364 



NA TURE 



[August 9, 1906 



In our African Possessions at present the same investi- 

 gations and inquiries liave to be conducted independently, 

 and often witliout the l<nowledge that the problem in ques- 

 tion has been already solved. 



Another increasingly urgent duty of the Central Depart- 

 ment is to inform the Colonial establishments of the results 

 of the work which is being conducted in foreign countries, 

 and of the progress which is being made in the utilisation 

 of raw materials all over the world, and to bring to their 

 notice the constantly changing requirements of the manu- 

 facturers and users of raw materials. 



So far as botany is concerned, this coordination has 

 been to a large extent effected through the agency of the 

 Royal Gardens, Kew, which is in touch, through the 

 Colonial Office, with all the botanical gardens in the Crown 

 Colonies and Protectorates. In chemistry, as well as in 

 certain other subjects, these duties have been performed 

 in recent years by the Scientific and Technical Department 

 of the Imperial Institute, which is now working in co- 

 operation, not only with the Governments of the Crown 

 Colonies and Protectorates, but also with those of several 

 of the self-governing Colonies, and also with the Scientific 

 Departments which have been brought into existence in 

 India, where at last the importance of scientific agri- 

 culture is receiving due recognition from the Government. 



So little has hitherto been done in this direction that 

 the number of problems requiring attention is exceedingly 

 large ; and even with a specially trained staff of workers 

 and extensive laboratories, such as now exist at the 

 Imperial Institute, it becomes necessary to select as the 

 principal subjects for investigation those which are re- 

 garded by the Governments of the countries concerned 

 as of the most practical importance, and in which the 

 British manufacturer is at the moment most concerned. 

 There must therefore remain a large number of materials 

 of unknown composition and of problems of purely scien- 

 tific interest which offer an attractive field for the chemical 

 investigator. Already steps have been taken to provide 

 for the investigation of these subjects by scientific men 

 who are willing to undertake them in communication with 

 the Institute. For example, Mr. A. G. Perkin, F.R.S., 

 has been furnished with material which has led to the 

 identification and determination of the constitution of the 

 colouring matters of a number of plants which are 

 employed as dyes in India and the Colonies. Prof. A. H. 

 Church, F.R.S., has determined the composition of many 

 new or little-known food grains. Dr. Crossley, Mr. 

 Le Sueur, and Dr. Lewkowitsch have examined the con- 

 stituents of a large number of fats and oils furnished by 

 seeds of Indian and African origin. Dr. W. J. Russell, 

 F.R.S., has been furnished with selected materials for 

 examination in connection with his interesting investi- 

 gations of those substances which affect the photographic 

 plate in the dark, whilst the Hon. R. J. Strutt, F.R.S., 

 has investigated the radio-activity of a number of new 

 or little-known minerals containing rare earths. Last year 

 more than 500 different materials and problems were sub- 

 mitted from the Colonies and India for investigation to 

 the Scientific Department of the Imperial Institute, and 

 each year there must remain an increasing number of 

 interesting subjects which cannot be included in the De- 

 partment's annual programme of work. Many of these 

 would furnish excellent subjects for chemical research by 

 advanced students in connection with the universities and 

 technical colleges throughout the country. It is nearly 

 always possible to arrange to furnish the necessary material 

 for any competent worker to deal with. Next vear a list 

 of such subjects awaiting investigation will be available 

 at the Imperial Institute for those in search of subjects 

 for chemical research. 



Whilst the investigation of some of these subjects mav 

 at once produce results of scientific value, many of thern 

 present difificulties in their investigation which are far 

 more serious than those which attend the usual synthetical 

 work in organic chemistry. I do not know of anv more 

 profitable experience for the advanced student who is 

 alreadv familiar with the principles of organic chemistry 

 and of laboratory practice than the separation in the pure 

 state of the chemical constituents of a plant and the deter- 

 mination of their chemical constitution. In inorganic 



NO. 1 919, VOL. 74] 



chemistry the examination of a new mineral furnishes 

 similar experience. 



In carrying out research of the kind I am advocating, 

 the chemical investigator will have the additional advantage 

 of knowing that the scientific results he obtains will con- 

 tribute to the knowledge of the resources of the British 

 Empire, and possibly be the means of laying the foundations 

 of new industries. 



I need hardly remind chemists that some of the most 

 important discoveries in our science, and many of those 

 which have had the most profound influence on the de- 

 velopment of chemical theory, have arisen from the examin- 

 ation of the constituents of raw materials. The discovery 

 of morphia in opium led to the recognition of the new class 

 of alkaloids ; the discovery of amygdalin in the bitter 

 almond of the new group of glucosides ; the investigation 

 by Liebig and Wohler of the chemical properties and com- 

 position of the essential oil of the bitter almond was 

 largely instrumental in laying the foundations of modern 

 organic chemistry ; whilst it was during the examination 

 of the constituents of bran that Fownes was led to the 

 discovery of furfurol and the subsequent recognition of a 

 new type of organic compound. In more recent times the 

 examination of the constituents of oil of turpentine and 

 various essential oils yielded by different plants has been 

 the means of elucidating the chemical theory of the great 

 group of terpenes, and latterly Harries's investigation of 

 caoutchouc has led to the discovery of the ozonides which 

 seem likely to be of much importance as a new means of 

 determining the constitution of certain classes of organic 

 compounds. Lastly, I may remind you that the discovery 

 of helium might have been long delayed had not Prof. 

 Miers drawn Sir William Ramsay's attention to the so- 

 called nitrogen furnished by the mineral cleveite. 



I have thought that it would be of interest on the 

 present occasion if some account were given in the Section 

 of the chemistrv of certain of the raw materials employed 

 in the principal manufacturing industries of the city of 

 York. These industries are vitally concerned with an 

 adequate supply of certain raw products of tropical origin, 

 especially cocoa and gums. In connection with the first 

 of these, which has hitherto been obtained chiefly from 

 the West Indies, a new industry of cocoa production has 

 sprung up in West Africa, notably in the Gold Coast and 

 in Lagos. This West .African cocoa presents some peculi- 

 arities which have rendered it desirable to examine the 

 nature of its constituents. Gums of the nature of gum 

 arable are at present chiefly derived from the French 

 Colony of Senegal. It is, however, clear from the examin- 

 ation of gum collected in West Africa that that country. 

 and especially Northern Nigeria, will be able in the future 

 to contribute to the needs of the British manufacturer, in 

 addition to the Sudan, India, and Australia, which will 

 also be able (o make important contributions. In connec- 

 tion with the investigation of these gums derived from 

 new sources at the Imperial Institute, the very remark- 

 able observation has been made that certain gums from 

 India and the Colonies possess the property of evolving 

 acetic acid when exposed to the air. The chemical con- 

 stitution of one of these gums has been fully investigated 

 at the Imperial Institute by Mr. H. H. Robinson, who will 

 contribute a paper on the subject to the Section, in which 

 he will show that the production of acetic acid is due to 

 the elimination of an acetyl group by hydrolysis through 

 the moisture of the air. He has also succeeded in 

 elucidating to a large extent the chemical nature of the 

 gum. Mr. Robinson will also make a report on the 

 present position of the chemistry of gums, a class of sub- 

 stances the constitution of which is exceptionally difficult 

 to unravel. Little, if any, advance has been made in 

 recent years on the well-known researches of O 'Sullivan. 



There is no more important group of questions demand- 

 ing attention from the chemist at the present time than 

 those connected with the production of india-rubber or 

 caoutchouc. An enormous increase in the demand for 

 india-rubber has taken place in the last few years, and last 

 year the production was not less than 60.000 tons. Until 

 recently the supply of rubber came chiefly from two sources 

 — the forests of Brazil, which contain the tree known as 

 He-'cn hrasilidtsis, furnishing the Para rubber of com- 



