The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-10-02
AMERICAN CHEMISTS MOBILIZE
By HOLLAND

| Fly HO New York, October 1.-(special)-A iyear ago, Dr. Plimmon H. Dudley, now recognized as the worlds ablest expert i on the manufacture of steels rails, ven l tured to announce that he had Workeu out the problem, whereby practically uh- Unreliable steel rails could be manuIac- tured. Exhaustive tests of rails nanu- factured by the Dudley process have
 now demonstrated that he had excellent reason for his belief that at last the perfected steel rail had been secured, and one of the greatest perils in rall- road travelling had been overcome
 | Dr. Dudleys researches and those of expert chemists were followed by the
 discovery of a chemically prepared sub
 stance, which, having been infused into steel furnished the quality which was needed to make it absolutely strong.
 That triumph is one of the modern sue cesses of American chemistry. It was
 in no way releated to the emergencies and suddenly created conditions due to
 the breaking out of the war in Europe. | Within stones throw of pr. Dudley's office in New York city a representative l body of American chemists was in con- ] vention during the greater part of last week Almost all of these chemists are
 now occupied in research work which | may give results that will be of great consequence to the United States in this l time of war, and of equally great inn portance when the war is ended
 This convention of American chemists | attracted very large number of busi
 ness men and leaders in industries, who
 visited the halls in which the sessions were held and demonstrations were
 made, not from curiosity or as though
 going to a picture gallery or flower
 show, but inspired by business reasons
 The aggregate attendance during the
 week was approximately 100000, and this remarkable increase in attendance over
 the number of visitors who were at tracted by earlier conventions of the American chemists of itself makes clear how widely recognized today is the inn portance of the work the chemists have already done and are now undertaking.
 There were hints of discoveries which in the course of few years will revo- lutionize our industrial life because the chemists have unveiled some of the mys- teries of the natural forces so that it will be possible to utilize them for the material benefit of the world. Some of the chemists confess that their imagina- tion pictures for them wonderful tri- umphs in the future.
 Dr. Ellwood Hendrick of Boston in recent communication published in the Manufacturers Record of Baltimore, re- ports that the last three years-these being years of the war-have been crowded days for American chemists and, on the whole, their triumphs have been wonderful. Among these triumphs has been the revelation made by the chemists of the methods whereby Amer ican raw products, nursed and coaxed by chemistry, are now so utilized as to make it certain that from this time on and after the war the United States will be Independent of the rest of the world so far as dyestuffs are concerned
 The German chemists were masters of the science and art of preparing various commodities that were of avail in curing the sick or in preventing ill., ness. When the war began, and the British navy put an embargo upon Ger man exports, there followed an alarming famine in the United States of these Tl. chemists began researches, pursued them with the infinite patience, were not discouraged by many failures, and at last it is possible to announce that this 1 country is to be hereafter independent of Germany, so far as pharmaceutical products are concerned
 The chemists are now perfecting pro- cesses which reflect their researches whereby there is soon to be a great sav- ing in coal Dr. Hendrick says that the l economical use of fuels is one of the first steps in applied chemistry, and the men of research have shown how by burning powdered coal in blasts of compressed air a truly amazing heat is developed This not only secures economy, but eim- mates smoke There is only one factor Tn this problem yet to be solved That is due to the fact that the flame is so intense and the heat itself is co concen- trated that boiler plates cannot resist it. | But it was said at the chemical exposi-
 tion last week that this one disturbing factor in the problem is likely to be solved very soon, and when it is there will be an end to the wasteful methods of burning coal.
 The chemists are undoubtedly to show by and by, perhaps very soon, the man. ner by which alcohol can be utilized sue e Y