266 



NATURE 



[December 5, 1918 



furnace musl be suited to trie work, so as to 

 reduce the Furnace charges, one of the heaviest 

 costs, to a minimum. Next, it is important that 

 the lchrs, or annealing mens, should be suitably 

 designed and placed near the furnaces, for on the 

 efficiency of the annealing much depends. 'Ihe 

 annealing loss carries with it the whole of the 

 corresponding labour and furnace charges, and it' 

 may make the difference between success and 

 failure. On the efficiencj of the annealing will 

 depend the loss in the processes of "cutting off " 

 and finishing. To the second annealing, during 

 which the strains introduced in the finishing 

 processes are removed, close attention must In- 

 paid, for if the flanges crack off flasks while in 

 use, chemists are inclined to show irritation. 

 Finally, the organisation of the handling of such 

 fragile goods is of the first importance, for casual 

 breakage may easily run away with the whole of 

 the profits. 



The exhibits of the British Chemical Ware 

 Manufacturers' Association and of the Flint Glass 

 Makers' Association show what progress has been 

 made during the war in the manufacture of heavy 

 hollow ware, but the processes employed can 

 scarcely be said to be new to this country. These 

 associations, and the British Lamp-blown Scien- 

 tific Glassware Manufacturers' Association, have 

 also turned their attention to the manufacture of 

 lamp-blown goods and graduated glass instru- 

 ments, the supply of which has risen in both 

 quality and quantity to meet the national needs. 

 In these branches of the industry some progress 

 has been made in introducing new and improved 

 machinery; but as for some time past it has been 

 very difficult to get machinery constructed, even 

 the most progressive firms have been considerably 

 hampered. 



In spite of all the difficulties which he has had 

 to face, the British manufacturer may claim that 

 he has gone a long way towards solving the new 

 problems of glass manufacture, and making the 

 country self-supporting in the matter of scientific 

 glassware. It is true that prices are high. But 

 the cost of manufacture is practically three times 

 as high as it was before the war, and all branches 

 of the industry are burdened by heavy capital 

 charges on account of new works erected or old 

 works modified and improved. Heavy taxation 

 has not tended to cheapen production. 



This is a heavy handicap at the outset, and it 

 must mil lie forgotten that the majority of works 

 in which the goods are being made were not 

 designed for the purpose to which they have been 

 applied during the war, and much new construc- 

 tion has been carried out with a view rather to 

 rapidity of execution than to ultimate efficiency. 

 Also, though much has been learned, there remains 

 much for the British glass manufacturer to learn 

 if he is to compete on equal terms with his foreign 

 rival. Finally, wages and expenses in Great 

 Britain are likely to remain at a higher level than 

 on the Continent and elsewhere. 



Xo one supposes that the cost of manufacture 

 on the Continent will fall to anywhere near pre- 

 NO. 2562, VOL. I02] 



war rates, but, all other things being equal, the 

 Continental manufacturer will still have the advan- 

 tage ol having his furnaces anil plant in good 

 repair, while those in British works will have been 

 worked for five years up to the limit. Me will 

 also be burdened by smaller capital charges, and 

 will be in a very advantageous position from the 

 point of view of cheap production. It is clear, 

 therefore, that this industry, which is the key I" 

 eve\ y other, industry, cannot be maintained in the 

 country without adequate protection and effective 

 assistance from Government. 



The establishment of the Department of Optical 

 Munitions and Glassware Supply, Ministry of 

 Munitions, not only for the purpose of organising 

 the manufacture of munitions of war, but also 

 with a view to the future development of the in- 

 dustry, may be taken as indicating the policy 

 which the Government proposes to adopt. Assured 

 of the support of the State, the manufacturers are 

 prepared to do their utmost to hold on to what 

 they have won; and through their trade associa- 

 tions, as well as the newly formed Society of Glass 

 Technology, with its headquarters in Sheffield 

 University, they are doing their best to organise 

 for the future. Morris W. TRAVERS. 



A ■'MINISTRY OF WATER." 



A DEPUTATION representative of the 

 National Sea Fisheries Protection Asso- 

 ciation and of other fisherv interests waited on 

 Mr. Prothero, President of the Board of Agricul- 

 ture and Fisheries, on Wednesday, November 27, 

 and made proposals for the establishment of a 

 British Ministry of Fisheries, marine and fresh- 

 water. A memorandum published by the Fish- 

 mongers' Company was submitted. The proceed- 

 ings of the conference are fully reported in the Fish 

 Trades Gazette of November 30. 



The memorandum is a careful, and even scholarly, 

 piece of work. "Beginning with a concise account 

 of the development of the modern fishing industrj , 

 it proceeds to summarise the conditions that 

 existed on the outbreak of war, and then traces 

 the effects that may be expected when demobilisa- 

 tion is complete. In 1913 there were about 3700 

 steam- and motor-driven vessels, besides a larger 

 number of smaller boats. About a million and 

 a quarter tons of fish were landed in that year, 

 and rather more than half was exported, about 

 600,000 tons being consumed in this country. 

 Of this quantity about 18 per cent, was dis- 

 tributed by the fried-fish shops (the "National 

 Kitchens"). During the progress of the war 

 about 3000 of the steam vessels, with 40,000 to 

 50,000 men, joined the Royal Naval Reserve. 

 They " saved the Navy and the Navy saved 

 Britain," while those who were left continued to 

 feed the people. Exports largely ceased, and the 

 smaller vessels increased their production, with 

 the result that, in 1917, about 400,000 tons of 

 fresh fish were still available as human food. 

 "The public," says the memorandum, "are voluble 

 in their expressions of gratitude to the fishermen," 



