THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE 



475 



THE PROGBESS OF SCIENCE 



THE JUBILEE OF THE COAL TAR 



COLOR INDUSTRY AND SIR 



WILLIAM HENRY 



PERKIN 



It is not often that a scientific man 

 can take part in the celebration of the 

 fiftieth anniversary of a great discov- 

 ery that he has made. Perkin, when 

 he was a boy of eighteen, noted a 

 muddy precipitate which occurred in 

 connection with an attempt to produce 

 quinine artificially. The new idea 

 that this substance could be used as a 

 dye-stuff, the courage which led to a 

 patent and further investigations, and 

 the patient persistence with which all 

 practical difficulties were overcome are 

 an unusually clear exhibit of what is 

 meant by genius. This violet color 

 was called ' mauve ' and was the fore- 

 runner of the aniline dyes and of much 

 besides. 



Fifty years ago the dyeing and print- 

 ing industries were on an extremely 

 empirical basis, the natural dye-stuffs 

 being applied by secret and rule-of- 

 thumb methods. In order to substitute 

 a laboratory product and scientific 

 methods, it was necessary for Perkin 

 to establish a manufactory, which he 

 did with the aid of his father and 

 brother. The production of aniline 

 was put on a commercial basis, and the 

 discovery and application of other dye- 

 stuffs was a comparatively simple mat- 

 ter. Magenta was discovered in France 

 three years later, and subsequently all 

 the colors of the rainbow were pro- 

 duced from aniline. Perkin himself 

 being largely responsible for alizarine, 

 and indirectly for synthetic indigo. 

 As is well known, the artificial pro- 

 duction of these dye-stuffs has led to 

 great changes in agriculture and manu- 

 factures, one of the most important 

 being the alliance of science and in- 



dustry in Germain - , which has given 

 that country almost a monopoly in the 

 work that originated with Perkin in 

 Great Britain. 



The coal tar products now give us 

 flavors and perfumes as well as colors. 

 Saccharine, more than five hundred 

 times as sweet as sugar, was discov- 

 ered in the laboratory of the Johns 

 Hopkins University. Salicylic and 

 benzoic acids, though natural products, 

 are chiefly produced artificially. Al- 

 though quinine, which was the subject 

 of Perkin's original research, has not 

 been made by synthesis, the coal-tar 

 products have given us an extraordi- 

 nary series of drugs — antipyrin, 

 acetanilid, phenoeoll, etc. They have 

 given us smokeless powder, photo- 

 graphic films and indirectly nitrates 

 from the atmosphere and the cyanide 

 process of gold extraction. 



The scientific advances have been no 

 less remarkable than the industrial de- 

 velopments, and it should be especially 

 noted that to these Perkin has con- 

 tributed his full share. After ac- 

 quiring a competence, he sold his manu- 

 factory in 1873 and has since devoted 

 himself to scientific research. Pro- 

 fessor Nernst has stated that Perkin 

 is the founder of physical chemistry. 

 In connection with his influence on 

 chemistry, it should be remembered 

 that two of his sons have become 

 eminent for work in organic chemistry, 

 both being fellows of the Royal Society. 



The scientific and industrial develop- 

 ments following on Perkin's great dis- 

 covery were adequately celebrated by 

 an international gathering at the Royal 

 Institution on July 26. It was pre- 

 sided over by Professor R. Meldola and 

 various speeches and presentations 

 were made, including the Hoffman and 

 Lavoisier gold medals and degrees from 



