444  India  Rubber  and  Gutta  Percha  in  Ceylon.    {A\^i  islTm' 
and  of  the  commercial  products  of  the  various  gutta-producing  trees  of 
Perak,  has  been  sent  by  Mr.  L.  Wray,  Jr.  (collecting  for  Sir  H.  Low), 
which  has  enabled  me  to  determine  with  more  certainty  the  species  we 
possess  is  a  living  state.  He  has  also  sent  me  a  copy  of  a  report  to  Sir  EL 
Low  on  the  gutta  question,  which  contains  some  valuable  additional  mat- 
ter to  that  collected  at  Kew  and  published  in  the  report  of  that  institution 
for  1881,  pp.  38-47. 
I  am  now  satisfied  that  the  identification  of  "  Gutta  Sundek  "  with  Pay- 
ena  (Ceratephorus)  Leerii,  on  which  doubt  has  been  thrown,  is  correct. 
Mr.  Wray  describes  the  tree  as  partial  to  swampy  places  near  the  coast, 
even  where  the  water  is  salt ;  the  wood  is  hard  and  close-grained,  and  the 
fruit  sweet  and  eaten  by  the  Malays.  There  is  an  inferior  variety,  with  a 
thinner  bark,  known  by  its  longer  leaves.  Our  plants  at  Henaratgoda 
have  grown  quickly ;  their  rate  of  growth  is  much  more  rapid  than  the 
species  of  Dichopsis — the  largest  are  over  8  feet  high  ;  the  tallest  at  Perade- 
niya  is  6  feet  2  inches. 
The  young  plants  of  "  Gutta  Taban  putih  "  grow  very  slowly.  The  good 
dried  specimens  now  sent  show  this  to  be  distinct  from  Dichopsis  Gutta, 
but  I  am  not  able  to  say  to  which  species  of  Dichopsis  they  should  be 
referred.  This  tree  is  found  in  the  lower  hills,  1,800  to  2,500  feet,  and  not 
in  the  plains  ;  the  gutta  is  a  dirty  white  (whence  the  name  putih  =  white), 
coagulates  slowly,  and  does  not  thoroughly  soften  even  in  boiling  water. 
Mr.  Wray  also  distinguishes  a  small-leaved  variety  with  a  longer  fruit. 
The  specimens  further  confirm  our  previous  knowledge  that  the  best  and 
most  frequent  sort  of  gutta  percha  of  commerce,  "  Gutta  Taban  merah,"  is 
the  produce  of  Dichopsis  Gutta.  Our  trees  of  this  are  now  nine  years  old, 
but  the  tallest  is  but  9  feet  high.  According  to  Mr.  Wray,  this  tree  attains 
100  to  200  feet  in  height,  with  a  clean,  straight  trunk  of  4  to  5  feet  diam- 
eter, flanked  at  the  base  with  large  thin  buttresses  ;  the  bark  is  £  to  \  an 
inch  thick,  brown-red  in  color,  and  flakes  off ;  the  leaves  are  much  nar- 
rower on  young  plants  than  old  ones,  the  flowers  are  white,  and  the  seeds 
yield  an  oil,  solid  at  ordinary  temperatures,  but  used  for  cooking.  The 
gutta  is  at  first  white  and  cream-like,  but  becomes  pink,  and  ultimately 
brownish  red  ("  merah  "  =  red),  and  this  color  is  strongly  imparted  to  the 
water  in  which  it  is  washed.  There  is  a  variety  of  this  species  affording  a 
paler  gutta  called  "  Gutta  Taban  sutra  "  ("  sutra  "  =  silk),  which  is  found 
at  a  higher  elevation  (500  to  600  feet). 
Other  sapotaceous  trees  affording  gutta,  of  which  specimens  have  been 
sent  by  Mr.  Wray,  are  "  Gutta  Taban  simpoo,"  Dichopsis  Maingayi,  Clarke 
— the  product  of  which  is  also  sold  as  "  gutta  putih  "—and  "  gutta  garru," 
Bassia  Mottleyana,  De  Vriese,  which  gives  a  white  hard  sort,  only  used 
for  mixing  with  other  kinds.  He  also  sends  examples  of  the  curious  sub- 
stance called  "  Gutta  Jelutong,"  used  for  adulterating  gutta  percha.  It  is 
obtained  from  a  very  lofty  apocynaceous  tree  allied  to  our  "Rukattana" 
(Alstonia  scholaris)?  and  recently  named  Dyera  costulata  by  Sir  J.  Hooker. 
The  yield  of  the  gutta  percha  trees  seems  to  be  very  small— less  even  than 
^This  appears  to  yield  a  somewhat  similar  substance  at  Singapore,  called  Gutta 
Pulei. 
