The Alaska daily empire., 1916-04-25
THE DYE MYSTERY


 often raised as to how 1t is possible that textile mills which were loudly complaining eighteen months ago about the dreadful effects of the cut ting off of German dyes can still be in business and apparently making money
 The query is O perfectly fair one because the textile mills have in the months past been not at all back ward in letting the world know about their dye troubles. And taey have had them. It is estimated that from 70 to 50 per cent of the additional colors produced in the United States due to the stimulus of war prices are of distinctly inferior quality Some are SO poor that the mills which insist upon quality first will not use them at all.
 The war has produced very marked Increase in the production of dyes in this country. The Nation al Analine Co.,. of Buffalo has done yeoman service. 1t has spent sever al hundreds of thousands of dollars in new plants and there are a num- Der of mills in New England which today would be out of business were lt not for this company. The cor poration concentrated at first upon blacks. perhaps the most important single color used in the United States. They are now getting out a credltable range Of violets and blues and in fair quantity.
 It is understood that the General Chemical Co. is turning out colors in considerable volume. It is mak- ing highly important sulphur colors, blues. blacks and browns-sulphur colors In particular being sadly need- ed just at this time.
 But the increase in American dye output. while of considerable inn portanceh does not explain the mys- tery of how 1t is possible for color users to Keep going during all these weary months of war
 Part of the myster. is solved by the statement that the big users have been better fortified thdn they were willing to admit New England mill managers are proyerbially long head ed and even today we know of sey- eral important mills which are COW cred practically one year ahead on primary colors.
 Another portion of the explanation of the dye mystery is undoubtedly contained in the fact that when the war broke out dye jobbers and whole salers were quick to exaggerate their desperate" situation as to color supplies. They have been parceling them out with an alleged humanItar- ian hand ever since the war started and on a steadily advancing mar ket. Millions have been made by the iobbers who ordinarily are satisfied with few thousands of net income yearly.
 Stlll another explanation is the prob able fact that some dyes are leak Ing out of Germany They are com ing in unheard of ways. It is im- possible to concentrate 200 pounds of color into 10 pounds of jelly, dilute 1t again on It's arrival on this side and make it do 20 times its weight in actual work. German dyes have come through China and are said to be still coming. There has possibly been some winking in other quarters. Whether winl1ing or not, the war and war prices stimulate human avarice. When Q certain shade of red sells at S62 per pound against a normal of S5 there is a natural temptation to get some of 1t into the United States and reap this fabu- lous profit.
 Good judges are. however, con- vinced that the biz color users Of the United States have missed wonderful opportunity to do creative work because of their inability to hit upon a cooperative plan and be. cause of the mutual jealousy and distrust. It would seem, for example that city like Boston. possessing high degree of chemical ability. and schools for the training of chemists would have been the proper center to solve some of the problems of American dye production through joint cooperative effort. A few hundred thousand dollars raised in August. 1914. would today be earn ing very handsome dividend had this money been set immediately to work in solving the problems Of pro- dueing dyes in quantity in this coun- try (Boston News Bureau.)
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