Arizona republican., 1921-04-03

| army and navy in time of war would be so terribly handicapped as to in- vite defeat. Tn time of peace our merchant marine and industries gen. eraIy would suffer
 The Fuel Shortage
 The only answer to the problem would seem to be conservation. And America is not conserving. Indica- | tions are, according to government ia- | vestigators, that the consumption of motor fuel will double within the next | few years. American industry's life ! blood is petroleum. The blood is to day coursing merrily through indus | try's veins, but should the supply be | exhausted, industry would perish, un less some substitute is found. Lignite is not a newly discovered | subtance. It is far from a mystery in l the scientific world and it's wonderful possibilities have long been thorough | ly understood. But Ignite has been l apparently hopeless from a conner
 cial viewpoint. It was known as the softest, dustiest, poorest grade Of | coal eXtant. It was known that It's | physical and chemical characteristics lay somewhere between those of peat l and bituminous coal
 It was unmarketable chiefly be- 1 cause it parts with most of its moist | ure when exposed to the weather and
 falls into dust much more rapidly than ordinary coal. When first dug it
 is spongy, containing anywhere from | 2I to 29 per cent of water Once
 taken from the ground it's disintegra-
 ton is rapid. Unless loaded imme-
 diately into cars in zero weather. it
 slacks with the evaporation of it's
 moisture and cracks like dry mud, fall
 ing into dust.
 Science has now solved this prob
 lem by distilling the more volatile 1 substances out of Ignite. and press- ] ing the residue into smokeless bri quettes. The briquettes are to be used in the family and shop furnace The distillation, products include gas,
 oils, tars. dyes. fertilizers, drugs. pho
 tographic chemicals. acids. perfumes, and a variety of other commodities
 The practicability of this has been
 proved. All that is needed is a Ignite distilling industry. The United States bureau of mines is back of the prof ect. to create such an industry. The united States holds the great 8 est deposits of Ignite. But there are numerous smaller beds of it scat 9 tered throughout Europe. Germany
 has her Ignite fields and is making great strides in the use of them. I Germans the Pioneers Ii The fuel problem has been even a
 more serious matter in Europe thar in this country. In fact it has beer 1 regarded as the most serious obstacle | in the road to her economic recovery | | Germany is suffering with the rest o the European nations. Her fuel fam. = inc has threatened her industria f progress for many years. Ske is nov
 turning to Ignite as solution. an( < so is showing the United States tn, Q way
 1t Brown coal mining as now prac $ tised in Germany is simple. As il IT this country the coal beds lie yer, n near the surface. Some of the bed e are within 30 feet of the surface l. Near Halle one may see the farmer e mining their brown coal for domesti - use. For machinery they use spades ,f The coal when used in this primitiv c state is not. of course, the refined
 perfected form of fuel ii will be whel If manufactured into briquettes. Blu l. it is fuel and the German peasan }. finds it satisfactory. The German in Is dustrial baron, however. sees the pos IT abilities of brown coal as a factor l, fuel. In Germany there is a brow is coal boom. The scientific and indus , trial forces of the nation are centere IT | upon making uSnlle COmmercia = asset.
 The scientific German has commer
 cially utilized his Ignite beds to som
 extent for years past, though the in S dustry is spoken of as a new thini
 For example, in 1913 Germany eS
 ported to the United States, whic " has the greatest Ignite beds in tt te world. coal tar products made largel ic from Ignite to the value of $22. 000. DO
 The United States has annual a imported for years millions of gallor "a of creosoting oils that are simp ~ distilled elements of Ignite. Tn ls country has always been one of II
 chief purchasers of European fertilii
 CTS Lignite is one of the most in
 portant sources of fertilizer know
 The fertilizer. known scientifically
 ammonium sulphate, also contains
 great quantities ingredients used
 high explosives.
 It is also worthy of note that Hgni
 was the source of the saccharine us,
 abroad during the war as a sugi
 substitute.
 Again Ignite, through one Of it's b.
 products. paraffin, is relieving q
 soap famine that has annoyed Eurol It for these past several years IL ot hoped by European scientists tn en paraffin produced from Ignite W
 eventually end the shortage of edih ,o fats by making it unnecessary to u '%5 them for industrial purposes. . in So Europe has awakened to Ignite | possibilities. The United States, ei
 couraged by the bureau of mines.