The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1939-1949, 1943-07-29
Fight Wilds for
Natural Rubber
Face Huge Task in Amazon
Jungles to Gather
Precious Juice.

WASHINGTON.-To get precious
natural rubber. by the cupful-and
even by the tablespoon-for our
war needs, men are doing titanic
face lifting job on a jungle-pocked
area of the South American conti-
nent that is almost as large as the
United States. %&%%. q" - ssfsgzf.
Roads are being built through
trackless forests hitherto trod only
by jaguars and nimble natives. and
railway lines are inching their way
through the wet, torrid country Of
the Amazon river basin. ,% Ass. ~
Giant flying boats of new rubber
fleet of the air from the United
States have blazed air trails over
mountains and great expanses of
steaming growth-to reach primi-
tive moorings in the heart of the
rubber country, and plans are I'M
der way for construction of airports
for land planes deep in the jungle
interior. --z..a.,.z.ss ....vs.- .... g. a..
Steamers and launches have been
sent from this country to speed
transportation of supplies and work.
ers up the Amazon. Cupboard mo-
tors from American factories are
being used to send native-style
canoes chugging up the narrow,
winding streams which lace through
the jungle. -
Along roads leading to the Anna
ION headwaters, groups of migra-
tory workers are moving - like
American Okies-to take new jobs
as soldiers of rubber" ~ .
Activity Renewed. p.
Deep in the jungles, rubber work
ers go about their tasks armed with
American shotguns-to kill prowling
wildcats, and at times, when food
is low. to pop wild pigs. MIL, ..-...
Not since before World War
when the Amazon basin, despite its
primitive production system, was
the worlds supply center for crude
rubber, has there been such activity
in the wild country where natives
still use blowgns and poison-tipped
arrows.
These developments are an out
growth of project in which Brazil
ian, Bolivian, Peruvian and United
States. governments are cooperating
in an attempt to bleed from the jun
giles this year more than twice as
much natural rubber as the 1912
production of approximately 10000
tons.
The main objective is to give to
the United States added stocks of
crude rubber to round out our SYM
thetic program-because rubber ex-
perts have found a percentage of
natural rubber still must be used
with synthetic to give the best per-
Torrance on certain products, such
as heavy-duty tires.
Just a Drop in Bucket.
Even IL we should realize between
$4,000 and 10000 tons as. our share
from the trees of the Amazon this
year, as some experts believe we
will, it will be a drop in the bucket
compared with the 600, 900 tons of all
kinds of rubber which William
LETTERS, rubber director, has estimat-
ed will be required for 1913.
In an air-conditioned office in the
heart of Washington, this country's
part in the mighty project is being
engineered.
1t is the headquarters Of the Rub
Der Development corporation, gov
eminent agency on which LETTERS
has placed responsibility Of devel-
oping many wild rubber programs
outside this country. zs~:.
The Brazilian government is re-
cruiting the workers. The RDC,
which is a subsidiary of the Recon
struction Finance corporation, is
footing most Of the bills of labor,
supplies and material
In return, the United States has
the rights to purchase all rubber OBJ
tanned from the development over
and above 10000 tons a year which
viii remain for BraziPs own facto-
ries.