May 15, 1919] 



NATURE 



21 



FUEL ECONOMY.^ 

 "pVERY nation which joined in the war suddenly 

 -*-^ found its productive man-powsr reduced while 

 the productive capacity of the country had to be 

 increased. Questions of economy, which used to be 

 considered from a money point of view, now appeared 

 in their true aspect as being quantity problems. It 

 was not easy to discard the old methods, especially 

 at a time when attention had to be riveted on the 

 many new subjects which arose out of the war, and 

 the University of Illinois is to be congratulated on 

 having drawn up a set of most useful instructions as 

 to how fuel economy, from the quantitative point of 

 view, can be effected without even mentioning the 

 saving in costs. The committee which drew up the 

 instructions had the assistance of an advisory com- 

 mittee, which included railway engineers and repre- 

 sentatives of locomotive engineers and firemen, and it 

 would almost seem as if their influence had had the 

 salutary effect of toning down scientific truths to a 

 level where they could be understood by firemen. 

 The nearest approach to what might be called science 



is a set of diagrams illustrative of heat or energy 

 losses. The first, which, slightly modified, is shown 

 in Fig. I, deals only with the steam-raising losses in 

 properly worked locomotives burning good American 

 1 nal. The second diagram is a coloured locomotive 

 overlaid with energy streams, which, in addition to 

 ihe information contained in the first diagram, shows 

 what becomes of the energy contained in the steam. 

 Five per cent, is lost by radiation, 6 per cent, is used 

 for auxiliary purposes, 52 per cent, escapes with the 

 exhaust steam, and only 6 per cent, of energy is con- 

 verted into useful work at the drawbar. 



The Bulletin then proceeds to deal with these 

 various losses and to explain how engineers and fire- 

 men can reduce them, the firing instructions being 

 beautifully illustrated, but the committee does not stop 

 there ; it shows how coal is wasted before it reaches 

 the locomotive both during transport and when stored, 

 for, so it appears, American coal-dumps seem to take 

 fire fairly frequently. Railway officials, from signal- 

 men to repair works managers, are also told that they 



' "The Economic Use of Coal in Railway Lo;omotives." University of 

 Illinoi< Bulletin, vo". xvi., No. 2, kjiS. 



NO. 2585, VOL. 103] 



I cause a lot of waste, for it is estimated that 20 per 



i rent, of fuel is burnt by a locomotive while raising 



steam and while waiting for a job, or on the road 



when the signals are against it. 



j In view of our present shortage of coal, it would 



i be very desirable that this Bulletin should be widely 



circulated in this country, not only amongst railway- 



j men, who are, of course, chiefly interested, but also 



! amongst the general public, who with its help would 



; gain some insight into the complexity of railwav 



management. This will be all the more desirable i'f 



the State purchase of railways is to be carried out. 



The paper contains some interesting statistics about 

 American coal, from which we learn that 22 per cent. 

 (150,000,000 tons) is consumed in locomotives for haul- 

 ing purposes alone, which is a little more than one ton 

 per head of population. Unfortunately, only 6 per cent, 

 of these 150,000,000 tons are doing useful work. 

 Doubtless, from a money-making point of view, this 

 enormous loss of 94 per cent, cannot be materially 

 reduced, but from a national point of view encourage- 

 ment should be given to quantitative saving in order 

 to prolong^ the time during which our coal resources 

 may remain at our disposal. 



THE EFFICIENCY OF INVENTIONS. 



A P.\PER entitled " Efiicient Invention," with special 

 ■^^- reference to patents affected by the war, was 

 read before the Institution of Automobile Engineers by 

 Mr. Douglas Leechman on February 5. The author 

 recommends the Government to secure the con- 

 fidence of the inventor by understanding, appreciating, 

 and encouraging him. It is further suggested that 

 (i) the present surplus of loo.oooZ. a year between 

 the receipts and expenditure of the Patent Office 

 should be surrendered to the inventor by wav of reduc- 

 tions in the renewal fees payable on patents, and 

 (2) the period of protection lost owing to the war 

 should be added to the term of the patents affected. 

 A proposal is also made that all patents which have 

 expired since August 4, 19 14, should be restored for » 

 period equal to the duration of the war. Mr. Leech- 

 man states that the efficiency of inventions from the- 

 point of view of the patentee depends upon (i) the 

 nature of the invention, (2) the capabilities of the- 

 inventor and his opportunities for working or placing 

 the invention, (3) the way in which the invention is 

 received, and (4) the law relating to inventions. He 

 comments upon each of these matters, and expresses 

 the opinion that the average inventor is lacking in 

 the commercial instinct. \ recommendation is made 

 that some business experience should be included in 

 the instruction given to inventors. Sound advice is 

 also offered with regard to the steps which should be 

 taken when inventions are being placed on the market 

 and in connection with dealings with licensees. It 

 may be doubted whether Mr. Leechman 's proposal to 

 restore indiscriminately all patents which expired 

 during the war would either achieve the end desired 

 or even prove tolerably satisfactory; its adoption 

 would certainly prejudiciallv affect many persons who 

 have legitimately embarked upon the manufacture of 

 the articles the expired patents of which it is pro- 

 posed to revive. A more equitable method of dealing 

 with the patentees who have suffered exceptional hard- 

 ship owing to the decision of the Government to con- 

 centrate the energies of the country on the production 

 of munitions would be to ascertain the probable extent 

 of the loss in each particular case, and to provide 

 compensation accordingly out of a fund voted by Par- 

 liament for this purpose. 



