War Notes 243 



with a damp handkerchief on which soap has been rubbed. Exper. 

 followed the lecture. The lecturer shut himself and his auditors up 

 in a room where they underwent the effects of a whole series of 

 asphyx. gases. Each one made use of protective appar., the efficacy 

 of which was thus clearly demonstrated. Paris letter: Joiir. 

 Anier. Med. Assoc, 19 16, Ixvi, p. 905. 



Preparedness. . . , We plan a greater navy and a larger army, 

 but we apparently have no assurance that either could be of use in 

 time of war, We are not only faihng to keep our powder dry, but 

 we are not even surely planning to have any powder. It is not gen- 

 erally realized that no useful explosive for any mit. use whatever 

 can he made without nitric acid. From black powder and smoke- 

 less, through fulminates, nitroglycerin, dynamite, gun-cotton, picric 

 acid, to trinitrotoluene and the latest more complex benzol deriva- 

 tives, not a pound can be made without nitrates. These are now 

 obtained front Chili exclusively. In the event of any interference 

 with that supply, we should have to revert to the pea shooter, the 

 shng, or the air gun. Can we be sure that Chili will always be 

 willing and able to supply us, and also shall we be able to transport 

 it in face of foreign Opposition of conceivable kinds? These are 

 points which chemists in particular should consider. Editorial: 

 Jour. Ind. and Eng. Chem., 1916, viii, p. 298. 



Chemical items. Ammonium sulfate. On the recommend. 

 of the Fertilisers' Commit., and with the approval of the pres't of 

 the B'd of Agric. and Fisheries and the pres't of the B'd of Trade, 

 the Br. authorities have decided to suspend for the present the issue 

 of Hcenses for the export of ammonium sulfate. 



Philadelphia's PHENOL PRODUCTION. As a result of the war, 

 the production of phenol in the U. S. has grown from less than 

 2,000 tons to about 12,000 tons a year. One firm in Philadelphia is 

 producing at least a fourth of the total Output, an average of 10 



tons a day. 



Synthetic dyes. In a recent issue of the Revue Scientif. (Jan. 

 8) Dr. Wahl, direc. of the lab. of the Porrier works, Claims that, 

 first, among the scient. causes of Ger. predominance in the manuf. 

 of synthetic dyes must be placed the rapid growth in the middle of 

 the I9th Cent, of the study of pract. organic chem. and, secondly. 



