The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1883-08-18
Trado In Rubber.

( IA Nollcl i'll huDDor recently said
don't believe there is another trade il
the world that is SO full Of interest tt
the general student as the rubber trade
wlt Is study from beginning to end
Inc land bordering the Amazon pro
duces the controlling amount of rubbe
III the world. Para is the principa
market for the rich plantations alons
this queen Of rivers. A thousand mile
OF territory contribute to its markets
From Manaos to Para the vegetation Is
Of the rakest character. 1t is here tha
the SiphOniG etdStica, or rubber tree. at
tains its best growth. Vegetation Is s,
rank that it is almost impossible t(
1ofce ones way through the tangled
mass or vines and stems without a Wig
orous use of the hatchet or knife. ri,
ruDDer tree attains height Of forty o.
ntty 1eet, amp is as straight as an arrow,
lts rich dark foliage and reddish brown
trunk give it very picturesque appear
ahce. The rubber producing season
lasts, from May TO September. The
people who gather it are Of the lowest
order OF human beings. They live in
inc most primitive manner, and are ex-
| posed TO the extremes Of weather at all
Times. They are a Slort-liveu race,
!heir way or living is removed only o
| single step from that Of beasts. AS in
all Tie lower orders Of human beings.
the male tyrlnnZcS over the female and
compels her to do the most nlenial
work. She gathers the rubber while he
lies III his hammock and smokes or
sleeps OIL the effects of the white mems
| drlnk. The privationS that are endur-
ed during the gathering season are of
| Sucll nature that none but natives
| could undergo them and live. The
loWlanuS where the trees flourish best
| are Inhabited by venomous reptiles and
ana Insects, and the atmOSphere il
loaded with poisonous vaporS.
1.-The Indian pushes his boat through
the oVerhanging foliage to the rivers
Dallk, clears Il small spot on which to
swing his hammock, and is soon ready
FOR business. lie then cuts paths
through the underDlSh to ten or twelve
trees III the Immediate vicinity. lncis-
IONS are made i'll the trunks OF the trees
with Il hatchet ar sharp knife. Beneath
these lnclSlons small tin OF earthen cups
are fastened Dy means of soft clay. BY
the time he has completed this work
The cups upon the first tree are filed
with white sap resembling cows
mix. The Indian e!nptics the cups
INTO Il large gourd which he carries TO
| the spot where his hammock is swung.
"A small fire is burning near by. lie
throws handful of nuts from the
palm tree upon the glowing Goals and
places over them bOttOmDess tunnel
shaped earthen vessel. Taking a pad
ule-Shaped instrument he dips it i'm the
| white milk and holds its in the dense
black smoke which pours out of the
mouth Of the vessel. With each driving
thin layer Of rubber is formed. The
process is continued until the paddle
has two or three inches of rubber upon
| 1t, weighing from ten to fifteen bounds.
This is then cut off with the matchcto
ID knife used by the natives~-and af
ter few days drying III the sun is
ready for market. Tie mcsscs of rub
Der made III this way are called bis
cults. While the process of driving is
going on the milk which has been SPILL
ell on the ground coagulates into a SOFT
sour substance. This is gathered and
! pressed into round ball and sent to
market under the name of negro
heads The commercial value of bis
| cult ranges from 50 to go cents per
pound, and negro heads from 80 to
lO cents per pound. The general law
OF supply and demand renders these
prices subject to wide variation.
When rubber is first made it is wet
and soggy, SO that after it is packed in
bales and shipped to this country or
Europe it undergoes gradual shrink
| ing process. An average estimate of
the shrinking of rubber from the time
| 1t leaves Para until it is received and
| worked mp by the manufactures is from
rs to rs per cent. This fact must be
| taken into consideration when making
| purchases.
ION arriving at the factory, the bis
cults are placed in a large val of hot
water and allowed to soften. They are
then run through powerful grinders
made OF corrugated iron and rolled into
sheets. Otter drying the sheets arc
manufactured into boots, shoes and
other articles.
Although the whole torrid belt pro-
duceS rubber, its quality and compost
tlon vary i'll different countries. Next
TO tile Amazon district, Central Ameri-
ca produces the best and largest qllanti-
| " or ruODer. Africa and the island of
Madagascar stand next in ortlerss Dis
tlnct grades Of the common varieties
are prOduceh in the DaSt Indies and
the country near Calcutta. Some pco-
pie have All idea that rubber and gulta,
percla are the same, but they aro not,
although the latter comes from a tree
much resembling the rubber tree. Gut.
ta-percla has more durability but less
elasticity than the former substance,
When brought TO the country it has the
appearance OF wood or pieces of carlf.
Owing TO it's restricted uses, gutta-pcr-
CHA does not find ready market. Its
use Is chiefly confined to Genital purpos.
es and the manufacture or telegraph
wires"
" Is rubber ever adlIltcratcd ?"
Yes. there arc several substances
used as adulterants in the manufacture
OF the cheaper grades Of goods. The
most important Of these is whiting.
Lately a substitute for rubber has been
made from cotton-sccd oil, but it has
not cone into general use. Old rubber
boots and shoes are also utilized. The,
are ground up and devulcanzed anG
then mixed with the cheaper grades OF
African rubber. Formerly ali rubber
designed for the United States market
had to be shipped to England and thel
reshipped to this country simply be
cause we had no line Of steamers run
ming between New York and Brazil
| This rp,nainal cario,,o II o.