The export houses, however, operate with the greatest firmness. They discount the drafts for the rubber bought, in the agencies of the English banks, and with the product of this operation pay the merchant-traders, and as these drafts are at 90 days sight, it is only after the rubber is sold in New York or in Liverpool that they satisfy their indebtedness, thus trafficking almost covered from any risk whatsoever. * * * * * The aviador or merchant-trader receives the rubber by the weight which it shows at the moment of being unloaded; if the trip is a long one the shortage in weight of the rubber may be as much as 15 per cent; if, on the other hand, there has been no time, owing to the shortness of the trip, for such a thing to happen, it is certain that on its being magazined or stored-up, it will continue to =quebrar=, i.e., diminish in weight. Thus, therefore, it is to the interest of all parties concerned to sell it and export it as soon after its arrival as possible, which, however, does not mean to say that the question of shortage is not an element which comes into play in making the estimate of its value. The classifying of the rubber is done upon the occasion of its sale, this being an operation which necessitates a long experience and practice in the knowledge of the article. Two workmen with iron instruments which they call “gatos,” take hold of the skin (smoke-cured roll or ball) by the orifice which is left in its shape on its being made, at the same time that a third workman cuts it down the middle with a sharp instrument called a “traçado.” By this means it is easy to ascertain if the manufacture of the internal coatings or layers has been done with the necessary care, and if the weight has been affected by water, or by any other extraneous body. If the rubber presents itself with an uniform aspect, perfectly smoked and sufficiently elastic, it is classed “fina.” If, however, any points present spongy parts proceeding from coagulation of the latex anterior to the smoking process, it is styled “entre-fina.” To the agglomeration of residue which congeals freely, the name of “sernamby” is given. There is still the “borracha fraca” little elastic, whose mercantile value is put in the same category as “sernamby” and which does not come from the latex of the hevea. This work being finished, the rubber is bought in accordance with the quotations of the day, based upon prices coming from England and from the United States, but as has already been explained, this quotation is not always respected. There is another anomaly to which it is advisable to refer: whilst the “entre-fina” and the sernamby are quoted abroad at least at 200 réis and 1$800 réis less than the “fina” the markets of Belém and Manáos show a difference of 800 réis and 2$000.