The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1909-04-30
THE ROMANCE OF b RUBBER

THE ROMANCE OF RUBBER E.
=. Next to copper and. iron, rubber Is {
ne most important material in the
s;ecIr1ca4 industry. It is used extern
ssNely as an insulating material. be-.
ny one or the best insulators Of elec-
.rIclty In the world. Nearly all the
n mrofs tnat carry electrical current are
Der prevents the electricity escapins
through contact Of the wire with other
CONDUCTORS, 1t prevents accidents, fires.
ana keeps the electrical apparatus from
pufn1ng out and destroying itself. Be- /
s.oes nelng used for insulating wires
anG cables at the plants Of the Gen.
sa E'ectr1c company rubber is used
IN the manufacture Of motors. SWITCH
es, generators, and nearly all electrical
machines.
-. The story Of rubber is the story Of
the conquest of the tropical jungles:
the fights against disease, poisonous
reptiles and insects, man eating anil
mails, hunger and thirst and the danger
of being lost forever
CIVILIZATION first heard of rubber in
Herrera's account of the second vow
age of Columbus in the wear 1493
Where he speaks of elastic balls made
by the natives from the gum of .
The first authentic account of its
practical use was recorded in 1745 by
expedition returning from South
America who reported that the natives
secured from the juice Of tree GER
tain gum which was very elastic, in,-
Pervlous to water and used in making
bottles, shoes and squirt guns
inlrty years later it was introduced
70 commerce when an Englishman
brought from Assam. India, a soft
sPongy substance which would erase
lead pencil marks and which AFTER
wards became known as India rubber.
many primitive uses were found for
thls wonderful gum, but owing to its
susceptibility to changes Of tempera-
ture, Which rendered it sticky and moro
or less fluid. rubber did not come into
ITS own until early in the last century.
At that time it was discovered, after
great deal Of experiment, that by
mixing sulphur with crude rubber and
sub1ect1ng 1t to high degree Of heat,
these former deficiencies were elinni-
mated and material was produced
which was both tough and elastic, and
would retain those properties under
varying temperatures. This process Of
curing was called vulcanization, and
Is the basis Of rubber making today.
So great has been the development
OF rubber manufacture since that time
that its products now o~ceed a value
Of $500,000,000 annually.
Contrary to the popular Impression
rubber gum Is not derived from the
sap: 1t is secured from milky Juice
or latex which is found only in the
bark This latex contains a substance
known as caoutchouo (the active prin<
ciple Of rubber), together with certain
album1no1ds, resins, ETC., which upon
the evaporation Of moisture coagulate,
forming thick. spongy substance.
The percentage Of caoutchouc, In pro-
portion to other ingredients contained
In the latex, determines the quality Of
the rubber.
The regions from which rubber gum
Is secured form an irregular belt In the
tropics and subtropics extending
around the earth. the quality procured
varying greatly according to the spe-
cies Of plant, the soil and the climate.
Africa, Mexico. Ceylon and the Malay
Islands, but the most desirable rubber
Tor resiliency and wear resistance is
secured from tree found in the ANA
ION river district, South America This
rubber Is known as Para, the name be-
ing derived from its chief city of ex-
port. 1t not only contains as high as
methods used by the natives in pre-
pairing 1t for market are so much SUI
perfOr that it is selected in preferences
to all others for manufacturing pur-
poses.
Rubber gathering in the Amazon
River district is hazardous
s sappy a ees. f9Sn ~a t2 Tss
scattered throughout dense for
csts, to which paths must be cut
through the tangled and luxuriant I'M
dergrowth. Even then, the trees can
only be reached during three to five
months Of the year, as throughout the
wet season the forests are completely
inundated. The climate Is so unhealthy
that white men cannot do this work
and it is necessary to rely upon the
native blacks, who at best are unde-
pendable and lazy. Their reluctance to
join rubber gathering expeditions can
readily be understood when it Is re-
membered that out Of a seasons ex-
alive.
When rubber tree is found the nat
i've gatherer cuts a series Of gashes
irto the bark with his machete, encirc-
ling the tree from the ground up, as
high as he can reach. Cups are fas-
tened to catch the latex as it oozes out.
When sufficient quantity is collected
where dense smoke-producing fire is
made Of certain nuts and palm leaves.
Then taking his wooden paddle the ma
tive dips 1t into the latex and holds It
over the fire, turning it round and
round until the latex coagulates AS
soon as 1T is hard a new layer Of
latex is added and coagulated as be-
fore. This process is continued until
the mass has grown too large for ham
ding, when the paddle is taken out
and the rubber set aside for export.
The process Of coagulation and fumi-
cation with these specially selected
nuts and leaves prevents decay and
adds to the life and wear resistance OF
the manufactured product
Tapping the trees for rubber does
not necessarily destroy them. nor is It
believed to materially shorten their
life; but unfortunately many thou
sands Of trees are annually rendered
useless by careless and improper meth
DDS. Although the source Of crude rub-
Der gum is practically 1nexhaustiblo.
the limited native labor supply and the
difficulties encountered up to the time
Of marketing it have tended to keep
down the supply and maintain q high
Of prices.
How Russell Sage Made Money.
In a long experience with Wall street
affairs I have seldom known Of a
plunger who in the end has come out
successfully, while have quite as sell
dom known of any conservative, care
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