The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1942-03-12

tlelr cultivation. winch LltE nave
not had hitherto. and they're just
the kind that we need here in the
United States. can't produce for
ourselves and have imported. until
the present conflict started. mostly
from the CHant.
Rubber is one of en- How hard
up we are for II, with our Dutch
East Indian supply cut off. we all
know. The trees grow wild. whole
forests Of EN-. up the Amazon val
lev. but a wild rubber tree doesn't
ooze goo as copiously as one that's
been domesticated. so the wild
growths domestication is among
the Developments required. Mean
time collection Of the wild gum has
started. even though it's skinny
in quantity; we need 1t so badly
that we're glad to take what We
can get.
However. TO make en- yield up
to a maximum. the trees have got
TO be tanned, and a few days ago
Acting State Secretary Sumner
Welles and Brazilian Finance Min
lister Arturo de Souza Costa closed
deal by which we grant $780,
100000 credit to the Rio de Janeiro
government for just that purpose,
among other items.
1t Takes Years
The difficulty is that il takes a
matter Of years to educate rub
Der tree up to doing its fun duty.
The same things true Of the de-
velopment Of other Latin American
natural resources Times essential
to complete the Job. fits accom-
phshed. its result will be a tre-
mendous asset 10 the developed
countries Yankee capital will be
poured into EN- wholesale. a huge
Yankee market will have been Gre
ated for their output and they'll
prosper up TO the maximum limit.
II the war ends prematurely,
though. the probabilities are that
we'll return to our old sources OF
supply and the Latin Americas
boom will have to wait indefinitely.
Brazil is the republic that's due
for the biggest expansion.
There are others whose products
are in as great demand here as
Brazil's are. but Brazil is so much
larger than they are. all put to-
gether. that that'l he the whale
among the minnows The rest Will
be well fed minnoWs. tut a min
now. even stuffed TO the bursting
point cant reach a whales pro-
portions.
Brazil. be Il borne In mind has
more room IN II than the U. S. A,
has. and is potentially richer
than We are-undeveloped, OF
course. but more than ready 10
start To on Il.
This idea calls FOR deal OF
rubbing in-into the United States
Tire 1el4-I8 war didn't last long
enough 10 do il.
II turned our attention briefly
into Latin Americas direction but
TOO briefly TO hold Il that way
after the emergency was over.
We show signs now Of having
learned something from that pre-
vious experience. but I'm still sus-
plcious Of their permanency If this
one terminates in the very near
future.
Rubber May DO II
Perhaps the rubber shortage
VIII do the business.
Last time We weren't pinched
for the stun as on todsys occa.
sion We continued to get u from
the East Indies and We didn't have
50 many autos either. As OF 10
date. it's more painful famine
than insufficient food supplies
would be- An underfed citizen
pulls In his belt, but let an autoist
be told that he's got to stop hitting
pedestrians!
Anyway, rubb-r is What we're
worrying about especially.
Co-ordinator Nelson Rockefeller
OF American Affairs has just
dispatched tropical medical spe-
cialists TO the Amazon valley rub
Der region TO adopt defensive
measures against disease bearing
germs that prey on collectors OF
the gum IT. the wild rubber region.
Pi2ht now wild rubher IL what