Our rubber problem

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CAEMISTRY TEACAERS

Our Rubber Problem' ERNST A. HAUSER Cambridge, Massachusetts

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N August 6, 1942, the President appointed a commlttee composed of Bernard M. Baruch, Chairman, James B. Conant, and Karl T. Compton for the purpose of surveying the rubber situation, which had become serious and confused. On September loth, 'this committee submitted its report to the President, and in the letter of transmittal i t did not mince words. The following quotations present the situation better than anything published so far:

further imports up to January 1, 1944, might boost this figure by 53,000 tons so that a total of 631,000 would be available for the one and one-half-year period. Against this figure and for the same period of time, military and other essential demands were estimated to be 842,000 tons. Thus a deficit of 211,000 tons results which must be met if a complete collapse is to be avoided. There has been severe criticism of the estimated imports; it is felt that the figure is too low. However, "We find the existing situation to be so dangerous it would be folly to base a program of such crucial that unless corrective measures are taken immediately importance on wild guesses and anything beyond the this country will face both a military and a civilian figure mentioned is just that. Brazil, the country we would have to rely on largely, never produced over collapse. . . 42,000 tons even in boom years. At that time the most "In rubber the United States must be listed as a accessible hevea trees were bled to death, and with the have not nation." advent of the Far Eastern rubber plantations Brazilian rubber production declmed and