NOTES 463 



come to an end, for the deposits of oil shales will yield enormous supplies — suf- 

 ficient to last hundreds of years. South-West Indiana alone is underlaid by shales 

 sufficient to produce 100,000,000,000 barrels of oil. These shales, too, may yield 

 valuable by-products. For example, a ton of Colorado shale gives about 50 gallons 

 of oil, 3,000 cubic feet of gas, and 17 lb. of ammonium sulphate for use in agricul- 

 ture. Finally, of course, alcohol can be manufactured from organic sources which 

 are in practically limitless supply ' ; there is, notably, the possibility of its pro- 

 duction from the rank vegetation of the tropics. 



Bulletin No. 7 of the Advisory Council of Science and Industry of Australia 

 contains an account of the proceedings at a conference of agricultural scientists 

 which was convened by the Council at Melbourne in November 191 7. At the 

 end of the conference a number of resolutions were passed for the purpose 

 of advising the Council as to the best methods of benefiting the agricultural 

 industry in Australia. It was decided to advise the formation of a Seed Improve- 

 ment Committee, a Plant Introduction Bureau, and the appointment of a permanent 

 agricultural representative to the United States for the purpose of keeping 

 Australia in touch with the improved methods which are continually being intro- 

 duced in that country. It was further resolved that steps be taken to resuscitate 

 the tobacco-growing industry, possibly by creating a Government monopoly, and,' 

 finally, that more experiments be made with a view to the production of power- 

 alcohol. 



An article by Mr. D. Brownlie in Engineering (August 23, 1918) contains an 

 account of the steps which have been taken to economise fuel in the U.S.A. It 

 appears that, owing to war conditions, this question is as pressing there as in the 

 British Isles, the shortage being estimated at 80,000,000 tons per annum. To 

 meet it a Fuel Engineering Division has been formed in the U S. Fuel Adminis- 

 tration in Washington. It comprises two departments, one dealing with the 

 railroads and another with all stationary power plants. The department has made 

 certain recommendations for the conservation of fuel, and has appointed inspectors 

 who will make personal inspection of every plant. It has power to curtail or cut 

 off altogether the supply of fuel to any plant found to be needlessly wasteful. To 

 assist users to carry out their recommendations a 50-minute film has been prepared, 

 showing good and bad methods of operation, methods of testing boilers, etc. No 

 figures showing the efficiency of boiler plants in the U.S.A. are available, but 

 Mr. Brownlie is of the opinion that it is not greater than over here, where 

 investigations of 250 typical plants show an average efficiency of 60 per cent., as 

 compared with the 75 per cent, easily obtainable. Indeed, the steam plants 

 running the anthracite mines in Pennsylvania consume 10 per cent, of the coal 

 they raise, while in Great Britain the average figure for all classes of mines is 

 7 per cent. Owing to the great demand for fuel in the winter of 19 17, and the 

 consequent lack of competition, the amount of impurity in the coal had greatly 

 increased. To remedy this the Government took strong action, especially in 

 Pennsylvania, appointing inspectors to condemn all anthracite yielding more than 

 20 per cent. ash. In May last only one-half per cent, of coal was thus condemned. 

 Had the same standard been in operation in January and February over 50 per 

 cent, would have been condemned ! Mr. Brownlie's paper contains valuable 

 suggestions as to the methods that are available to control the output of boiler- 

 houses. 



1 It is remarkable that the consumption of alcoholic beverages and of petrol in 

 the U.S.A. in 1916 were approximately equal ; each about 2,000,000,000 gallons, 

 or 20 gallons per head of the population. 



