532      Study  of  Organic  Chemistry  by  Pharmacists.  \hm'-^:t^m' 
medical  chemistry,  now  in  use,  in  which  the  confusion  among  the 
organic  compounds  is  something  really  bewildering  to  the  student- 
Alcohols,  ethers,  acids,  glucosides,  alkaloids,  etc.,  are  all  enumerated  in 
succession,  under  the  meaningless  name  of  organic  principles.  It  is 
one  of  the  points  of  greatest  pride  for  modern  organic  chemists  that 
order  and  system  has  been  brought  out  of  this  chaos.  To  do  this,, 
however,  a  set  of  theories  must  be  accepted  for  the  time.  No  undue 
value  need  be  placed  upon  them,  but  they  are  indispensable  in  their 
place.  We  must  co-ordinate  facts  as  they  are  observed,  and  the  use 
of  the  synthetical  methods  before  alluded  to  as  of  such  value  for  or- 
ganic chemistry  presupposes  that  we  have  mapped  out  in  theory  some 
line  of  reactions  which  we  expect  will  be  followed  in  nature  so  soon  as 
we  supply  the  conditions.  Let  me  illustrate.  A  great  deal  of  ridicule 
has  been  expended  upon  the  benzol  theory  of  Kekuld,  which  has  been 
called  a  piece  of  phantasy  without  any  facts  upon  which  to  base  itself. 
Yet  this  theory,  first  promulgated  in  1867,  has  been  the  frame-work 
upon  which  the  wonderful  growth  of  the  coal-tar  color  industry  has 
taken  place.  The  discoverers  of  all  the  anilin,  naphthalin  and 
anthracene  colors  since  that  date  have  used  it  as  their  working  theory,, 
and  their  results  are  all  in  accordance  with  its  teachings.  An  idea  of 
the  extent  of  this  industry  may  be  gathered  from  the  following  figures 
given  in  a  paper  read  by  Mr.  W.  H.  Perkins,  an  English  chemist,  him- 
self one  of  the  earliest  discoverers  of  anilin  colors.  The  author 
places  the  value  of  all  the  coal-tar  colors  produced  in  Europe  in  187& 
at  $15, 750,000,  divided  as  follows  : 
Germany,  ....  $10,000,000 
England  .....  2,250,000 
France,  ....  1,750,000 
Switzerland,  .                             .              .              .  1,750,000 
Total,       .  .  .  $15,750,000 
Germany  has  at  present  seventeen  coal-tar  color  works,  England  has 
six,  France  five  and  Switzerland  four  \  besides  which  there  are  three 
works  in  Germany  and  as  rrrany  in  France  which  manufacture  anilin 
in  enormous  quantities  for  the  production  of  the  coal-tar  colors.  Of 
alizarin  the  total  production  is  estimated  to  be  9,500  tons,  representing 
a  money  value  of  $7,225,000.  The  noteworthy  and  instructive  thing 
about  this  whole  subject  is  the  fact  that  these  enormous  industries, 
which  have  sprung  into  existence  since  1856,  are  entirely  the  fruit  of 
