The revolution that will be effected by this solution will be a tremendous one. At the present time, to utilise the energy contained in it, coal is transported all over the country and burned in numerous factories and homes. Ramsay's discovery means a gigantic technical revolution in this, perhaps the most important, branch of production in capitalist countries. Ramsay has discovered a method of transforming coal into gas right where the coal lies, without hauling it to the surface. Ramsay's method is to transform, as it were, the coal mines into enormous distilling apparatuses for the production of gas.
Gas is used to drive gas engines which extract twice as much energy from coal as steam engines can.
Gas engines, in their turn, transform the energy into electricity, which modern technology can already transmit over enormous distances. An enormous amount of human labour now spent in extracting and distributing coal would be saved. It would be possible to use even the poorest seams, now not being worked. The cost of lighting and heating houses would be greatly reduced. This discovery will bring about an enormous revolution in industry.