Evansville weekly journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 184?-18??, 1848-01-14


HE DOWNFALL. OF INDIA RUBBER Steam and
caoutchoucw were a long time looked upon as ultfmdtes
to the various uses to which they could be applied
The possibility OF discovering a substitute for either
was hardly dreamed OF; but the possibilities ofhuman
experience can never be guessed at; it is lust as Ger.
tain that the next age will surpass the present in the
aids ofprogress, as that the present surpasses the
past. In short progress is ofnecessity, infinite; like
a circle it can have no end. Steam has lost one half
its consequences by the invention of the magnetic tel
egraph, and the universal caoutchouc will be almost
entirely superseded by the discovery of a kindred ele-
ment of happiness, the Gutta Percha.
As the gutta percha is but just coming into use. on
one half of its appliances can now be surmissed. but
it has already been found superior to India-rubber in
the majority Of purposes for which that material has
been used, while it is capable of being employed in
many cases where India-rubber' was insufficient. Gut
ia Percha is the gum of a tree which grows on the
island of Borneo. and the entire Malayan Peninsula
abounds its extensive forests Of this most valuable
production of the tropics. The tree is very large and
bears some resemblance to the India-rubber tree, but
differs from it in its botanical characteristics. The.
sap OF the tree exudes from its lacerated surface, but
quickly becomes hard on being exposed to the air.
Iti purified by being boiled in hot water, when it
becomes soft and plastic; below the temperature of ff-
ty degrees, it isnearly as hard as wood; it is extreme
tough but becomes plastic when it is cut into thin
strips; at a temperature below boiling water it becomes
as soft and yielding as melted wax or putty, and may
be moulded into any form or stretched out thinner
than the finest paper. When it cools it becomes hard
and tough again and retains its plastic shape without
the slightest change by contraction or varying. It's
tenacity is wonderful; a thin slip sustained a weight
offfty pounds; the process of melting and coloring
seems to have no effect in injuring its qualities. 1t
burns freely and emits an odour when ignited similar
to that of caoutchouc; it is easily dissolved in the oil
ofturpentine, but with difficulty in ether and other
solvents of India-rubber.
The use of this valuable material are almost in6n-
itei it combines all the valuable properties of the best
tanned leather, with the elasticity of coautchouc, and
a durability which neither of them possesses, and tor
%strapping machinery supplies a want that has long
been seriously experienced. 1t will answer all the
purposes to which leather is applied, and is immense
ly Superior to that of India-rubber for boots and shoes.
Indeed the old phrase of ''nothing like leather win
be deprived ofits significance by the gutta percha-
A leaf OF gutta percha, no thicker, than bank note pa
per is as impervious to water as glass: for umbrellas,
roofs ofhouses, bottoms of ships, coverings
of boxes, and in all cases where protection from wet
AZ 0ooAO0 10 VII OC IL DC lOiDl
edinto gass pipes and water pipes of any size, and any
degree of strength that may be required; and used for
such purposes will never d~ecompose or wearout; and
being ductile and elastic it may be applied in a thou
sand shapes, and for thousands ofpurposes where iron
Oh lead cannot now be used.
Its u~tiIitatian uses are endless; it will supply the
place of tin, wood, copper, iron, stone and even glass,
for such purposes as buckets, tubs, vases, goblets,
drinking cups, and all manner of utensils which are
not used over the fire. But its uses for anne
purposes are even more varied. In England it has
already been used to a very considerable extent in
book binding, and for thai purpose alone it must soon
entirely supercede leather. For mouldings of all
kinds, from the cornices of a house, the capitals of
pillars in architecture, to the most delicate and jntri-
cate fancy work, such as snuff boxes, picture frames,
knife handles. and the ornamentation of rooms, car
riages, fountains, ships cabins, steamboats,, and the
innumerable articles which are made TO crafty tho
eye, il must supersede all other materials.
Air, acids, and the ordinary chemical agencies have
no effect uponit. 1t is harder than horn, softer than
wax. more tenacious than caoutchouc, more durable
than iron; nothing can injure it but a hot fire, and
even that does not destroy it; and no ordinary rub
can defacei ii. For floor cloths it will supersede the
use of all other materials, as it can be made of extreme
thinness, perfectly impervious to air or water, and OF
greater durability than any other flexible material
known. In its hard state it can with difficulty be cut
with a knife or a saw, but which it is soft it can be
moulded into the most delicate forms by the hand of
a child. Greats Gutta Percha.--EUening Mirror.