Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-10-18

tiyation in Mexico produced in 1899
| 80, 600 pounds of rubber. In the neigh
borhood of Blueflds, Nicaragua. there
| are some promising plantations. Cur
rent expenses are light. for labor IL
| cheap and the trees require little care.
But cash and patience, great deal or
each are needfui for success. Our de-
partment of agriculture. 1t Is worthy OF
note, is preparing to give it's attention
| to the cultivation Of rubber in the
Philippines.
| The world was a long time learning
the uses and value of rubber. For two
| centuries after the Spaniards saw the
gum in the hands of the natives of
the New World it was little more
than 4 curiosity. Old Herrea, who
went with Columbus on his second voy-
age, made note of an elastic ball
which was nodded from the gum OF
a tree. At their games the nude Hey
| tians made it bound. in air.
The Aztecs were familiar with the
gum and called it ule. and from them
| the Spaniards learned to smear 1t on
| their coats to keep out the wet. They
| mad crossed the seas for gold and new
er dreamed of time when the sticky
milk the uncouth Indians drew from
strange trees would be worth more
| than all the treasure of the hills. con
February %, 1899, ship carrying
cargo of one thousand one hundred ana
sixty seven tons of rubber. valued at
s2,2l0, 600, sailed from Para for New
York, leaving 200 tons behind on the
wharf) jose, King of Portugal IN lo51,
comes down to Us as the wearer or a
pair of boots sent out to Para to DC
covered with a waterproof gum. Yet
800 years were to elapse before a Con-
necticut Yankee should make pair
of boots of rubber which would not
decompose.
DR.. Priestly, author of work on
.Perspective," revorded that caou-
tchouc was useful in small cubes for
rubbing out pencil laarks--hence the
name rubber The India linked with
it refers to the savages who gathered
II in the Amazon Wilderness. Dr
priestlv's cubes were half an inch long
and sold for three shillings, or IS cents
a piece. A stiff price. for the finest
rubber today is dollar a pound. Its
price for 10 years has ranged from o.
cents to $1.09.
The conversion of the gum to usefui
purposes made but slow Roadway. Ihe
FIRST waterproof cloth in 1897 was the
work of an Englishman. 1t was tenta-
five and of course it would not stand
heat. In 1923 Charles Macintosh. OF
Glasgow, discovered naptha, and ois-
solving rubber in it produced var
nish which, when spread on cloth.
made it really impervious to water. AS
late as 1880 the importation of rubber
into England amounted only to $4,000
pounds. In 1899 no less than 16,075.5S4
pounds were used in that country, and
the consumption in the United states
reached 51,6O6.737 pounds Most OF the
rubber used in the world still comes
from equatorial South America. and
the forests where the Indians gathered
ule are as dense today and almost as
little known to white men as in the
time of CorteZ.
Rubber has done good deal for civ
ilization, and civilization has done
great deal for rubber, but both are in
dehted to Charles Goodyear.
Goodyear was Connecticut Yankee.
born at Naugatuck. December 20. 1900;
those now living who remember him in
the flesh knew him as a frail little man
with soulful eyes and a sympathetic
nature. Goodyear, after devoting the
energies of his life to experiments. dis
covered INFLAMMATION. a process which
neutralizes the adhesiveness of rubber.
while hardening it. SO that heat does
not dissolve it or cold impare it's elias
ITCHY. The chemists had sought the
great secret in vain. Triumph was res
erveG for man who was always i'll
debt and sometimes in prison. and oc
casionally reduced to the most pitifui
shifts to keep the wolf from the door.
Goodyear was originally hardware
dealer in small way, but he got in
terested in rubber when it began to
make stir in the world with the
first importation of shoes from Brazil.
They were soon being made in New
England. but the business tumbled to
ruin when the rubber decomposed in
hot weather and gave out an offensive
oder. No one had good word to say
for the stuff-it sold for 5 cents a
pound in the general disgust-but
Goodyear. although without money or
credit. set to work to reha bilitate the
reputation of gum elastic, as he always
called 1t. He thought of rubber all day
and dreamed of it all night. and adj
hered to his hands and clothing SO that
they were one and indivisible. IF YOU
meet man." said some one who want
ed to describe the inventor, who has
on an Indian rubber cap, stock, coat.
vest and shoes. with an India rubber
purse without cent of money in it.
that is Goodyear"
About this time Goodyear met Ma
thaniel Hayward. who was fussing
with rubber in factory at Woburn.
where he was regarded as harmless
crank. To Hayward it was revealed in
dream that rubber could be hardened
by mixing sulphur with it and exposing
the compound to the sun. The process
gave out rank oder. which made
Hayward nuisance in the factory,
but he took out patent on it. Good
year being struck with the idea
bought the patent, The two men
leased building, went in for making
life preservers. But the secret had
been discovered, although Hayward
was on the right scent-in hot weather
it seemed wrong one to purchasers
n 20