THE CHEMICAL NEWS, VOL. CXXV., No. 3249 THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION OF CHEMISTRY. THE UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT FUND, A Special General Meeting of the British Association of Chemists was held on Saturday, July 8th, at the Midland Hotel, Manchester, for confirmation of the Advisory Ballot on the Unemployment Benefit Scheme and for its formal adoption as part of the rules of the Association. In the unavoidable absence of the President, the chair was taken by Mr. Wm. E. Kay, there being about 50 members present. The occasion was noteworthy, having regard to the fact that copies of the first monthly issue of the official journal of the Association-"The Bulletin of the British Association of Chemists "-were distributed among those present. It contains an editorial, reports of proceedings from the London, Birmingham and Manchester sections, an article entitled "Educational Facilities for Laboratory Assistants," and an earnest appeal from a writer, giving the initials "F.B.G.," to all members to whole-heartedly support the establishment of the Unemployment Benefit Fund. Many chemists, he wrote, were now out of employment, and, to quote the writer's concluding words-" It may be your turn next." was The Chairman, in outlining the nature of the business to be transacted, said that an attempt was now being made to help, out of a common purse, those among them upon whom there were serious and urgent calls. Although they had taken the best professional advice they could, yet the Unemployment Benefit Fund Scheme somewhat tentative in the sense that there was still very little known as to how unemployment among chemists stood in relation. to general unemployment. There were no actuarial figures available which would give them the means of putting forward a cut-and-dried scheme. Therefore they had had to prepare one which had in it elements of elasticity, and they had endeavoured to prepare, under certain aspects of the scheme, means of meeting special contingencies. In a preliminary way, the feeling of the members had been tested and had proved to be emphatically in favour of the establishment of a scheme. Only 14 per cent. objected to it. The course that he intended to pursue in the conduct of the meeting was to put before them two resolutions: (1) "That this meeting confirms the result of the ballot on the Unemploy ment Benefit Fund Scheme, and hereby authorises the Council to proceed with its registration as an addition to the rules of the Association." (2) "That the rules for the Unemployment Benefit Fund be put into immediate operation, and that subscriptions to the Fund be payable as from 1st July, 1922." The Chairman then formally moved the first resolution. Mr. Harrison, as Secretary of the Fund Committee, seconded. He thought they would all agree with him when he said that this was the greatest economic scheme which had ever been placed before chemists. The Council and the Committee which had been charged with its preparation had done their best to make it a success. It was one which should be part and parcel of the first ideals of the Association. No one could possibly have any objection to its principle. Their organisation was an economic body banded together for the purpose of looking after each other's interests. The scheme was not a stunt for councillors to seek reelection on, and it was not one by which any member could take advantage of another. It would benefit the Association in many ways, financially and socially, and he was convinced that in the future the fortunes of the Association would largely depend upon it. Most of them had noticed at some time or other some great commercial undertaking, which had been moving forward slowly, suddenly burst forth into great prosperity. When they came to consider why this was so, they found that it was due in the main to the accumulation of much capital. Speaking for themselves, they did not want to gain capital by increasing subscriptions, but by gaining members. If they gained members they would obtain all the capital they required, and without capital they could not go forward as an Association. The new rules embodying the scheme They were were then considered in detail. 18 in number. Dr. Foster enquired whether the scheme could be made applicable for probationers to voluntarily join it. It was stated that, under the rules in their present form, this could not be done, but if thought necessary some provision could be made in that direction. Mr. R. Brightman suggested that before dealing with any question of probationers they should obtain fresh actuarial advice. Dr. Foster said that his question was merely intended to be suggestive, and the Chairman promised that the Committee would consider the point. Rules 2 and 3 provide that the Fund shall be administered through a Special Purposes Committee appointed by the Council, and shall include the Trustees of the Association, and that the benefits paid shall be upon a "unit system" and shall vary in accordance with the number of units of contributions taken up. Rule 7 was considered in the following form: (7) The maximum number of Units for which a Member may subscribe shall be dependent on age and in accordance with the following Schedule, except in the case of a married member, who may take up one extra Unit: Maximum No. of Benefit week Units for which per for each Unit a Member Age at joining. subscribed. may subscribe. Rule 10 provides that no benefits shall be payable during the first month of unemployment, and Rule 11 that in order to provide a nucleus for the Fund no benefits shall be payable during the first six months. of the operation of the scheme. Members joining the Fund after the date of the Scheme first being put into operation will also not be eligible for benefit until six months from the date of their first subscription. Rule 13 makes provision for any benefit member being suspended from owing to his own misconduct. Rule provides, after the auditors have certified that the necessary Reserve Funds have been established, that 75 per cent. of the surplus funds may be distributed as a cash bonus. The whole of the Rules having been discussed, and necessary textual alterations having been made, they were confirmed in the terms of the first resolution. The Chairman then moved, and Mr. Redgrove seconded, the adoption of the second resolution, which was carried unanimously. A general discussion then took place in the course of which Mr. A. S. Mills gave an account of the working of the Unemployment Bureau and of the rebates which were now allowed by the Income Tax Commissioners in respect to damaged clothing, &c. Closer co-operation with the N.U.S.W. was also advocated. NOTES. The Library of the Chemical Society will be closed for stocktaking from August 7th to August 19th, and will close each even ing at 5 o'clock from August 21st to September 16th. In this week's Manchester Guardian Commercial is given a description of "Arghan," a new textile fabric for which much is claimed. Originally discovered in the leaves of a plant akin to the pineapple growing in the South American wilds, the difficulties of transport were at first in superable. So a large quantity of roots. were conveyed to the Federated Malay States, where the F.M.S. Government, foreseeing the fibre's potential value, immediately set apart 30,000 acres for its development. Now the Ceylon and Indian Governments propose to grant similar large tracts. Arghan is past its experimental stages, since not only magnificent fibre, but a beautiful firm cloth is being made from it. No great preparation is needed, for the broad leaves, without any degumming or retting, split up into innumerable. pearly white silky fibres. Their merits are astonishing, being actually 50 per cent. stronger than hemp, extending to six feet or more and adamant to sea-water. Both the cloth and the yarn take dye permanently, and it is opined by experts that if the fibre can be produced at lower cost than similar flaxen or hemp fabric, it must rival them in use. the pure compound was arrived at. This method, unlike any of the previous ones found in the literature, is complete as far as laboratory directions are concerned, will work exactly as recorded, and was used for the preparation of considerable quantities of the pure base. 110 g. of paratoluidin and 60 g. of powdered roll sulphur are heated from 4 to 6 hours in a one litre flask equipped with a reflux air condenser on an oil bath at 220°. At the end of this time the melt is poured out into an evaporating dish or a mould made of the lid of a flat paper or wooden box, and powdered after cooling. It should weigh about 100 g., depending on how much can not be poured from the flask, but not more than this is used in the subsequent distillation. The distillation is then conducted in the apparatus in Fig. 3, following the directions and precautions already given. The product is recrystallised once from 96 per cent. ethyl alcohol which gives 22-25 g. of yellow needles melting at 192-193° C. (cor.). Further recrystallisation and boneblacking will yield it still paler in colour and melting at 194.8° C. (cor.) as already described. 9. Benzal-Dehydrothiotoluidin. 14 12 2 To a saturated solution of dehydrothiotoluidin in alcohol, add the calculated amount of benzaldehyde from the equation: C1H12N2S N2S+ C,H, O = C2,HN,S+ H2O. C21H Heat to boiling for a few minutes and allow to stand to crystallisation. The yield is practically quantitative, and this method may be conveniently used to recover the base from the solutions remaining from its purification, as the condensation product is much less soluble in 96 per cent. ethyl alcohol than the dehydrothiotoluidin itself. Recrystallise the product from alcohol in which it gives a pale yellow strongly fluorescent solution, and from which it appears in voy pale yellow, odourless, glistening plates melting at 193° C. (cor.). which Dobner and Giesiecke 78 found that aniline underwent. The reaction was therefore tried following this method, but substituting the molecular quantity of the sulphur base for the aniline. The benzaldehyde condensation product was isolated from the reaction mixture, but no new compound corresponding to atophan was found, although small amounts of an amorphous brown material soluble in toluene, but insoluble in sodium carboniate and hydroxide, were formed. The experiment was repeated, using the benzal-dehydrothiotoluidin instead of the two substances individually, but after 24 hours' heating practically all of the material was recovered unchanged, although small amounts of an amorphous, highly insoluble brown material were formed. Dehydrothiotoluidin apparently will not dense to form a substituted atophan. con 78. Döbner and Giesiecke, Ann., 242, 291 (1887). (See also Garzarolli and Thurnlackhi, Berichte, 32, 2276 (1889). Pfitzinger, Jour. Pr. Chem. (2), 38, 583 (1905). 79. Skraup, Monatshefte, 1, 316 (1880). Wiener, Monatshefte, 2, 141 (1881). 80. Kneuppel, Berichte, 29, 709 (1896). 81. Barnett, Chem. News, 121, 205 (1920). 82. During an unpublished synthesis of ortho-tol-quinolin. low solid forming on the bottom toward the end of the reaction when the mass became very viscous and boiling slowed up. The mass solidified on cooling, 300 cc. of water were added, and it was distilled with steam to remove the nitrobenzene. The residue in the flask was neutralised with warm sodium hydroxide, filtered and dried, and distilled in vacuo, as it was expected that the new compound would probably be a solid because of its high molecular weight, and complex structure, a conclusion which was later justified. A small amount of yellow solid distilled over with a vile smelling liquid. The solid was filtered off and dissolved in concentrated hydrochloric acid, from which it was precipitated with water. It was recrystallised from hot alcohol, and the red, fluorescent solution deposited small light brown crystals (1 g.), with a tobacco-like odour, melting at 142° C. (uncor.). The use of the crude dehydrothiotoluidin was thought, however, to offer too many other possibilities, so the reaction was repeated using pure material, and following the method of Kneuppel, with appropriate modifications for the different physical properties of the new substance, which was expected to give a better yield. 15 g. (0.07 moles.) of pure dehydrothiotoluidin is dissolved in 20 cc. of concentrated sulphuric acid which is slightly more than the amount necessary in the original m. thod, but is required because of the physical properties of the amine, and 21.7 g. of glycerine and 10.6 g. of arsenic acid were added to the solution in a one litre flask equipped with an air condenser. The large flask is necessary because the reaction is vigorous and the mixture foams up and will run all the way up the condenser otherwise. The mixture is heated, is red at first, but vigorous ebullition soon begins and continues even if the flame is removed, and turns brown as the reaction proceeds, the mixture foaming up. The temperature is kept constant at 190° by means of an oil bath. Stop heating after 1 hours, cool, and add 500 cc. of water. Continued shaking gives a deep brown solution that appears homogeneous. Neutralise with solid sodium hydroxide. The solution becomes light brown at the neutral point, and deposits a black, tarry material, which is involatile and cannot be distilled with steam. Filter off and dry the black solid. Distil in vacuo in the apparatus designed for dehydrothiotoluidin. The mass melts, and the product distils over around 250° C. at 45 |