196 



THE ALUMNI JOURNAL, 



CHEMISTY AS A GENERAL EDUCATION* 



By Peter T. Austen, Ph. D., F. C. S., 

 Professor of Chemistry, Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. 



The parent who finds his boy rapidly 

 growing into manhood, and who has re- 

 alized, through a more or less unsatisfact- 

 ory, if not a stringent experience, how 

 little his own education has enabled him 

 to grapple with the real problems in his 

 life, asks himself many questions about 

 the nature of his boy's studies. Will they 

 fit bim for real life? Will they enable 

 him not only to use his powers to advan- 

 tage, but to realize to the fullest extent 

 the opportunities that may present them- 

 selves during his journey through life? 

 The parent, if an educated man, knows 

 full well the value of special knowledge. 

 But he also knows that goods may have 

 but little value if the market is over- 

 stocked, that pyrites may be mistaken for 

 gold, and that a shotgun does better work 

 with small game than the finest rifle. 



If the boy shows a marked fondness 

 and aptitude for chemistry the problem 

 is not a difficult one to solve. Make a 

 chemist of him. That men may study 

 chemistry and fail as chemists cannot be 

 denied. A vocation in which all succeed- 

 ed could not be called a profession, and 

 the profession of chemistry is not an easy 

 one. It requires, aside from the ability 

 to observe and compare accurately, as 

 much, if not more, varied knowledge than 

 any other. This is especially true of 

 chemical engineering, in which not only 

 chemical knowledge, but an acquaintance 

 with mechanics, electricity, heat and 

 steam, as well as an understanding of the 

 art and science of manufacturing, and not 

 a little else is called for. But in a coun- 

 try that has such vast resources as this, 

 one which is destined in due time to be 

 the supplier of the world, there will never 

 be a lack of opportunity for chemists of 

 the right sort. 



And even now, and for some years 

 past, the demand for well educated young 

 American chemists seems to have been in 

 excess of the supply. I do not mean 

 that a young man who has had a short 

 course in analytical chemistry and a mea- 

 ger drill in general chemistry can expect 

 to find a dozen places awaiting him, al- 

 though it is surprising how often such 

 young fellows do succeed in starting off". 

 I mean that a young man who has had a 

 thorough training in the science and art 

 of chemistry will find his opportunity if 

 he seeks it energetically and persistently, 



*A paper read before the Student's Chemical Society 

 of the Polytechnic Institute, November 4. 



and does not demand the whole surface 

 of the earth and of the celestial dome for 

 the field of his first activity in practical 

 work. 



THE STUDENT AND THS MANUFACTURER, 



It is not a little interesting for one who 

 has been a teacher of chemistry for a 

 number of years to watch the progress of 

 his students after they enter their pro- 

 fession, and to note what different paths 

 they follow. Aside from chemical man- 

 ufactures proper, almost every manufac- 

 ture, after it reaches a certain magnitude, 

 requires a chemist, or at least a man with 

 some chemical knowledge, for it deals 

 with various kinds of matter, most of 

 which demand analytical examination or 

 comparative testing to determine their 

 composition and value. Most manufac- 

 tures consist in converting some kind or 

 form of matter into some other kind or 

 form. Here, again, the chemist is called 

 on to study the principles involved, to 

 remedy faults, to improve and invent new 

 methods and products. And, when waste 

 products begin to accumulate, the chem- 

 ist is again called upon to find methods to 

 utilize them or dispose of them. I might 

 write many pages about the manifold na- 

 ture of the demands made on the chem- 

 ists by the manufacturers. The coal has 

 to be analyzed, else it may fall below the 

 standard guaranteed, and the steam will 

 cost too much. The lubricating oils need 

 continual testing The water scales the 

 boiler, and the coal bills increase enor- 

 mously ; it must be purified. Adultera- 

 tion, sophistication and other forms of 

 commercial dishonesty so commonly prac- 

 ticed are kept in check by the chemist. 

 In many manufacturing processes every 

 step is controlled by analysis. 



In the Agricultural Experiment Sta- 

 tions hundreds of chemists are continu- 

 ally at work analyzing fertilizers, milk 

 and farm products. Soils are examined, 

 and live-stock, and what they eat and 

 eliminate are analyzed. The Boards of 

 Health and the Geological Surveys also 

 keep a number of chemists busily at work. 

 In the iron and steel industries a swarm 

 of chemists test and analyze the raw ma- 

 terials, the substances in process of man- 

 ufacture and tUe finished products. 

 Metals are sold on certificates of analysis. 

 In the packing industry, lard, oil and 

 many other products now pass through 

 the hands of the chemist. In the textile 

 industries the dyes are tested ; fabrics, 

 mordants, sizes and what not are exam- 

 ined. Many railroads have their own 

 laboratories, and buy material on specifi- 



