Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 210, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 September 1917 — FIGHT TO GATHER CAMPHOR [ARTICLE]

FIGHT TO GATHER CAMPHOR

Forests From Which Most of It Is Obtained Are Still Inhabited by Headhunting Savages. There are few things which demand a heavier toll of lives than camphor. The reason for this is that the mountainous parts of the island of Formosa, from which the world gets most of Its camphor, are inhabited by headhunting savages whom the successive invaders of the island have been unable to subdue. These savages are alive to the value of the camphor trees, and fiercely oppose all attempts to get possession of the forests. Their hostility makes the gathering of camphor a most hazardous occupation, and one in which a loaded rifle is the most indispensable tool. Since the Japanese took the island after their successful campaign against China in the nineties, they have been carrying on a carefully-conceived plan of gradual penetration of the valuable camphor regions. They make paths six feet in width through the virgin forests., At Intervals of every 120 yards stanUq and every fourth or fifth guardhouse is a small fort, entrenched and defended by barbed wire entanglements. Telephone inter-communication, machineguns, and all the resources of Western military science are employed, and the lines are pushed gradually forward.