Tlic coniing of tlic storm in 1914 sho~ved in ii niarkcd iniiiincr tlic rclritirc iiisignificiince of iniportiint sections of orgiiiiic clioniiccil industry in this country. Kunicrous rciisons wliicli nccil not bc rccnpitnliitctl linvc been ritl~nncctl in cspliiniitioii, h i t iis n tlcfinitc conscqucncc pure nnd rtpplictl orgiinic chctiiist,ry liiirc grown niiirkctlly in this iind niiiiiy otlicr countries since thnt tirnc. On the other Iiiiiid tlic otitstittitliiig position of Gcriiinny nppciirs to liiivc wciikcnctl only rclritively. l'hc dist.iiict.ion I~ctivccn pure rind iipplictl cliciiiistry hits now grown thin wid it Iiiis Lc!cn riptly said tlirit indristriril cheniist,ry is but thc itppliciitioii of sections of pure chemistry. This yelit, which iiuirks tlic ccntenitry of the llcforin 13ill, lins witnessed tlic 11itssnge of nnotlicr grcnt lcgislntire cspcriiiicnt, tlic Tinport 1)iities Act, now to I)c iiiiplcriicnted by tlic findings of tlic Ottitwn Conference, oiid it will tlicrcfore be of so~nc interest to gliincc n t tlic future pos..iLilities of our suhjcct. Por tlic sake of convciiiciice the following treiitnicnt will bc divided under tlic licndiiigs of food, c l o t h g , fiiel, trnnsport, Iioiising arid lcisiirc, nictlicinnls, iincl niiscelliincous.
Pood.-I'lic oft-csprcssctl notion of tlie syntlicsis of R complete food in tiilhid form is likely to reiniiin unrcitliecd for sonic tinic to conic. K c c l h stilted rccciitly tlitit w c could incrensc the proportion of lionie grown food froiii %--65~o of the totill \vitliiii two yews ntid iiicitlciitiilly mvc f100,000,000 on food imports. Italy lios by intensive fiirniiiig increiiscd her wheat crop from the nvcnigc of 180,000,000 for thc six prc-wnr yciirs t o 27(i, OOO, OOO, tilid tlic world's great foodstuff surplus of liist year could lie viistly incrcnsed in any normal yew 11y siniilitr nicitns. It \voiild be iilicn to tlic spirit of science Iio~vcvcr, to let a surplus stnnd in tlie wtiy of cxperinicnts such ns w r e ciirrictl out in Geriiiniiy irnd Ccntriil Europc it yciir or two iigo, in \vhich fiitty iicids wcrc niritle on tlic semi-coiii1iierciu1 scule froni pelroleurn frnctioris nnd converted to glycerides. ' Miirgtirine ~~iiini~fiictiirc, with it.s iittcndunt Silt liydrogcnation (soiiie 10,oOO tons i n 19%) hiis grown in itnportnncc and recently it clcfwt hiis I~ecn rcniedicd Ily the ittltlition of vjtitniiris. C'oncurrcntly, liirgc oil-yielding vcgctation itrcits Iiiivc Imn dcvclopcd in t.lic IStnpirc. Tlic introtluctioii of h c t sugm licrc liiis coiiipellcd iniprovcmxits in ciiiic-sugiir niiiniifiictiirc iintl the ~i e w intiustry still iicctls n C:ovcriiniciit, subsidy for its csistcnce. Idstcrisivc rcscrircli Iiris l)cc~i brouglit to bciir o i l the ngc-old cnipiricnl industry of brewing, not only here lmt also in Genniiny illid Czccliosloviikiit. The bciiring of ~( ) I I vitlucs, cnzynic iiction, thc cffcct of tliffcrent typcs of I)iirlcy, the prcscncc of nitrogenous coiistitiicnts rind so on, liuvc 1111 I)ccii invcstigiitctl. Alarnwhilc tlic density uiid price linvc inovctl in iiiverse ratio, to tlic disndvantagc of the CoIisuiiicr.
Atiiong fertilizers tlierc Iiitvc 1)ccri p e n t citlviinccs but the only one to he tiiciitionctl in this coiincsion is the cxpiintliiig production of iircii, iipj~tirciitly iit tlic csI)ciise * Itcntl Iiufciro tho Nu\rcnsIlo Scutioii of t l r c i Souicily OII 0tit.otiur 21, IWE.