Evening star., 1923-02-18
UNCLE SAM ON LOOKOUT :. :
FOR OWN RUBBER SUPPLY
Bulk of reduction and Price Now Under
Almost Absolute Control of ~ ~
the British. ..

American manufacturer and very, very
dark for the British producers. 80
The board of directors of the RubA"
Der Growers Association, an organt-
cation controlling perhaps one-third
of the British-owned plantations, sur
veyed the situation. 1t found that
out Of 3.500.000 acres of rubber plans
tation II per cent were British colo-
nial possessions. 25- per cent in the
Dutch Indies and perhaps per cent
scattered elsewhere.
Dutch Would Not Co-Operate. 81
1t asked all concerned to limit pro-
duction 25 per cent until the price
went up to normal. About 80 per cent
of the membership agreed. but tho.
Dutch were unwilling to cooperate
and the Chinese were getting along
fairly we'll with dirt-cheap labor. SO
the scheme failed because non-co-
operation was fatal. The British
planters then approached the Dutch
growers formally and requested their
cooperation. The Dutch refused.
Planters were going into bankruptcy
and last October the British govern
ment, despite the refusal of the Dutch
to join it, investigated and month
later enacted laws which limit pro-
duction certain percentage until the
price reaches q specified point, when
the production is allowed to Increase
The means taken to limit production
is prohibitive export tax. ~
Standard production is fixed at the
1920 flgure-335.000 tons. Production
is limited to so per cent of this
amount until the prices rises to around
81 cents a pound, when 100 per cent
production may be resumed. AS re.
suit, the price of rubber in the United
States has risen from about 20 cents =
a pound four months ago to 35 cents,
and is still going up.
Users Well Organized. ,
The American manufacturers of !,
rubber are we'll organized through the
Rubber Association of America, which
claims to represent about so per cent,
Its representatives, met at the De-
partment of Commerce last month and
conference was held with repre-
sentatives Of the Rubber Growers
Association, out of which may come
2 modification of the British law on
rubber production. The American
manufa cturer has taken 4 fair view
of the matter. He realizes the plight
of the planter and is willing to pay
more for rubber, but doesn't want TO
i die in the attempt The rubber mar
ket is rapidly picking Up and viii
does reach normal, the American
manufacturer must pay around 90
cents for what he was buying for 4S
cents in 1919, when the rubber mar
! ket was on the boom. But further
than that, if the rubber production is,
| being curtailed now, when the market
| is picking up, the plantations will not
/ be able TO produce enough to meg
the big demand now in sight: conse-l'
| quently, rubber shortage that viii.
| send the price out of sight.
| Looking to the Future. -.
! That is the situation leading To-,
! the investigation just authorized,
The big thing that should como out
of this investigation is the solution
of. the problem of supplying the
! United States rubber demand in"
years to come This dso semand se6 Io1s has AZ
! 1910. and the trees must be planted
before 1894. Where are they going
| to be planted?
The Philippines have been suggest
ed as meeting the requirements. but
there are several objections. Pres
ent laws do not allow private com
panies to take over more than 2,5ee1,
| acres for planting: This Is not
vestment OF capital Labor in the
Philippines costs about twice as
much as labor on the British and
Dutch plantations. and immigration
! cheap labor, which probably would,
cease to become cheap when 1t struck
| the Philippines. A large area of the
| Philippines lies in the typhoon belt.
and even rubber trees do not re-
! bound when struck by a typhoon.
! While parts of the Philippines are
| suited for growing rubber. the fu-:,-
| ture political status of the islands
/ and their distance from the United
! States are two factors which Offer
! further disadvantages. In case Of
! a war the supply might be too easily
! cut off And rubber is an important
| commodity in war time. s.I
| Latin American Possibilities. ~.
| Central and South America may.
offer a solution. But here, also. are
| many disadvantages. The political
uncertainty in some of these repub-
| lies, which in the past has served as
! a deterrent to the investment OF .
| capital. is not as great a handicap
as it once was, II is true. But trans
portation facilities are few and their
| provision expensive. Labor ts too
| scarce and too high to compete
/ fayorably with that in the East
! Indies. And concessions, perhaps
| cheap at first, have a way of beconl-
| ing very expensive under taxation
| too readily imposed when the con-
cessions are repaying the investment,
| A rubber supply for the United
| States should come from United
States owned possessions. But where,
and how, are two big questions to
| be solved.