The Detroit times., 1910-08-22
UNTOLD RICHES IN
RUBBER INDUSTRY
Only About Five Per Cent Of Worlds
Product is Cultivated-Profits
Are Enormous

human slavery. Today rubber is the
scandal of the world because il
makes the consciences OF twentieth
century men as callous as slave-hold.
ing ever did.
The civilized world rose against
Belgian rule In the Kongo because OF
the unspeakable outrages committed
on the blacks OF that country all for
RUBBER.
A few years ago an American PRO
moter" with fake rubber plantations
In Mexico swindled tens OF thousands
Of school teachers and others out OF
millions OF dollars.
What is rubber?
Rubber is obtained from the milky
Juice OF the rubber tree. II is not the
true sap, but q secretion which is not
essential to the life of the plant. Cuts
OF such a depth that the wood is UNI
touched are made In the bark, and
through these wounds the milk
flows into cups placed TO receive It.
The natives coagulate this milk"
In various ways, sometimes by heat
ing II over an open fire and occa-
sionally by rubbing 1t over their arms.
bladed tool Is dipped in the pan OF
liquid, and when drawn out 1t is GOV.
cred with a sticky substance. This
Is held in the smoke until the rubber
is dry. This process is continued un-
til the blade forms a center OF ball
OF considerable size.
The annual yield OF one tree Is
from two to seventeen pounds. The
trees are usually tapped at sunrise,
when the milk" Is supposed to run
more freely. The first incisions are
made about six feet from the ground
and each succeeding day incisions are
made lower down until the ground is
reached.
The product OF the rubber tree is
gathered in India, Africa and South
America. Rubber forests OF vast ex-
tent are being constantly discovered
IN these countries, especially In tho
Kongo, Africa; Bolivia and other
countries In South America. The
largest quantity and best quality OF
rubber is furnished by the province
of Para, Brazil, and all other varieties
OF the article are not to be compared
with It
Columbus. after his second voyage
to America, speaks OF the inhabitants
of Haiti amusing themselves with
rubber balls. In 1915, in book pub
lished in Madrid, the author described
a tree In Mexico which yielded rub
Der, also the method used In collect
ing It and told how 1t was made into
shoes.
The first shipment of rubber into
the United States was In 1900. The
manufacture OF rubber began In 1920.
Surgeons and chemists began to use
It about that time, then Chas. Mcln-
tosh a Scotch chemist, invented the
waterproof coat, which still bears his
name.
In 1852 a Boston sea captain I'M
ported 500 pairs OF rubber boots made
by the natives OF Brazil, and there
was a great scramble for them, the
captain readily selling them at 20
pair During the is years Following
this first importation, about MIL
lion pairs were sold.
Charles Goodyear accidentally DIS
covered the art of vulcanizing rub
her: he developed the process and
placed II upon a commercial basis. In
electrical appliances rubber Is almost
INDISPENSABLE as an insulating ma
ter,al which Is another reason for the
wonderful growth of the industry In
the United States Statistics show
that during the last decade or the
century the value OF crude
rubber imported into the United
States increased from $1S,020.SO4 In
1891 to $31,555,4S3 in 1900. In the
decade beginning with 1900 the In
crease has even been greater, but no
exact figures are available.
The increase Of the price OF crude
rubber and the manufactured product
has been so great that those COM
NAMES and individuals that had the
foresight and nerve to embark In the
Industry when prospects were some
what prohlematical, are now reaplng
n profit all the way from $50 to 300
per cent.
The systematic cultivation OF the
ruhber tree is now going on in all
parts OF the world where the tree
and IL is matter or sur
prise that only about per cent OF
the worlds production Is cultivated.
over 60 per cent Is the wild rubber
from Brazil, about 20 per cent Is wild
African rubber, and the remaining 10
per cent Of the wild rubber grows In
other parts OF the world.
In January, 1907. fine hard Para
rubber sold in the United States at
sl2s pound; during the panic II
shrunk to &c cents. and with the re-
yival OF industry following the panic
the price rose to s1.2S per pound. Az
present ss5.000,000 could not buy the
wears output of rubber. The total
weight OF the crude rubber al drawn
from the trees would reach about
TX o0o tons. of which only 1000 tons
comes from regularly cultivated plan
tations.
The mania OF specializing In rubber
has reached the point OF madness VI
England. More than 100 companies
were organized in a short time VIII,
n Capitalization OF S27OOO,OOO' anu
mobs OF men and women were rusning
m the banks. fighting to pay as hign
as s35 a share, whose par value was
only s.. g.
The science OF cultivating rubber Is
now I'm the ascendency and mucn
study is devoted to the INDUSTRY.
Young plants are grown In nurseries,
which in course OF time are planted
out about 100 to the acre. When tne
trees have attained a circumference
Of % TO "a inches, which may be AT
their fourth, fifth or sixth year
49,