Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-03-14
World Needs More Rubber
of the great value of rubber for mill
BY FREDERIC ]. HAsKIN

of the great value of rubber for mill
tary purposes.
Indeed, this demand from the war
zone is the most important factor IN
the present rubber situation. Troops.
supplies and equipment are all moved
by motor and most motors run on rub
Der tires. England has sent about 81
100000 rubber sheets to her hospitals,
and one English firm has an order Tor
100000 pairs OF hip length rubber
boots to be used in the trenches.
Rubber is not an ingredient In any
of the explosives: yet few OF them
could be manufactured without it. Dy-
Mantle workers wear both rubber
gloves and rubber boots. There are
about 10000 high explosive workers
in Great Britain wearing more or less
rubber, and 1t is quickly destroyed by
chemical action. Gas bags of Zeppelins
and war balloons are also of rubber. A
great deal of waste rubber in the war
zone Is not being reclaimed, either,
though junk dealers will doubtless do
a big business after the war is over.
Although the United States has a
commanding position in the manufac-
ture of rubber, 1t has done less than
any other great nation to produce the
raw material. Perhaps our most not
able service in that direction is the ex-
perimental work which the depart.
ment OF agriculture is now carrying OH
with small shrub called Guayule,
which is native of Mexico and which
produces rubber of a low grade. Be-
fore the revolution in Mexico, quite an
industry in the production of rubber
from this shrub had grown up in Mex
leo, and in 1909 nearly 100000
pounds of guayule rubber was put up
on the market. Now, however, war has
practically destroyed the industry.
Guayale can easily be grown in Texas.
Arizona and Southern California and
there is no reason why it should not
be the basis of substantial industry
on American soil.
Rubber is extracted from Latex, a
milk like substance which is formed
in number of tropical and sub trop.
ical plants. The Latex easily separates
into two substances. one of which
floats upon the other like cream upon
milk. This cream of the latex is the
rubber. Unless the latex containa at
least fifteen per cent rubber, 1t is not
profitable to work it. The best rub.
Der tree Is that known as hevea, which
is native to Brazil and has been sue.
cessfully introduced into the Malay
states and Ceylon.
Until recently nearly all OF the rub.
Der used was gathered from wild trees,
chiefly in the jungles. of Brazil and
other South American countries. Then
the idea of cultivating rubber took
hold of the imaginations OF men. and
there are now probably million acres
in cultivation. This cultivated rubber
is Of higher grade than that which
grows wild. At present, however, 1t
will not repay the cost of cultivation
outside of the zone extending about
five hundred miles on either side of
the equator, and agricultural develop.
ment in this tropical country, where
disease must be conquered first, is
necessarily slow. The rubber zone in.
cludes much of Brazil, Peru and b.
livia and all of Ecuador, Colombia,
Venezeula and Central America. In
Africa It includes the Congo basin, the
Soudan, and the wilderness to the cast.
1t takes in a large part Of India, part
of Australia and the Philippines. In
fact nearly all Of the unconquered
tropical wilderness of the world is
prospective rubber land. 1t may be
that the tremendous demand of mod.
ern industry for rubber will be the
means Of opening up these rich regions
to civilization by Turing the hardy and
adventurous, just as the fur trade
opened up much of Western North
America.