El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-02-26
By
Rene Baehe

, money-printing we depend upon the
/ Germans because 1t was they who
first worked, out the problem Of get
/ ting colors from coal tar. The lat
! teT-a by-product, and formerly a
waste product Of gas wOrks-is an
exceedingly complex substance. ad-
mirably, adapted as base for chemical
manipulation.
In 1920 "naphthalinev Cthe stuff
moth balls are made of was separated
out from coal tar; and, later on, the
most beautiful cOlors were derived
from il, ranging from buttercup ysl-
low to reds, greens and scsrlets
Then came "anthracene." from which.
IN 1888, two German chemists Obtained
the beautiful pigment called Turkey
red" previously derived from the
madden plant), thereby revOlutionizinar
the dyeing and calico-printing indus
tries. Discovered in 1892, anthracens
was long employed only for Wheel
grease; but the above mentioned inven-
ton raised its market value suddenly
from almost nothing to $500 ton.
COIOrs From CarboIic Acid.
Carbolic acid Ga coal tar product 20
/ useIul as an antiseptic and disinfec-
tdhD yields valuable series Of cOlors.
from gorgeous yellow to red oranges
and browns. But the great discovery
IN this line was "aniline," which. IN
1922 was accidentally obtained from
t t1,4iL ar by a German chemist who was
trying to get an artificial quinine out
OF that fruitful material
Inc urst anlilne color produced was
I hhl NAME Amline red, one Of the most
lowed in 1858. Then in oufcI- 80
ceSSlOn came green's vioIetq an5 -
Iows-all the tints Of the rainboyr
-, Inc Germans, as fast as they invented
Inese processes, patented them in their
own and every other country. fncludins-
the United States. Many Of the oIda-
patents as already stated. have run
Oue put me e,, newest and most valuable
color makers do not dare infringe
mem Hence their inability to nro-
duce pigments that vie with the Ger
man in brilliancy and perma nence- fba
latter being, of course, a very impors
tant requisite
Greatest Quantities Of Ink U..d
1t takes a lot Of pigment powders IN
meet the requirements OF the rovern-
ment money mill for a year. During
Ine last year that establishment con-
s1med cor the manufactured inks1.
I,5UO'gOO pounds Of the mixture of
Prussian blue and lead chromate called
chrome green" (mainly for the green
backs Of notes.. 500, 900 pounds ~
,n n9t oeo black, FOR the faces of notes;
$4,000 pounds Of internal revenue
green, 100000 pounds of postage \
cent green" and 100000 pounds OF
postage 2-cent red"
As above mentioned. ali Of the n,,or
money Is now printed on sheets ex-
actly big enough TO make four notes
each The paper is made BY a. private
concern at Pittsfield. Mass. under
rigid supervision by agents Of fba
treasury department It is Of the verv
nest linen rags, and lengthwise throueb
each sheet run two bands Of scattered
fibers Of red and blue silk-a device the
lmlIauon Of which is a most aeriOuE
difficulty to the counterfeiter.
Ninety millions OF these sheetz were
used last year for the nrinffn9 -
money; and the total amount Of new
currency turned out during the tyVeIva
month by the bureau Of engraving 1-s4
about $500. 0OO,O FIeven 6ttIio-
postage stamps were printed during
the same period, the number Of these
required by the people of the Tinted
states being approximately $1,000, 600
Tor every day, including Sundays