The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-08-15
-0ietz on Science
AMERICA GAVE
NOTED LEADERS
IN CHEMISTRY
Priestley and Rumford
Made Discoveries Of
High Importance.
By DAVID DIETZ
Scripps- Howard Science Editor

scripps-HoWard Science Editor
The final chapter Of Professor F.
J. Moores History Of Chemistry" is
titled Chemistry in the United
States In II are names Of men
who helped build the United States.
Perhaps the names do not have the
familiar ring Of those Of statesmen. I
politicians and generals whom We
met on the pages OF our grammar
school histories.
They are names worth knowing, /
however. Some OF them. We venture
to suggest. will attain greater i'm
portance with the passage Of time. /
In the end. they may even outlive
the names Of some Of the politicians
and generals you once had 10
memorl2e.
Let US mention briefly a few OF
these chemical pioneers. men whose /
discoveries helped usher in the age
Of chemistry in which we now live. /
Chief among them are Priestley,
Rumford. siniman, Morley and
Gibbs.
The British may object to the
classification of Priestley as an
American chemist since he did his
most important piece of work while
still in England But Priestley. as
Moore points out, had a vast effect
upon the development of American
chemistry
Priestley's story is a fascinating
one
Isolated Oxygen
Joseph Priestley was a British
clergyman who practiced chemistry
in his spare time In l77f, he made
one of the greatest discoveries OF
the day. q discovery which made
chemistry as we know it possible.
He succeeded in isolating and iden-
tifying oxygen.
He extracted air" as he called
It. from mercuric oxide. and found |
that glowing splinters of wood burst
into bright flames when plunged |
into this air"
Priestley was a Nonconformist and
never failed 10 express his views IN
public. In 1891. the citizens of Bir- |
mingham were aroused by a group |
which undertook to celebrate the |
fall of the baStille Word got around |
that Priestley was the leading spirit /
in the celebration.
The mob burned and sacked his
chapel and house Priestley fled to
London and went into hiding. Three /
years later he decided to leave Eng /
land for America.
His arrival in America took on /
the proportions of a great holiday. |
He was given an ovation upon his
arrival in New York. the president !
of the Democratic Society of the
City of New York delivering an adj
dress of welcome.
Started TOday's Chemistry
Priestlev settled on a farm in
Northumberland. Pa. where he
spent the remainder of his life writ
ing a church history and carrying /
on chemical experiments. And, as
Professor Moore observes. he in /
spired others TO study chemistry
here"
II was Priestley's discovery of oxy- |
gen which paved the way for the |
explanation of combustion by La
Voisier. the French chemist who lost /
his head in the revolution. The mod /
ern practice of chemistry starts /
with the work of PrieStley and La
voisier.
Count Bumford was a character /.
even more interesting than PrieStley /
His career was one of romance and |
adventure.
He was born in Woburn. Mass. in |
1855. His name originally was Ben !
jamin Thompson. He attended Har-
ward college and at the age of 10
married a rich widow.
Although he was major of mill
tia. his neighbors distrusted him.
and so when the British troops
evacuated Boston in 1776 he ac-
cepted a commission from Governor
Wentworth 10 carry dispatches TO
England
He soon made his way TO English
politics and became an under
secretary of state. He carried on
many scientific studies. however, in
his spare time.
Made Roman Count
After the revolution. he started TO
join the Austrian army TO fight the
Turks At Strasbourg, however. he
met Prince Macmillan. who invited
him TO enter the civil and military
service of Bavaria. He accepted the
invitation. Later he was knighted
by George III. In 1871 he was
made a count of the Holy Roman
Empire. choosing the name of Rum
ford. the town where his wife'S fam
lily lived in America.
He noticed the cannon became
hot when they were being bored.
This led him 10 combat the notion
then generally accepted that heat
was an impondersble substance. s.
He studied the transformation of
mechanical energy into heat and
laid the foundation Of the law OF
the conservation of energy. one of
the fundamental laws Of modern
science.
In 1899 he helped found the Royal
Institution OF Great Britain and
later established the Rumford chair
OF chemistry at Harvard After the
death of his first wife. he married
tho u-iSOv- ~ tho EN-ench chaY,fc.