March 23, 1916] 



NATURE 



83 



suggested may be mentioned barley, potatoes, 

 blood, sugar, etc. Many prominent specialists 

 {e.g.., Zuntz, Robert, Thiele, Neumann, Stokola) 

 have written articles discussing the relative nutri- 

 tive powers of various types of "composite " bread. 

 Besides the new factories for synthetic ammonia 

 and nitric acid, there is evidence that factories 

 have been installed for the manufacture of alu- 

 minium hydroxide and aluminium, but no details 

 have been published ; though it is claimed that 

 new methods of working have surmounted the 

 •difficulty caused by the want of French bauxite. 



In spite of Germany's enormous production of 

 zinc, the refining of the crude metal had not been 

 practised to any considerable extent before the 

 war. It is stated that this is now an established 

 industry in Germany. 



Suggestions have been made to avoid the use 

 of sulphuric acid in the manufacture of hydro- 

 chloric acid by producing the latter directly by 

 the direct combination of electrolytic hydrogen 

 and chlorine. In order to save sulphuric acid 

 C. Bruder has proposed to extract copper from 

 poor ores by the use of alkaline solutions. 



Acetic acid is a very important substance, as 

 it is, for example, the source of acetic anhydride, 

 THonochloroacetic acid, and acetone, which are in- 

 •dispensable for the manufacture of drugs, dyes, 

 and explosives. 



As the American supply of grey acetate is now 

 iailing, suggestions have been made to prepare 

 acetic acid from acetaldehyde obtained from 

 acetylene. There appears to be no shortage of 

 carbide, which is still coming freely from Norway 

 and Switzerland. 



Fatty oils and fats are indispensable, and 

 ■Germany is bound to obtain a large amount 

 irom abroad. The Germans have expressed 

 their satisfaction that the fatty oils solidi- 

 fied by the Xormann process have been allowed 

 to pass freely in, and have commented on the 

 " fairness " of England in this respect. Stupidity 

 would be, perhaps, a better word. A large 

 amount appears to enter through neutral countries. 

 Thus, according to statistics of Norwegian trade, 

 published by the Chemiker Zeitung of August 4, 

 1915, the export of fatty oils from Norw^ay in 1913 

 was 348 tons, whereas in 1914 it had risen to 

 2009 tons. The shortage of fats and oils is 

 obvious, however, from papers such as that pub- 

 lished by Bechhold, where it is suggested that all 

 the fats which disappear down the kitchen sinks 

 of Germany should be recovered, the quantity 

 being calculated to be about one and a half million 

 pounds per diem in Germany alone. 



As regards the production of hydrogen gas, no 

 doubt for war purposes, it is interesting to note 

 that a single firm, Karl Francke, in Bremen, has 

 erected eight new factories since the beginning of 

 the war, each of which has a daily output of 

 60,000 cubic metres (more than two million cubic 

 feet). 



During the naphtha shortage, caused by the 

 Russian occupation of Galicia, alcohol came 

 somewhat mto use as a liquid fuel. 

 XO. 2421, VOL. gyl 



In connection with the use of chlorine as a 

 poison gas, it is interesting to observe the regular 

 appearance in the Chemiker Zeitung, from May 

 29, 1915, onwards, of an advertisement asking for 

 the delivery of 250,000 kilos of liquid chlorine. 

 Also in different issues of the same journal, during 

 the month of July, 191 5, there are advertisements 

 asking for the rapid delivery of complete plants 

 for chlorine liquefaction. Interesting also in this 

 connection are requests for delivery of large quan- 

 tities of bromides, dated December 9, 1914, and 

 March 10, 1915. There are also requests for 

 liquid sulphur dioxide (January 30, 1915) and 

 liquid hydrogen chloride (April 14, 191 5). 



The Chemiker Zeitung (vol. ii. , p. 738, 1915) 

 contains a reference to an article by Prof. Leo 

 Vignon, of Lyons, comparing the proportional 

 numbers of chemists in Switzerland, Germany, 

 France, and England in comparison with their 

 respective populations. The relative numbers 

 given are : Switzerland, 300 ; Germany, 250 ; 

 France, 7; England, 6. No doubt the low 

 "chemical density" in France and England is a 

 source of undeniable satisfaction to the readers of 

 the Chemiker Zeitung. The figures are certainly 

 astonishing, and we would commend them to the 

 attentive consideration of British chemical manu- 

 facturers. A perusal of the German journals 

 dealing with the industrial aspects of chemistry 

 gives the impression that there is a pretty severe 

 censorship as regards publication, for little can 

 be gathered concerning the most vital points. 



In conclusion I desire to express my best thanks 

 to Dr. F. Schwers, of the University of Li^ge, 

 who has rendered me valuable aid in the collec- 

 tion of such information as it has been possible 

 to obtain. F. G. Donnan. 



ECONOMIC GEO LOG Y. 1 

 T^HE exploitation of the mineral resources of this 

 -»• country, previous to the war, was, apart 

 from the ordinary fluctuations due to variations in 

 supply and demand, governed almost entirely by 

 the cost of production as compared with that of 

 importation. Materials required for the manufac- 

 ture of many articles, in some cases even muni- 

 tions of war, were bought in the cheapest market, 

 with the result that certain minerals ceased to be 

 worked, not because the supply was exhausted, 

 but because they could not be produced at a profit ; 

 whilst others which had recently acquired an eco- 

 nomic importance were not even diligently 

 searched for. 



With the outbreak of war the inconvenience of 

 this policy became painfully manifest, and it is 

 not surprising to learn, from the Director's preface 

 to the first of these "special reports," that numer- 

 ous inquiries were made at the Geological Survey 

 Office as to the occurrence in Britain of various 

 materials for the supply of which dependence had 



1 Memoirs of the Geological Survey. Special Reports on th« Mineral 

 Resources of Great Britain. Vol. i., Tunesten and Manganese Ores. 

 Pp. iv-f 50. Price ix. Vol. ii., Barytes and Witherite. Pp. iv+93. Price 

 ts. dd. Vol. iii., Gyptsomand Anhydrite : Celestine and Stronlianite. Pp. 

 iv+57. Price w. (London : H.M.S.O.; E. Stanford, Ltd. 



