The sun., 1899-05-07
GUTTA PERCH1 FAMINE IN SIGHT.
The Cable to the Philippines May Exhaust
the Worlds Available Supply.

The Cable to the Philippines May Exhaus
the Worlds Available supply.
| WASHINGTON. May 6.--The complexity o.
our civilization is exhibited In nothing more
| clearly than the disturbance that may bs
| caused by the interruption OF the trafflc In
some material from distant and perhaps bar
| barous lands. As shown by tea and coffee
| things that are curiosites or great luxuriee to
| one generate become necessaries to the next
and when this latter stage Is reached the fall
ure OF the supply becomes public calamity.
Such calamity is impending in the falling
off In the production OF gutta percha This ma
terial enters very largely into electrical con
struction. as its insulating properties make II
invaluable in the manufacture OF cables and its
wide limit Of elasticity diminishes the danger
OF breaking. Nothing that has yet been dis
covered Is capable Of replacing it. 1t is also
used for many Of the purposes OF india rubber.
and is an article Of prime Importance.
Gutta percha is a gum derived from several
species OF sdpotdcG found in the Far East.
The trees are Of slow growth. but may attain
great size A good tree will measure thirty or
forty feet In height and have q trunk from one
and a half to three feet in circumference. Such
a tree will yield two or three pounds Of gum.
but trees are known that have girth Of twen-
ty feet at distance Of fourteen feet above the
base and rise from 100 to 140 feet to the first
branches. The wood is soft and sponRy In tex
ture. and is marked by longitudinal black lines
that show the channels occupied by the gum.
The precise tree that supplies the gum has not
been determined. and II the native names ind-
cate anything there must be about thirty va
rieties but it s likely that many OF these names
are synonymous. Its geographical range is
limited to about 60 latitude north and south
and between the Tooth and 120th meridians OF
east longitude. Outside Of this area It has not
been made to thrive.
The native mode OF extraction Ia very waste
full. The selected tree is feled and the branches
Topped of as quickly as possible to prevent the
sap running into the twiRs and leaves. The
juice slowly runs out. changing color as it does
so. and then the wood isipounded with heavy
mallets to press out all the gum. From this IL
may be seen that tree is destroyed by each
operation. and. as about thirty years is needed
to replace 1t. the forests are rapidly depleted.
The Juice is collected in suitable vessels,
where It grows very dark and finally coagu-
lates. II water gets mixed with 1t. the gum Is
lighter in color and becomes strinRy. but after
boiling seems to be as good as ever. In this
first coaguated state 1t is known as raw gum
and is sometimes kept for months before the
next step. the boiling The Jumps OF gum are
put into kettles with either plain water or, In
some cases. lime juice or cocoanut oil. and
boiled vigorously. 1t is said that the lime
Juice makes firmer and more homogeneous
product After coming to the factory the crude
gutta percha is passed into a masticator that |
tears It into shreds. These are then heated to |
the melting point and poured into sheets or |
east into the desired form.
Submarine telegraphic cables use a large |
portion OF the gutta percha OF the world. The
,ables consist OF core OF copper wire covered |
ov layers OF gum. The wire is first coated with
'Chatterton's compound" mixture OF gutta
oercha. resin and Stockholm tar. and Is then
'un through cylinder OF warm gutta percha
Is the wire is drawn through. a piston presses
he gum from behind and it adheres as thin
coating to the wire. A coat OF Chatterton's
ompound Is laid over this first layer. and the
process is repeated until the insulation reaches
he desired thickness.
Gutta percha Is the product OF q wild tree OF |
he Jungle and Is liable to many dangers
When an enterprising Malay or Chinaman
7ishes to clear a bit OF ground he sets the
nngle on fire and destroys many gutta percha
rees. Storms and natural enemies aid in
diminishing their numbers. and no eteps have
cen taken toward restoring them. Culture
hight be tried in Borneo. Sumatra. Java, the
elebes and the Malay peninsula. as these lie
'ithn the geographical limits. and It should
e begun at once. The supply fails to meet the |
resent demand. and it is thought that II the
roposed Pacific cable be constructed 1t will be |
1e last-at least for many years.
Fully thirty years will be required for an
richard OF gutta percha trees to become pro-
nctive Great Britain and Holland should
I've attention to this serious menace. and this
overnment might make experiments with ,
lese trees in some Of the Philippine Islands.
l.