Dec., 1919
T H E J O U R N A L OF I N D U S T R I A L A N D E N G I N E E R I N G C H E M I S T R Y
upon the Textile Alliance as the sole medium of importation. Some greeting t h a t ! There had been unexpected and unnecessary delay, but there could now be no doubt of an early and successful termination of the whole matter. And so i t turned out, for in a few days a meeting was held, as a result of which a message, which must have taxed the capacity of the cables, was sent by t h e Alliance t o its European representative, ordering the dyes.
THE BATTLE IS ON “Unless the spirit of independence is dead in the hearts of Americans, our people will never be satisfied until the American dye industry has been developed t o a point where i t can take care of every American need and stand as a bulwark of reserve for any future conflicts in which our nation may be compelled t o engage.” This was the remark we made t o the vice president of the Textile Alliance as we left the offices of the Badische Anilin und Soda Fabrik a t Ludwigshafen on October 30. His instant agreement with t h e sentiment, in words much more picturesque and emphatic t h a n we had used, convinced us t h a t we had read aright the signs of the times evidenced during the two-hour interview we had just had with the high officials of t h a t greatest of all German dye manufacturing establishments. On the previous day we had had a very pleasant meeting a t Frankfurt with Dr. C. von Weinberg, the head of the German dye Kartel, and were beginning t o feel t h a t after all matters were shaping nicely. We proceeded t o the Badische plant in a comfortable mood. But the first few moments of the interview with the officials of t h a t plant brought out from Director Krell t h e volunteered information t h a t t h e lines had broken a t home, t h a t already he h a d i n hand orders from individual consumers with authority from the United States Government t o ship through their American agents t o the consumer. “Cocky” is the only word t o describe the attitude of the director. He had no desire t o discuss any matter in which we were interested, but with characteristic German psychology he endeavored a t once t o secure our assistance in persuading our Government t h a t this whole matter could and should be handled only through the American agents of the German dye works. “Yes,” he said, “We are going t o get back our old business in America, and through the medium of our former agencies. This is the only way it should be done, and this is the way it will be done.’’ The remark was so illuminating t h a t we asked him t o repeat it, which he did. There we sat listening t o this statement in the offices of the chief plant of t h a t great combination of manufacturers whose former control of our dyestuff supplies had led von Bernstorff t o suggest t o the Kaiser t h a t through shutting off these supplies he could throw four million Americans out of employment; perhaps in the very room where millions of dollars had been voted t o corrupt American industrial life; and near
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the spot where tons of material had been produced for poison gas by whose deadly action many a gallant doughboy had “gone west” and now slept beneath French soil. Smoke was pouring from all but two of the many tall stacks of t h a t establishment. The industrial war was on; the words of Director Krell left no doubt about that. The same supreme confidence characterized t h e industrial German as had been recorded of the military German in his first advance through Belgium, the same utter contempt shown of American capacity t o do things as was shown during 1917. But 1918 showed t h a t the German had missed his guess and we make the prediction t h a t he has missed again. Only one thing is needed t o insure the correctness of t h a t prediction, namely, t h a t the mass of our people understand just what the situation is. To t h a t understanding we are confident the American press will continue t o contribute, as i t has already done so splendidly during the past three years. T h a t understanding will reflect itself in sympathetic protective legislation and time will do the rest, for the American chemist needs only time t o forge the missing links in the chain of a c o m plete self-sustained American dye industry. I n the commercial struggle t h a t is now on, the way is not plain sailing for the German manufacturer. I n addition to what Americans have already accomplished and are determined t o complete, the German faces a winter in which the coal supply is destined t o prove a more serious obstacle t o contend with t h a n was the food problem resulting from the blockade. Transportation problems are also very acute, though the Rhine will furnish the natural transportation for dyes t o Rotterdam if the winter rains come early enough t o restore the volume of water in the river, now so low as t o require light loading of the steamers and barges which carry so much of German commerce. Finally, t h e German is badly worried over the situation created by the seizure of those patents by which he had throttled American industry for so many years. He signed the Treaty of Peace, agreeing t h a t these seizures were valid, but already he is beginning t o whine and t o t r y carefully t o manufacture sentiment against the splendid work in behalf of American commercial freedom so courageously carried out, under the authority of Congress, by the Alien Property Custo di an. I n spite of these handicaps the German dye manufacturer is strong to-day. His plants are even greater than before the war, the personnel of those plants is practically intact, large stores of material are accumulated and he is determined t o regain his markets. It would be foolish t o belittle the German’s ability or his fighting strength, but in the light of the accomplishments of the past four years, and indeed of the brilliant achievements during the short period of our absence, our mind turns back with supreme confidence in the correctness of the prediction of the Swiss professor who twenty years ago said t o us, “The natural house of the dye industry is America, and some day it will be there.” Speed the day, oh ye chemists of America1
