The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-10-02
ALABAMA WOULD
 MAKE FINE FIELD
 FOR DYE INDUSTRY
Change In Law Would Be Necessary, However. Be-
 cause of Concession By Germans

Washington, October 1.--fSpecial. .l-Sug. gestions of intense interest to Alabama for the development of a coal tar dye in dustry. were made today 10 the cor respondent of Tie Age-Herald by F. C klipstein of East orange, N J., whc sees an immensely profitable enterprise for the state if the United States laws can be changed to permit the encourage. ment In Alabama, he cites, and is cor. roborated by the geological survey. an im- menss amount of coal tar is produced from which might be manufactured sew eral bodies which constitute the raw ma terials for coal tar dyes, and yet Ger many supplies SS.4 per cent of such dyes for this country. while Switzerland, which produces neither coal, coke nor coal tar, furnishes the greater part of the re- maining 16.6 per cent.
 In Woodward, Ala for instance, are I40 ovens and in Ensley is plant of 24o ovens, while Tuscaloosa has 40 and Fair field has 2s0. all, says the geological sur vey, producing coal tar suitable for the manufacture of dyes. To enable Alabama to develop the coal tar dye industry, how ever MT Klipstein says the United States must do one of two things; or in his own words:
 "The United States must change its patent system, or impose a duty of 50 per cent on all coal tar dyes and intermedi- ate products for a fixed period of at least 10 years But the textile manufacturers and other Consumers of dyes probably would fight against such duty and the only hope of success lies in q change of the patent system As such procedure. however would result ill tine transfer of small branches of foreign plants to the United States, and still leave us depen- dent on Germany, it would be better to to make the issuance of d patent eondi- 1ional upon the granting of licenses, on reasonable terms. to American manufac- turers.'
 As explained by Nr. Klipstein, coal tar is a by-product of the coke indus try, which consumes the gas as fuel and yields by proper treatment benzol, to- luol, naphtol, anthracene and carbazol and other bodies constituting tie raw ma terals for coal tar dyes, on winch the world now depends for coloring it's fab rics.
 Tt naturally would be expected, says NIL N1lpSAtlIlt lildl llit tQuIliitS plouhN ing the most coal and coke also would produce the most coal tar and, therefore, the most coal tar dyes, but such is not the case. In 1913 Switzerland produced no coal, Germany produced l9l, ,501,000 tons and the United States 562, 601 GOO tons of coke, Switzerland produced none, Ger many 32, 900 tons and the United States 45,S00,O00 tons, and yet Germany fur nished us with approximately S4 per cent pf bp coa1 la SxyifzerIand with most of the balance Of coal tar prod ucts imports in 1913, running to S16 759, l4l Germany furnished Sll,341, ,1S0, and one. half was free of duty.
 ''rhe manufacturers of this country have become painfully aware of these facts within the past month, and ar, asking the reason why. A great deal O foolishness has appeared in the news papers on the subject, but the correc reason may be expressed; The paten system of the United States and The de sire of the textile manufacturers fol cheap dyestuffs.' Out of s3.290460 wortf of dyes imported into this country fret of duty last year, Germany furnished 9i.i per cent
 MT Klipstein then explains that anyone in any part of the world may, for smal oR, obtain for r years the exclusive right to make, use or sell in this country 'any product or composition of matter claimed to be new, and says that since the beginning of the coal tar dye indus 1. try the patents for dyes and for the raw . materials out of which they are made technically known as intermediate prod Gcts are numbered by thousands. Ii is these patents, he adds, which have made the German coal tar dye manufac. tIrers rich and enabled them to monopo. lize the dye industry of the world"
 Taking as concrete example alizarine the coloring matter of madder and used for producing Turkey rcd, Mr Kipstef says:
 Two German firms applied almost si- simultaneously in the nited States for q patent for making alaarine from an a. most valueless product at that time, oi coal tar, known as anthracene. Litisa ton ensued, and the United States courts decided in favor Of one of these firms and granted it the exclusive right to sell ali