576 Problems of Apj^Ued Chemistry. [March 15, 



Most other vegetable colouring-matters, several of which have 

 also been synthetically produced, have become useless by the discovery 

 of hundreds, and even thousands, of artificial colouring matters far 

 exceeding them in beauty, and often also in fastness. On this 

 well-known point I cannot dwell now. 



In conclusion, I would touch upon what is, perhaps, the very 

 greatest problem of applied chemistry, and that is the direct produc- 

 tion of feeding-stuffs for man and beast. The synthesis of alimentary 

 substances from inorganic matter has, up to this moment, not been 

 even remotely achieved, nor can we at present so much as guess the 

 direction in which this might be done ; whilst, as for the production 

 of food from sawdust and other waste organic substances, we are in 

 no better case. But even here the word " impossible " should not be 

 pronounced. In a more modest form, at all events, chemistry has 

 found magnificent scope in that quarter — I mean in the extraction of 

 alimentary substances from new sources and in the increase of pro- 

 duction from old ones. The colossal industry of beet-root sugar is an 

 instance of the former, whilst agricultural chemistry, as a whole, 

 works in the latter direction. 



But this is really too vast a subject to be discussed at the fag-end 

 of this lecture, and I must, therefore, content myself with the 

 foregoing few remarks, and beg to take leave of my esteemed audience. 



