=RUBBER.= =Indigenous Species.=—The most important source of rubber in the Gold Coast and Ashanti is the indigenous tree locally called “Ofruntum”; a comparatively small amount is also derived from some of the vines belonging to the same Natural Order, and from one or more of the wild trees of the Ficus Order. Reports on the quality and commercial value of some of the principal kinds of rubber obtained in the Gold Coast are published in the _Bulletin of the Imperial Institute_, vol. v. (1907), p. 248. =Botanical Position of the “Ofruntum” Tree.=—The “Ofruntum,” or African rubber, is botanically placed in the Natural Order _APOCYNACEÆ_, under the specific name of _Funtumia elastica_, Stapf. Until recently it was referred to as _Kicksia africana_, Benth. and others (a genus which is not known to occur in West Africa), and it was also confused with a very nearly allied species, occurring in the same localities, and now known as _Funtumia africana_, Stapf. Owing to the great similarity which these species of Funtumia bear to one another, it is important that the differences between them should be recognised, _F. africana_ not furnishing any but very inferior rubber. The most reliable method of testing the species which produces rubber, is by rubbing a small quantity of latex between the finger and thumb, when small particles of rubber should be quickly formed, the latex of _F. africana_ becoming only a sticky mass under the operation. The leaf of _F. elastica_ can usually be recognised by the presence of a small pit at the origin of each secondary nerve or vein on the under-surface, which feature is not characteristic of the leaf of _F. africana_, although recently individual trees have been found exhibiting this peculiarity. The flower bud of _F. elastica_ is typically much shorter than that of _F. africana_, and the double seed pod of the former species is shorter and more blunt than that of the latter. =Distribution of _F. elastica_.=—The Funtumia rubber tree occurs in a wild state in the forests throughout the Gold Coast and Ashanti, although it has been nearly exterminated in some parts. It appears to be most plentiful in the dense forest regions of Northern Ashanti. =Native Methods for Preparing.=—Funtumia rubber is exported under the names of “Ashanti lump” and “Niggers,” which consist of much adulterated, evil-smelling substances, for which a low price is procurable in comparison with that paid for pure rubber. In certain years the demand for this has been maintained, but the adequate supplies of good rubber from elsewhere, and the rapid expansion of the cocoa industry, have caused a diminution in the export of native-made rubber, which has been replaced to a small extent by plantation rubber.