1870.] Air-Pollution by Chemical Works. 337 



it was intended to do? The reply is that it has done all and 

 more than its promoters or those who understood its provisions ex- 

 pected ; but probably the public generally are not satisfied ; they 

 fail to understand that a law which professes to shield them from 

 muriatic acid cannot also defend them from chlorine, sulphurous 

 acid, sulphide of hydrogen, and the host of nameless gases by which 

 their noses and their gardens are assailed ; still less can they under- 

 stand that an Act which should prevent the emission of muriatic 

 acid from the chimney of an alkali works, cannot also prevent the 

 escape of the same acid from copper- extracting works, a bottle 

 factory, or a pottery. 



The Act must, however, not be blamed for omitting to do that 

 which it was never framed to accomplish ■ let us be glad that a step 

 has been gained, that one noxious gas has been measured and sup- 



Some instances have occurred where manufacturers who are 

 not alkali makers have desired to place their factories under the 

 Inspector appointed under the Alkali Act. Their object being first 

 to know if, in his opinion, they were sending out an injurious amount 

 of noxious vapour, then, having diminished it so as to meet with 

 his approval, to gain his advocacy and defence when harassed by 

 their natural enemies the farmers. This has brought a certain 

 amount of volunteer work on the Inspectors, which they have cheer- 

 fully borne on account of the obvious good they could accomplish, by 

 diminishing on the one hand the escape of noxious acids, and pre- 

 venting litigation on the other. 



In districts such as that around St. Helens, in Lancashire, 

 where alkali-works and copper-smelting works are found together, 

 the copper smelters look somewhat enviously at the alkali makers. 



Before the passing of the Alkali Act, the farmers who thought 

 they had suffered loss through the injury of their crops by acid 

 vaj)ours, charged the damage sometimes against the alkali-works 

 and sometimes against the copper- works. Now, however, owing to 

 the improvements which have been made in the alkali-works under 

 the stimulus of the Act, and supposing the manufacturers to be 

 somewhat protected by it, the landholders direct their attacks ex- 

 clusively against the copper smelters. The amounts claimed by 

 each farmer are not always large, but the aggregate has reached 

 3000Z. a year against the six copper-works. 



Besides these smaller claims an important action was lately 

 brought by the proprietor of an estate three miles from St. Helens 

 against a copper smelter, for damage done to his trees and crops by 

 the smoke from the works. The course the action took, so well 

 shows the present working of the law, and indicates perhaps the 

 direction in which it could be amended, that it might be well to give 

 some account of it here. 



