Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-10-14

tablished a factory at Greenford Green.
near Harrow, in 1857, and by the end of
the year was selling the dye in large
quantities. He worked out the way OF
obtaining the raw material and of apply
ing the dye, and before he was 20 was
spoken of as a successful man. All that
has been done since rests upon his work
He made another notable advance ia 1868,
when he made 1t possible to produce the
valuable dye alizarin, or artificial madder
red, on a large scale, although before 1t
had been made only as a curiosity Of the
laboratory and at a practically prohibltive
cost. He made a fortune out of it, and it
was not until 1873 that Germany became
a dangerous competitor in the making of
coal tar products.
He also laid the foundations of the arti-
fetal perfume industry by the discovery
| of a method for preparing coumarin, tho
odoriferous principle of the tonka bean,
| which forms important ingredient in
many scents. Ccunnarin was the first So
called natural perfume ever produced in
a laboratory" In the course of the in
vestigations he made in ascertaining the
sources of perfumes he discovered processes
which were of great value in the manufac-
| ture of artificial indigo.
Prof. Perkin retired from business in the
early '70s and devoted himself entirely to
scientific research, as he had gained a sub
stantial competence.
! Germany, after the conclusion OF the
Franco-Prussian war, sought a means Of
employing its sons in the arts Of peace,
and found a large field in the manufacture
| of coal tar products. Chemists, following
the path blazed by Perkin, widened 1t and
! made it a highway to wealth. A group of
| five of the great coal tar product houses
of the Fatherland is valued at s25,0Oo. 900
A., and they send their products to all parts
of the world. One of them alone employs
| $500 men, Of whom 200 are skilled artisans
| Jas graduated chemists. 175 engineers and
= 500 clerks. The others are unskilled labor
ers whose services are utilized in carrying
| about the products and in assisting at
| various stages of the complicated opera
lions. This company protects its wares
! with LOO German patents and loo in
Europe and the United States.
| Chemists find that the number of prod
ucts produced from coal tar UP to the
present time is practically unlimited. 1t
is asserted that with certain class of dye
stuffs, combined with materials now known,
that 1O0OOO,OO0 chemical bodies may be
built.
Some idea OF the advance which has been
made in the coal tar products industry
may be gathered from the fact that as early
! as 1875 a leading chemical journal an
nounced that there had been extracted
seven acids, fourteen alkaline substances
and ten neutral bodies. adding that with
many of these chemists themselves. sccus-
toned though they be to strange meta
morphoses, were amazed at the results OF
their own investigations"
Vast Variety of Products.
Some idea of the nature of the products
derived from coal tar may be gained by a
glance at the list of perfumes and ar
tificial essential oils. 1t includes nitro
benzol and the allied benzaldehyde, which
are also both known as the artificial oil
of almonds; oil of wintergreen, vanillin,
amarin. heliotropln, musk, jasmin and
nerolin. The place Of sugar is taken by a
powerful sweetener known as saccharin.
Among the products acid, hydroquinone,
metoI ad adurol. Among the explosives
may be mentioned picric acid, lyddite. me-
Unite, maxlmite and jovite. all derived
from coal tar products. Pyridine, which is
used in the denaturation of grain alco-
hol. is one of the later products of the coal
tar researches Some OF the liquids and
substances used in surgery and medicine
which were brought to the knowledge OF
the discoveries of Perkin. are carbolic acid
salicylic acid. acetanilld. phenacteine. sal.
iphenal, aspirin and mesotan. Antinon-
nine, which is used in preventing dry ROT
In lumber, is also OF coal tar origin.
These raw coal tar materials" said DR.
Hugo Schweitzer, prominent chemist
"furD!sh dyestuffs, artificial perfumes
artificial sweeteners, explosives. medi
cines. personalities and Photographic
developers. What they will furnish in tho
future is a matter of conjecture, but II
you will permit me to prophesy 1 thinl
that we shall surely find remedies which
will cure consumption and other disease.
caused by bacterial infection. We shall
have perfumes which will be stronger and
moro beautifully scented than anything
which nature can produce. We shall fnt
explosives which will not endanger human
lives, but will be more effective than nitro
glycerlne and all others known at present
| We shall be able to preserve foods for an,
length of time without injuring the health
of the consumer MY Imagination is no
vivid enough to picture to you future de
velopments but chemists will not shrinl
from the problem, and their skill will con
: tinue to confer lasting benefits upon hu
manity"
Prof. PerIkin is still in the active prac
tice of his profession and is engaged ever
now upon further researches along the line
which brought TO hip his early reputa
tion.
He was entertained by chemists and man
ufacturers from all parts of the country
At the banquet held at Delmonicos Their,
was presented to him a medal and also
silver service. The committee which hat
in charge the Perkin jubilee OF the Goa
tar industry In America will also TAX
steps to found a library as a memorial 4
the work OF the distinguished scientIs
whom they honor this month. Similar rec
ognition has been accorded to the discov
erer I'm London, where there was a publ
meeting in his honor at the Mansion house
over which the lord mayor presided. IL
was knighted by the king. The German
and also committees formed in France an
Switzerland Joined in the movement.-NeV
York Herald