February 17, 1905.] 



SCIENCE. 



259 



An Apparatus for the Rapid Estimation of 



Urea in Urine: F. C. Robinson. 

 A Comparison of Organic Matter in Dif- 

 ferent Soil Types: F. K. Cameron. 

 A comparison is made of soils with dif- 

 ferent organic content and soils of various 

 textiu'es, colors, etc., and the conclusion is 

 developed that the organic matter con- 

 tained in soils is not a general type char- 

 acteristic. Within any soil type, however, 

 the content of organic matter can he corre- 

 lated to color and other properties of the 

 soil, and is an important characteristic. 

 Availahility of Nitrogen in the Soil: G. S. 



Fraps. (Read by title.) 

 Homicide hy Aconite Poisoning and the 

 Quantitative Estimation of Aconite in 

 the Human Body: H. C. Carel. 



INDUSTRIAL. CHEMISTRY. 



Edward Hart, chairman. 



Wood Turpentine: W. C. Carnell. 



Spirits of turpentine has, for many 

 years, been made by the distillation of the 

 refuse wood of the southern long-leaf pine 

 tree. As much of it was made in a crude 

 way and put on the market poorly refined, 

 it is now almost generally regarded as some- 

 thing different from spirits of turpentine 

 and has received such names as wood 

 spirits, spiritine, turpentine substitute, 

 stump turpentine, etc. 



When this refuse wood is distilled by 

 steam and the temperature kept sufficiently 

 low, a product is obtained which can be 

 refined by one redistillation and having all 

 the physical and chemical properties of 

 spirits of turpentine made in the regular 

 way. Its color is water white. Odor, when 

 first made, is somewhat characteristic ; 

 when several months old same as regular 

 spirits of turpentine. Specific gravity, 

 0.862 to 0.876 at 15° C. Distillation, 90 

 per cent, comes over between 160° and 

 180° C. Evaporation at 100° C. Resi- 

 due, 1.13 per cent. 



If properly made the product obtained 

 from the refuse is identical with the dis- 

 tillate from the turpentine dip. 



The Detection of Eosin in Varnishes: A. 



H. Gill. (Read by title.) 



Best Method for the Analysis of liefined 

 Copper: G. L. Heath. 



The Education of Technical Chemists: 



I. A. Palmer. 



The average good man who enters a 

 commercial laboratory from one of our 

 technical schools is deficient in an under- 

 standing of the elementary principles of 

 chemistry and in a knowledge of the ordi- 

 nary methods of analysis. Most of the 

 manuals are of little assistance, and the 

 rule of thumb man fails when required to 

 devise new methods to meet certain condi- 

 tions. The technical chemist should be a 

 man of broad education, and as such stands 

 a far better chance of promotion than one 

 of poor training. Technical schools should 

 require more rigid qualifications for en- 

 trance, and should not permit lax scholar- 

 ship. The attempt to imitate commercial 

 practice is of doubtful utility, for there is 

 no time for it, and the ideas carried away 

 by the students are often wrong ones. The 

 technical school should give a broad educa- 

 tion in the principles of applied science, 

 with just sufficient laboratory and shop 

 practice to illustrate these principles. The 

 training of the head as well as the hand 

 should be the object sought. 



The Utilization of Pine Ores, Flue Dust, 

 Stove Dust, Down-comer Dust, etc., in 

 the Blast Furnace: J. C. Attix. 

 At large furnace plants vast quantities 

 of these materials accumulate, especially 

 where the furnace burden is made up 

 largely of Mesaba or other fine ores or con- 

 centrates. Many plans have been devised 

 for working these fine materials and quite 

 a number patented. 



Some of the materials used have been 



