1940-11-07 — Page 9

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HONGKONG DAILY PRESS

Finance and Commerce

12

RUBBER'S RIVALS.

Higher Priced Synthetic More Satisfactory

Rubber does not grow many degrees above or below the Equator. So it happens that even an économically self-contained country like the United States or Soviet Russia must import huge quantities from the Far East, With the mechanization of warfare this dependence on plantations thousands of miles from Europe and America has wor- ried the Great Powers for nearly a generation.

Comparative Figures Of Air Losses

FINANCE & GENERAL

WATCH ON AMERICA'S LIFE LINE

The spirit that built the Panama Canal despite yellow fever and other tropical diseases and such natural cataclysms as the Cucuracha slide has been revived to prepare the defences of the American life line. It can be sensed when the trains unloaded hundreds of workers, who are double-checked by alert guards into lock Inclosures piled high with steel, crushed rock "and other materials for reinforcement against air attacks and sabotage, It can be found in the new towns that have risen recently in the jungles to house, the men who are pushing with speed the "LONDON, Nov. 6 (Reuter)-iz-

construction of a third set of locks, writes C. H. Calhoun. ing the week ending midnight

would only The canal has been called the gates at the worst November 2, it is confirmed that keystone of America's national lower the water in Miraflores Lake German aircraft fosses in battles defence; therefore it must be as between the Pacific Locks, and. over Britain totalled 7, of which nearly impregnable as engineering once repairs were made, the lake at least 13 were shot down during skill and trained defences can could be refilled in two hours from make it. Providing for rapid the surplus in Gatun Lake through

darkness,"

"Detailed figures were:

In the same period, British loss-transfer of the feet from one the Pedro Miguel Locks. The locks ocean to the other as defence probably rank next to the spillway Damage needs may dictate is not the only gates in vulnerability. function of the canal. This from the air is one of the greatest waterway has become of vital dangers here.

An effective air attack on the economic importance not only to the United States, but also to most canal would have to be from bases' of the countries of the hemis-not more than 1,000 miles distant.

#

"

Tariff barriers, export taxes, the corn, and it cost only a cent ales were 27 aircraft and 11 pilots. control of rubber prices by the pound. Rubber from potatoes! The British and Dutch complicated world was excited about the pos- both the military and the in-sibility early in the century. dustrial problems. Even If the But again, figuring convinced world were not at war or prepar- the financial backers of the chem- ing for it rubber has become indis-ists that this would be futile. More

tand would be required to cultivate 7. pensable,

Given such a background it is potatoes to meet the demand for easy to understand why the syn- rubber than was needed for rub- 15." thesis of rubber should have lured ber trees in the East. And land was i chemists. They had seen vegetable not cheap in the more densely tish, nil and mineral dyes and colours dispopulated western part of Europe. placed by exact synthetic counter-All this work with isoprene was tish, 7. parts, flavours and perfumes com pounded in vats, nature outdone In a hundred ways.

not in vain.

One of the compounds that could be obtained by fermenting 'starch, Why must rubber be carried in was alcohol, and from alcohol ships half around the world? Be-could be obtained another hydro- fore any natural product can be carbon, butadiene, a chemical re- synthesised it must be pulled apart lative of isoprene. chemically to find out how it is put together,

"ISOPRENE

If this butadiene were allowed to stand long enough, or if it were heated in the presence of sodium,

October 27-German. 13; Bri- tish. 8.

October 28. German, T; British, nij

October 29--German, 32: British,

October 30-German, 9: 'British,

October 31.---German, nil; Bri-

November 1-German, 18;

November 2-German, 10; tish, ail.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1940. -PAGE 9

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Closing of the canal would inter-sea or they might be land bases rupt the exchange of commodities in Central America or the north- between the Eastern and Western ern part of South America seaboards of the United States and islands in the Caribbean. Bri-throw a burden that now average But already the canal has the 7,000,000 tons of cargo a year on protection of established bases in Bri-the transcontinental transport sys-Guantanamo, Puerto Rico and the tems. Exports to the Far East Canal Zone and of any part of the now passing through the canal fleet that may be available in the would add another 3,000,000 tons to this load.

HONGKONG

SHAREBROKERS”

ASSOCIATION

Volume of Business Transacted on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 1948, SALES

500 $4.45 420 3.20

يد

920

The total value is $3,560.00.

Chemists heated some raw rub it would heated in the presence of China Providents ber in a retort, which is nothing sodium, it would turn into a gum-HK, Hotels... but a still. A liquid dripped out of my mass. It was not rubber, this the open neck. "Isoprene" it was mass, but it had inany of the pro- called. In 1892 Tilden, a Britishperties of rubber. chemist, announced that he had let isoprene obtained from tur pentine-stand in bottles. He saw large, yellow floating pieces. They turned out to be rubber. Here was the clue to winning rubber from something other than rubber tree.

3

Chemically analysed. Isoprene turned out to be a hydrocarbon, meaning a chemical combination of carbon and hydrogen. Any of the many alcohols is also a hydro- SQ carbon, but totally different.

is coal, so is turpentine, so is petroleum, so are many gases, and so, for that matter, is natural rub-

ber.

יו

HONGKONG SHARE QUOTATIONS

STOCK EXCHANGE,

SHARKBROKERS. ASSOCIATION

Buyers

Baltern S&Jon

Nomins

WEDNESDAY 6 NOV.

Banks

#1910

£87

1

$138

Re-arrange the atoms of hydro- $387 Ben

and carbon in one of the alcohols, coal, petroleum, and the trick of producing a rubber syn-- thetic is performed. For years the quest of synthetic rubber hinged on a cheap source of isoprene. To tap pine trees for turpentine was no better than tapping rubber trees for latex. "

STARCH SUGGESTED

Starch was suggested. It could

be obtained from potatoes and

ECONOMIC

"RECONSTRUCTION

PROJECT

3-Day Conference

At Chengtu

CHENGTU, Nov. 6 (Central)— econstruction in Szechwan and Sikong was thoroughly discussed at the three-day conference of the Szechwan-Bikong Economic Reconstruction Commission which adjourned here yesterday,

Among the conferees were Gen-

:

!!

::

****

the

$301

$301

13:

*

eral Liu Wen-bul, Chairman of $121|| $29

Bikong Provincial Govern-

the

ment, and General Eo Kuo- kwang, Secretary-General of the Azechwan Provincial Government. Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, who is concurrently Chairman of the Commission, intended to be present but owing to pressure of: his duties, he telegraphically in- structed General Chang Chun. Secretary-General of the Supreme National Defence Council, to pre- side at the conference on his be- half.

Over 70 resolutions were passed. One of the most important calls for the formulation of a compre hensive Szechwan-Sikong ́ ́Econo- mic Reconstructión Project, based upon the Fundamentals of Szech- wan-Silong Economic Reconstruc- tion' drafted by Generalissimo Chiang

the 3-Year Szechwan Economte Reconstruction Project drafted by the Szechwan Produc tive Planning Commission and the Fundamentals of Bikong Economic Reconstruction drafted by the Bitong Provincial Government,

Another Important resolution calls for the establishment of a Szechwan Bikong Development Corporation.

$362

$36

!!!

$11,90

:

÷

#231

£10 $72

H.K. Banks.....

Do. (Cal. Reg.). Do. (Loa. Reg.) Chartered Banks ...... Mercantile Bks. "A". Mercantile Bk. "C".; Bank of East Asia..... N. C. & B. Banks....

Insurances

$175 Canton Insurances.....

Union Insurances, .......... Underwriters "san.

$1

$150 | H.K. \. Fírom.........

$11

Shipping

Douglases

Steamboats

$100 Indo-Chinas (Praf.)...

$80

30/0

Indo-Chinas (Det.?....

Shells

$8.90 Waterboat

Docks, Wharves,

Godowns, etc.

H.K. & K. Wharvos...

$4.45 Providents

$16

H.K. Docks (074)......

$1.K. Docks (New)..... $29+Shangbai« Docka.....

14/0

Kailang

Rauba

Mining

1 cta. Hong Kong Mines......

Lands, Hotels and Buildings

Bayer

Balleri

Bisseminal

In addition to affording a quick shuttle service for both the Navy and the merchant marine, the Panama Canal provides a naval and military base halfway be tween the two continents of the hemisphere. Here is an outpost in Latin America from which early action can be taken against an enemy attempting to establish bases from which to launch an at tack on the canal, or to invade an American country to conquer it.

Atlantic, and soon that protection will be increased immensely by the new bases in the British West In- dies.

THE AIR DEFENCES

seventy-

The air defences at the canal itself are strong. The Army has Zone and a large flying field at two large air delds in the Canal

Rio Hato in Panama, five miles from the Pacifc locks. Another-feld-on the Pacific at and most up to date of all. There Brujas Point will be the largest

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Queen's Building.

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NEGHELLI

and

Tel. 20896

London Has Nightlong Alert Period

LONDON, Nov. 6 (Reuter)-Ger-

are emergency felds at other A BRIDGE OF WATER places in the Republic of Panama Physically, just what is this known only to the air forces, and canal like? The Panama Canal is there is the air base of the Navy a bridge of water over which ships at Coco Solo, pass across the Isthmus between In secret places concealed in the NAIROBI, Nov. 6 (Reuter) the North and South American isthmain jungles alert men will be Neghelli (Abyssinia) was attacked $1915 Continents. south by east from the at listening and observation posts, for the eighth time by South £67

the

bombers Atlantic to Pacific. This operating the huge mechanical | African Air Force £$3

on the man air attacks on Britain were £61 water bridge is thirty-three miles ears that pick up the drone of direct hits were scored Belong, with a six-mile sea-level ap aeroplane motors miles away, and, target area.

resumed shortly after darkness on £104 proach from the Atlantic to Gatun if the attack is made at night, the

This was in addition to exten-Monday night. They were wide- $79

Locks and an eight-mile ap-eyes of hundreds of searchlight sive reconnaissances

spread and on a fairly heavy scale.. over Abys- 30 c

proach-from, the Pacific-to Mira- stations will flash across the skies. sinia and Italian Somaliland, London's alert lästed throughout The responsibility for training states a communique which des- the night but in the Midlande and The abutments of the bridge are these men is now in the hands of cribes the South African Air southern "Scotland the main at- Miraflores Dames, Lleut. Gen, Daniel Van Voorhis. Force aircraft as "azain busy on tacka ceased shortly after taid- which impound the waters of the commander of the Panama Canal Nov. 3 and Nov. 4" Chagres and the Cocoli Rivers

Department and a pioneer in the and surrounding watersheds. This mechanisation of the Army. That

Gatun. and

Hores Locks.

$175

$387

$160

$130

$100

33.20 H.K. & S. Hotals $3.20

H.K. Land.......

.......$30.30

$100 Do. Dobantures........]

$11.30 Shanghai Landı..

$3.35 H.K. Healties.:

$7.10 Tiumphreys

*1100

301

$180

Chinese Estates...................... Cotton Mills

Ewo (B.)

5'bai Coltons "(8.)....

Zoong Sing (5.)...2...

Wing On Textiles (8.) Public Utilities

!!!

**

night.

Bombs were dropped at many points But an Air Ministry bodi water forms the door over which the men are already well trained continued and Intensified, striving Ministry for Home Security com- the ships pass after they have has been shown by actual trials. always for the perfection that munique states the damage was been lifted eighty-five feet above Nevertheless, the training is to be meant protection. $8.90 sea level by the locks,

$100

35/0

890 $4.45

$16

$161

$31

14/0

$3.50

$100

$3.40

****

H.K. Tramky $15.80 18.10 15.80) $140 Peak Trami (old).....

$3.70 Peak Trams (new)........]

350Star Ferri.......

de

86

I'mati Fertion.......

$50

China Lights (0).......

$8.40

China Lights (New)...

H.H. Electrics (Old)...) $384

$17

H.K. Electrica (New)... $38

Micro Electric" (Old)]

116 Macao Electrica (New)| $12 Sandakan Lights........ Telephotics (ald)........

19.35 Telephones (new).... S'pore Tractions (Ord.) Industrinis

| $14.90| Cald., Macg. (Ord.) B.

t

*

In the Gatun Dam spillway are fourteen heavy steel gates. This spillway is built of reinforced con- crete in the form of an 'arc 808 feet long, with a concrete apron below. Each gate permits the cut- flow of 13,000 cubic feet of water a second.

Defensively the spillway gates. are the weak spots in the dams But Just how weak are they? The steel gates are very narrow and are not visible from any consider-

be able height. It would

the sheerest kind of luck to harm these gates from the air. But suppose one gate, or two, or even

all fourteen were damaged.

Weeks would elapse before the

140

lake would be drained, and it can

190

$135

not heavy and casualties amall.

PRE-PAID ADVERTISEMENTS.

The following clauces of advertisements are charged at the price given below:- SITUATIONS VACANT.

HOUSES AND APARTMENTS WANTED.

HOUSES AND APARTMENTS TO BE LET. MISCELLANEOUS WANTS.

Announcements not exceeding 25 Words are inserted under this heading at a Pre-paid

Rate of $1.50 for THREE INSERTIONS.

WANTED TO BUY

WE PAY HIGH PRICES

for all gold and giver articles.

not be assumed that in the event gold bars, diamonds and jewels. of a lucky hit the canal forces Apply China Gold Refining C- would make no attempt to plug Fedder Building, 2nd Noor, Room 8. up the hole with the huge coffer $740 dams that are always ready to be $3.70 floated into place. Besides, there is a reserve storage of 22,000,000 $231 cubic feet of water in Madden 06.70 Lake.. 98.40

$9,55

THE DAM AT MIRAFLORES The dam at Mirafiores has only eight spillway gates, as it im pounds less than a billion cubic feet of water. Damage to these

H.K. STOCK EXCHANGE

$19

Cald., Maeg. (Pref.)8.)

$1

"Canton Ice..................

[50 ct.

$16

Cements

$15.90

$16

$4.10 $8.35

H.K. Bopes******

$6.20

Ma

%

$98

081

BUYERS

$95

81%

$35

HK. Banks, $1,210.

ILK, Gort. Loans

4% Loan

(1934)..

#95 31% (1950)...

Miscellaneous

817 Dairy Farm... $17}

$6.00 Entertainments.

$1.60 Constructions (old).......

Constructions (new),

#7,35 Lane Crawfords....

Nanyang Tobaco $31 $213 Sinceres - 201

Watsons

$5%. Ch. G.5%, 1925G1Bda.

1.3. Wing On mi

·S'hal ^Wing On Glené.

18

Vibro Piling

16 Maremans: Iny. (Laon;}

Marians Inv. (RK)

+Bble to Bangkina

Wa, Powall

$8.00 $9.10

The market was quietly steady,

Union Ins., $3871.

Douglases, $135. Providents, 34:10. Hotels, $3.10.

$8.00 $1.85

-17

Lands; $30.75.

Trams, $18.7B,

$2.20 Electrics (Old), $38.15.

Electrics (New), $36.50, Telephones (Old), 123, Ropes, $8.10.

Watsons, 66. -Exiterlämnation "$8.50.

Vibro Piling 3.

WE OFFER HIGH PRICES for. any amount of gold articles, diamonds, silver, etc. No holidays. Apply China Building, 7th door. Tal 30727. Eurasia Gold Refining

Co...

WANTED KNOWN,

ORDERS TAKEN for hand-made sweaters, Ladies' Jumpers, Babies' Foutats, etc, at $5.00 each for

workmanship.

Wool and model desired, to be supplied by customer.

Send particulars of address, etc., to Box 802, HKDP.

That "WE" have an outstand- ing assortment of latest American dresses for all occasions and price to suit all purses Call at "Vanity Shop" (Lazaras) Pedder Street.

Experienced Book-keeper Wants Students to form a él – Chunian - tes students to keep a whole set of books after completion of a course

If Charges collected, $2.00,

HOTELS

RUSSIAN CUISINE

"MORE POPULAR EVERY DAY

12

METROPOLE HOTEL

WANTED - Immediately Sales- Woman 25-35, knowledge Typing. Book-keeping take Charge Shop,

Good? Good references essential. prospects. Apply Room 117 first floor, Marina House after 5.30 p.m.

YOU

Are Invited to Inspect Our Stock of

Asiatic, Foreign and Colonial

POSTAGE STAMPS In Bets, Bingle, Fackets. Bags and in Approval Sheets.

GRACA & CO." Dealers in Postage Stamps,

Philatelic Goods, "Picture......... · Postcards, Religious Goods, Garden Seeds, & etc. No. 10 Wyndham Street"

of 6 months. For Term and Pat P. O. Box No. 620. ticulars. Please apply to

No. 463,6}o HKD.P.

Bot.

"Hongkong,

TEA DANCES Tuesdays

·Tauzadays.

Saturdays

Sundays

5 to 7.30 p.m.

ENGRAVERS

FEI FEI & CO.. Photo Engravers

18, Cochrane Street, Telephone No. 22274,

AUCTIONEERĄ

GREATEST COLLE HON

BARG, MENS IN TRAVA

LASMEETS, MERON BOOGA

AT

Jimmy's

BUTTERICK

Expert Ladies Tailor.

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16. Wyndham Street.

Tel. 23815