Theobromae 
the die back of Cacao or at least suggests that it is indential. This 
he says is extremely widespread, but has caused comparatively little 
damage and it is impossible to resist the conclusion that in the 
majority of instances it is only saprophytic. 
This hardly agrees with Diplodia rapax which I have never seen 
as a saprophyte nor as he says of Botryodiplodia have I ever seen it on 
fruits of Hevea nor in any case has it appeared on healthy stems of 
Hevea left lying in a laboratory verandah. He had, however; ap- 
parently not seen the investigations on the fungus made here and 
published in the Report (Bulletin, August, 1910). There can be no 
doubt that whether Diplodia rapax is or is not identical with the 
Botryodiplodia of Cacao or not, it is here a parasite and a bad one.— RD. 
A New Rubber Journal. 
Les Annales des Planteurs 'de Caoutchouc de lTndo Chine is a 
new publication of which the first number appeared in January, 
printed at Saigon. It contains articles on planting rubber and the 
Bulletins of the Rubber Planters’ Association of Cochin China. I be 
editor states that if the growth of Hevea in Cochin China is not as 
good as in Malaya, it is quite equal to that of Ceylon, and certain y 
better than that of Java and Sumatra. Ed. 
RUBBER. 
Rubber —1908, a year of depression .in the rubber trade of Brazil, 
ivas followed by a year in which prices rose to a level which ^ had nevei 
before been attained, the value of the rubber exports m 1909 being 
[8,926,061 Is., as compared with 11,784,637 Is. in 1908 and 13 , 594 . 
in I 907 - 
The increase in the quantity exported, however, in 110 way corre- 
sponds with this large increase in the value. of expats : w ‘ 
for the greater exports of lower-graded rubbers, chie ?. y “ an ‘^ \ave 
amount of rubber sent by Brazil to the world’s * 0U ” 
been actually less in 1909 than in the two previous yea . 
