August 29, 19 18] 



NATURE 



505 



LORD BALFOUR'S COMMITTEE AND 

 THE CHEMICAL TRADES. 

 A MONG the many subjects dealt with by Lord 

 ^^ Balfour's Committee on Commercial and 

 Industrial Policy after the War, in the attempt to 

 grapple with the first term of their comprehensive 

 reference, viz. " What industries are essential 

 to the future safety of the nation, and what, 

 steps should be taken to maintain or establish 



them! 



was that of the chemical trades. Un- 



fortunately, these trades were not very adequately 

 represented on the Committee, and there was prac- 

 tically no one member of it who was able to speak 

 from his own knowledge of much that is com- 

 prised within so wide-embracing a phrase. It is 

 significant of the Committee's attitude towards 

 what they apparently regarded as a subordinate 

 and relatively unimportant section of our sfaple 

 industries that its consideration is dealt with only 

 when that of all the others had been disposed of. 

 This may possibly be accounted for by the circum- 

 stance that in all the other cases the members 

 had before them reports from Sectional Depart- 

 mental Committees appointed to consider the special 

 circumstances of particular industries and to em- 

 body their findings in recommendations with which 

 it was the function of Lord Balfour's Committee 

 to consider further with the view of arriving, if 

 possible, at a consistent and uniform commercial 

 and industrial policy. Although the Committee 

 alludes to memoranda from the National Health 

 Insurance Commission and from the Pharma- 

 ceutical Society and War Office with respect to 

 certain drugs, mainly for Army use, there is 

 nothing in the final report to show that it had any 

 opportunity of considering any similar reports of 

 Sectional Committees representing the various 

 divisions of the chemical trades. This is greatly 

 to be regretted. 



The subject of the' present and prospective posi- 

 tion of the chemical trades of this country, in view 

 of their essential importance to the future safety of 

 the nation, cannot be said to have been adequately 

 considered as yet by any properly constituted body 

 or bodies. Partial attempts have been made to deal 

 with pressing difficulties arising from the shortage 

 of dyes and drugs at the beginning of the war by 

 a sort of hand-to-mouth policy. The enormous 

 development of the manufacture of oil of vitriol 

 required for the making of munitions has occa- 

 sioned some perturbation of mind among those 

 who are concerned with the future of the industry 

 after the war, and a special Committee has con- 

 sidered and reported upon the matter. But as yet 

 there has been no such collective action in the case 

 of the chemical trades as we have seen in the 

 case of the coal trade, the iron and steel trades, 

 the engineering trades, in shipbuilding and marine 

 engineering, the electrical trades, the trade in 

 non-ferrous metals, and the textile trades. This, 

 perhaps, may be partly due to the very diverse 

 character of the industries which are comprised 

 ; within the term "chemical trades," but these are 

 ' not more diverse than those comprehended by that 

 NO. 2548, VOL. lOl] 



of the textile trades. Certain of these chemical 

 industries are, no doubt, very small in point of 

 output, and are represented by few firms of wealth 

 or political influence. Some of these firms would 

 unquestionably be enlarged, their number in- 

 creased, and the variety and range of their pro- 

 ducts extended, if the Legislature could be induced 

 to make up its mind with regard to the future 

 commercial and industrial policy of the Empire 

 after the war; but so long as all is uncertain, and 

 the Government waits on events, or is moved only 

 by party considerations, capital will not be 

 attracted towards the development of industries 

 which may at any time be crushed by the relent- 

 less and unscrupulous methods of German com- 

 binations, protected and encouraged by an equally 

 relentless and unscrupulous Government. 



Although Lord Balfour's Committee has dealt 

 with the question of the position and future pros- 

 pects of the chemical trades, in regard to the 

 future safety of the nation, in a very imperfect 

 and inconclusive manner, it must be admitted that 

 the Committee has been accurately informed of 

 much that is, unfortunately, only too true concern- 

 ing their past history, and the report contains 

 much plain speaking in regard to the lack of 

 enterprise and originality which British chemical 

 industry, especially in a number of the smaller 

 trades, has hitherto manifested. Lord Balfour and 

 his colleagues are under no illusions as to the 

 sources of Germany's strength in the chemical 

 arts. Her exports of chemical products in 1912 

 were double those of the United Kingdom. In 

 other words, starting from an almost insignificant 

 amount, Germany, since she became an Empire, 

 has doubled the chemical output of the nation 

 which long regarded itself as the premier manu- 

 facturing nation of the world. 



"The predominant position," it says, '"of Germany 

 in the world in these industries, and the remarkable 

 progress made by that country in recent years, were 

 due . . .mainly to the persistent and thorough 

 manner in which scientific knowledge and research 

 and business ability have been combined for the 

 building up of a great and comprehensive industry." 

 It points out that "for synthetic dyestuffs the dye- 

 using industries, and in particular the textile trades, 

 of the world were dependent upon a group of very 

 powerful German companies, which to great technical 

 ability and financial resources added a most effective 

 marketing organisation. Closely related to the dye- 

 making industry was the msmufacture of synthetic 

 drugs, in which again Germany dominated the world. 

 In fine chemicals . . . and a wide range of other 

 chemical products, the German industry occupied an 

 almost equally strong position. The large scale," it 

 adds, "on which the German industry operated, the 

 great technical ability at its disposal, and its verv 

 elaborate organisation, made it possible to market its 

 produce :at a price with which British manufacturers 

 could rarely effectively compete, and facilitated the 

 frequent adoption of a policy of systematic 'dumping,' 

 with a view to the prevention of the development .of 

 competitive industries elsewhere." And then follows 

 this humiliating admission : — " In numerous cases, 

 both in respect of the classes of commodities already 

 mentioned, and in heavy chemical trades also, British 

 manufacturers had found it necessary, in order to 



