Papua's Chance

Develop the Rubber Industry

THE war has given rubber prices such a boost that those who know Papua well see an opportunity of establishing in that Territory an industry which might make Papua independent of the oil search and the monopoly-ridden copra industry.

Mr. G. A. Loudon, one of the best known planters in Papua, is distributing some effective propaganda in Australian newspapers, urging that the Common wealth Government should now do some thing to establish the Papuan rubber in dustry on a sound, permanent basis. He makes the point that Australia is now proposing to find a huge sum, to sub sidise the establishment of a motor car manufacturing industry, and such an in dustry cannot flourish without oil and rubber. Papua can produce rubber equal to the world’s best, and if it is worth while subsidising so liberally the efforts to discover oil. it is equally worth while to encourage the production of rubber in Papua.

“There is unlimited land in Papua suitable for rubber growing”, says Mr.

Loudon, “and if finance were forthcom ing we could place a large number of young men in the industry. In the opin ion of most planters, Papua is the home of the small planter—planting becomes more of a personal proposition in Papua than in any other tropical country”.