McCormick messenger. (McCormick, S.C.) 1902-current, September 30, 1937, Image 6
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McCORMICK MESSENGER, McCORMICK. S. C., THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 1937
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GEMS MADE FROM CARBOLIC ACID
Country Newspaper Editor’s Discovery Led to Huge Industry, Af
fecting Every Walk of Life in “the Plastic Age.”
By WILLIAM C. UTLEY
C OUNTRY newspaper editors
have exerted upon Ameri
can life an influence which is
perhaps second to that of no
other group of men. But one
country editor little dreamed
65 years ago that he had started
something destined to become a
new and amazingly common
factor in the daily life of virtu
ally all Americans—indeed, in
the lives of persons in every
corner of the world. He simply
believed he had failed to win
$jL0,000.
Now country newspaper editors
are not wealthy as a rule, and John
Wesley Hyatt, editor and printer of
Starkey, N. Y., was no exception.
He had ideas, though. And when a
billiard ball manufacturer, discour
aged by the expense of stalking
African pachyderms for the raw
material of which his product was
made, offered $10,000 for a synthetic
ivory substitute, Hyatt began some
serious tinkering with test tubes, re
torts and a Bunsen burner in the
back of his shop.
Somehow, between type cases, an
bid Washington hand press and his
laboratory. Editor Hyatt managed
to keep from getting highly explo
sive gun cotton mixed up with the
local items and the legal notices,
and conducted exhaustive experi
ments. From this gun cotton (nitro
cellulose) he failed to produce syn
thetic ivory, and of course he
missed out on the $10,000 prize.
But he did stumble upon something
of far vaster importance to the hu
man race than all the ivory in the
world—he found the formula for
celluloid.
Celluloid was the first commer
cially usable plastic; it opened the
pages of history to what we now
think of as “the plastic ase.’' They
make billiard balls, jewelry and a
few fancy doo-dads out of ivory, and
they still do. But today, through
the magic of modern chemistry,
more than 300,000 articles in gener
al use are manufactured by the men
who pioneered in plastics.
What Plastics Are.
The end is nowhere in sight; in
fact the plastics industry is still in
its swaddling clothes. But the ef
fect it will have upon society in
the days to come is not going with
out recognition. The national re
sources committee, in its much-pub
licized report to the President, rec
ommending social planning for the
development of new inventions and
young industries, named plastics
with television, airplanes, the me
chanical cotton-picker and other in
novations, as one of the inventions
most likely to have profound effect
upon our society of the next fifteen
years. Yet you cannot find one per
son in fifty who can tell you much
about how plastics are made, or one
person in ten who can even tell
you what they are.
Actually, a plastic is anything
that can be molded or pressed into
a desired shape. In industry the
term applies to a wide range of
synthetic materials classified ac
cording to their chemical nature and
the way they are made. The most
important classification in industry
—and in our daily life—is phenolic
resin. The utility of this plastic
was accidentally discovered; in fact
fortunate accidents were largely re
sponsible for “the plastic age.”
Ten years after Editor Hyatt
stumbled upon celluloid, the mate
rial was in general use; 10,000 high
ly diversified articles were made
from it, the most famed probably
being the old celluloid collar that
reached popularity in the days of
handlebar moustaches.
Catalin Was a War Baby.
Next in the succession of plastic
accidents was the discovery made
by Dr. Leo Baekeland, Belgian-
American scientist, forty years aft
er the Hyatt incident. Experiment
ing in his laboratory at Yonkers,
N. Y., Dr. Baekeland was searching
for a highly insulating material
much in demand by the electrical
industry. He inadvertently hit up
on the formula for a cast phenolic
resin which was non-inflammable.
This was highly important. Anv
Left: In test
ing laboratory,
a chemist puts
catalin buttons
through the
same trials they
would face in
years of wear.
Right: Adding
color to catalin.
one who can remember back three
decades can recall when “the best
dressed man in town” had to be
mighty careful with his cigar be
cause his celluloid collar, which
could be wiped off with a damp
cloth, could also be touched off by
a tiny spark, leaving him a bit hot
under the collar. The inflammabil
ity of celluloid and the consequent
hazard of storing it had precluded
the extension of its use, but the dis
covery of the new non-inflammable
material gave impetus to the broad
ening use of plastics.
The World war set the stage for
the third and most recent impor
tant development in the world of
plastics. European Entente chem
ists worked feverishly trying to cre
ate a synthetic rubber from phenol
(the carbolic acid derivative of
coal) and formaldehyde (a gaseous
derivative of wood alcohol captivat
ed in water).
Desperate they were, these re
searchists. With their ports block
aded and supplies cut off, the En
tente nations needed raw materi
als. Rubber was sorely needed to
soften the screech of iron-tired
wheels of military equipment, which
creaked and rattled, indicating their
positions to the enemy just as defi
nitely as if they had shouted, “Here
we are.” Gas masks, footgear and
other articles required the precious
rubber.
Synthetic rubber eluded them. But
the German scientists did discover
catalin, a material similar to that
discovered by Dr. Baekeland, and
made from the same ingredients,
but so processed that it would be
produced in a new aurora of color
ranging from water-clear white, re
sembling glass, to delicate pastels,
vivid hues, black, white, ivory and
many combinations of colors defi
nitely divided or blended by mot
tling.
The Germans had too much other
business on hand to spend a great
deal of time in the development of
catalin, so the formula, patent
rights and manufacturing privileges
were bought by Americans.
Industry Still in Infancy.
Three important plastics had now
been introduced to American indus
try. It was not long before 3,000
manufacturers, many of whose
wheels had been idle, learned that
they could make many salable
items from plastic materials, using
the same machinery which had for
merly been used in tooling wood or
soft metals and with the same
craftsmen and technique. A shin
ing example is a Canadian firm
which made spools for thread. Its
community depended upon the em
ployment it offered for a living; yet
its market had fallen to nearly
nothing. The plant turned to the
manufacture of catalin articles and
now, with the same equipment and
craftsmen, it produces buttons, jew
elry and scores of other items that
amaze the public with their brilliant
beauty.
The flood of plastic articles to the
market has in a few years altered
fashion trends in costume jewelry,
made insignificant accessories an
important part in the fashion pic
ture, created thousands of new ver
sions of useful articles—and the
President’s natural resources com
mittee warns that the industry is
only in its infancy, that society will
have to plan to adjust itself to its
development. Thus is the magni
tude of this “plastic age” being rec
ognized by men who contemplate
our future!
How do the 300,000 articles now
made from catalin and other plas
tics affect our daily lives? We start
the day with a plastic-handled tooth
brush, razor and comb. At the
breakfast table we may find knives
forks and spoons with colorful han
dles of catalin—tjie insulating han
dles of the toaster and percolator
are of the same material. The
kitchen electric service comes i
'Way Back When
By JEANNE
FORMER MAYOR WAS A SONG
WRITER
'T'HERE were twelve children in
our family and it was necessary
to have a pretty strict rule about
being reasonably quiet in the house
and at the dinner table. My father
repeated so often, “Children are to
be seen and not heard” or “Silence
is golden” that just to think of those
old adages brings back the echo of
his voice. I can’t agree with the
principle of those sayings. Chil
dren who are encouraged to join in
the conversation are likely to have
more self-confidence and to be more
social minded. In some cases, their
very talkativeness may be golden.
Take Jimmy Walker for instance:
James John Walker, who later be
came mayor of New York City and
was one of the most popular men
ever to hold that office, was born
in New York’s Greenwich Village
in 1881. When still a very small
boy, he was nick-named “Jimmy
Talker” because he could not be
c* f
through a plastic switch, plate and
fittings, and in all probability
serves a table lamp with a plastic
shade. (For lamp shades are now
being made of paper, glazed with
liquid phenolic resin, as the most
commonly used plastic is called,
commercially. Dials for clocks, ra
dios and speedometers are similar
ly treated, providing an attractive,
efficient and economical substitute
for previous processes.)
This is just a fair morning start.
Driving to business, we use a plas
tic steering wheel, gear shift lever
handle and all sorts of gadgets on
the instrument panel. At the of
fice the telephone instrument is
made of plastic, and it is an “odds-
on” bet that so are the inkwell, pen
and ashtray on the desk. Veneer
surface woods in the furniture are
cemented in place with a liquid
plastic adhesive.
How Catalin Is Made.
Almost no matter what you do,
you encounter plastic products. Col
orful wall panels in modern thea
ters, dwellings and ocean liners are
made of them. So are jewelry, toilet
articles, cosmetic containers,
buckles, umbrella handles, bag and
golf club fittings and game fish
lures. Even “store teeth” are made
of plastics, as are the dental plates
to which they are affixed. For those
who like to quaff the flowing bowl,
the advent of catalin dental plates
was a welcome boon, for the old
type plates were deteriorated by al
cohol, while catalin is not. But den
tistry is only one of the numerous
professional fields in which plastics
has left an indelible mark. You can
turn into almost any other line of
endeavor and there it is—plastics,
making important new strides.
Catalin is made by mixing for
maldehyde and phenol in nickel-
lined kettles of approximately 3,000
pounds capacity. The weight is re
duced to about 1,500 pounds by the
time the first production phase is
complete. The mixture is cooked
at a low temperature. Heat is pro
duced by the reaction of the two
ingredients and held down to an
even temperature by the use of wa
ter, vacuum or steam in an out
side jacket. At this stage the color
is added.
Here catalin has the consistency
of molasses, and is poured into
lead molds to form the shapes re
quired by the fabricators. Two or
three color combinations may be
cast at a single pouring, the mold
leading the different colors into
their proper places. Catalin is also
poured into pans and when semi-
cured (heated until it becomes
gelatinous) is sliced into required
thicknesses.
Magnificent Future Seen. <
In the curing ovens, the even,
moderate temperature of which
would permit a man’s walking
around in them, catalin is complet
ed by curing for about 50 hours. It
is then ready for delivery to the
fabricator, who cuts it, lathes it,
buffs it and otherwise works it into
the finished product which he sells.
So great has been the public cu
riosity about plastics, especially
since the national resources com
mittee’s report, that one of the lead
ing moving picture producers in
Hollywood has filmed the manufac
ture of multi-colored catalin in full
colors. The picture was scheduled
for release in 8,000 theaters in Oc
tober.
What of the future? The almost
utter lack of limitations in the field
for cast resins defies description.
Because of its beauty, its low cost,
its extreme “workability,” and its
many peculiar characteristics it is
the stuff for pioneers in almost ev
ery branch of industry.
Country newspaper editor John
Wesley Hyatt really started some
thing when he began dabbling out
side his chosen field 65 years ago.
© Western Newspaper Hnion.
rN
T HE seed of success is ambition,
and Orville Wright was ambi
tious from early boyhood. He was
born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1871, the
youngest of five children, and as
they grew up Orville and one of his
older brothers, Wilbur, became in
separable. A highly respectable
mid-western family, the father was
a bishop of the United Brethren
church and later publisher of a re
ligious newspaper; but the family
never had a lot of money. Or
ville Wright started to make money
early in life, going about the neigh
borhood and collecting old bones to
sell to a fertilizing plant. When he
was fourteen, he published a school
paper with a toy printing press. Lat
er he made a press of his own and
Wilbur improved it. Next he invent
ed a paper folding machine for his
father’s print shop. He quit school
in the third year of high school and,
with Wilbur, started a weekly news
paper which lasted only three
months. They then turned to job
printing and later started a bicycle
repair shop.
At about this time, they became
interested in aviation and proceeded
to construct the first heavier than
air machine large enough to carry
a man. As in their previous activi
ties, Orville was the creative gen
ius, Wilbur the perfecter. Their
first successful flight was at Kitty
Hawk, N C., in 1903. and the suc
cess of aviation was assured when
Orville made a flight lasting 62 min
utes and 15 seconds, in 1908.
fih WNU Servine.
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kept quiet. His father was run
ning for alderman at one time,
and Jimmy was sent to explain that
he could not be present at a polit
ical rally because of illness. The
crowd called for a speech from
the young boy, and he did so well
that his father was elected.
Jimmy Walker went to school in
New York City, and studied law;
but for a while it looked as though
he might be a professional song
writer instead of a lawyer or a
politician. He wrote several songs
which were published and made a
national hit by composing “Will
You Love Me in December As You
Did in May?” None of his other
songs enjoyed the popularity of this
one, however, and Jimmy decided
upon a more conventional career.
He went to work as a clerk for
the Union Surety Guarantee com
pany and with his earnings re
turned to law school. He estab
lished a fine law practice, and be
came more and more prominent
in politics. In 1925, he was elected
mayor of New York City and en
joyed more mass popularity than
any mayor of recent times has
known there.
* • •
INVENTOR RAN BICYCLE
REPAIR SHOP
DRIDE goeth with Fall and
glamor, too, Milady, when you
wear distinguished fashions by
Sew-Your-Own! Today’s trio gives
youth a chance to express itself
in an individual manner; gives the
adult figure an opportunity to dis
play a new high in chic, and last—
but we wouldn’t say least—a util
ity model that’s as right for
daughter as for mother.
Swank ’n’ Sweet.
Young and inspired is the little
two piecer that just stepped into
the picture at the left. The topper
is one that will set a vogue in this
woman’s town and make you the
swankiest of the whole lot of Laf-
a-Lots. If you’re asked to picnic
in the colorful Autumn woods,
wear this number in henna-
colored wool for real satisfaction
and that perfect harmony that
makes picnicking a picnic.
For Kitchen Capers.
And before you go, there’ll be
sandwiches to make, potatoes to
peel, and lemons to squeeze—
that’s where and when the ging
ham gown in the center comes in.
Of course, its novel yoke-and-
sleeve-in-one construction makes
it a most attractive model to sew
as well as to wear. The skirt has
flare enough for cutting those
kitchen capers one has to when
minutes are few and work plenti
ful. Make this simple five-piece
frock in two versions and be sure
of everyday chic at minimum
cost.
Style Success.
While we go picnicking and
places, don’t think Mommy isn’t
going to swing out in style, too.
She’s certain of success when she
goes to her Club; she’s sure of
well-groomed elegance for Sunday
best in the slenderizing frock at
the right. It does wonders for the
figure that needs it, and it is
equally becoming to sizes 18 and
20. So, Mommy, no matter what
your size or the color of your hair,
you’ll be young enough and slim
enough in this frock to feel like
the very essence of fashion.
The Patterns.
Pattern 1336 is designed for
sizes 12 to 20 (30 to 38 bust). Size
14 requires 5% yards of 36 inch
material plus 4% yards of 1 3 A inch
bias strip for fold for trimming.
Pattern 1381 is designed for
sizes 14 to 44. Size 16 requirei
3V4 yards of 39 inch material.
Pattern 1286 is designed for
sizes 36 to 48. Size 38 requires
4% yards of 39 inch material.
Send your order to The Sewing
Circle Pattern Dept., Room 1020,
211 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago, Ill-
Price of patterns, 15 cehts (in,
coins) each.
© Bell Syndicate.—WNU Service.
"Quotations"
A
A strong and faithful pulpit is no
mean safeguard of a nation’s life.—
John Hall.
Fashion seldom interferes with
nature without diminishing her
grace and efficiency.—Tuckerman.
Delay not till tomorrow to be
wise; tomorrow’s sun to thee may
never rise.—Congreve.
No tempting form of error is with
out some latent charm derived from
truth.—Keith.
There is always a great dispropor
tion between what one has done and
what one wants to do.—Madame
Curie.
The youth who follows his appe
tites too soon, only produces a man
hood of imbecility and an age of
pain.—Goldsmith.
|N»jcJ
Many doctors recommend Nujol
because of its gentle action on
the bowels. Don’t confuse Nujol
with unknown products.
INSIST ON GENUINE NUJOL
Copr. 1937, StaDOo loo.
But Look
It is not necessary to light a
candle to see the sun.—Sydney.
How CARDUI
Helps Women
Cardui is a purely vegetable medi
cine, found by many women to ease
functional pains of menstruation. It
also helps to strengthen women, who
have been weakened by poor nour
ishment, by increasing their appetite
and improving their digestion. Many
have reported lasting benefit from
the wholesome nutritional assist
ance obtained by taking Cardui. If
you have never taken Cardui, get a
bottle of Cardui at the nearest drug
store, read the directions and try it.
Without Faith
The faith that stands on author
ity is not faith.—Emerson.
Get
from
your
Dealer
"BLACK LEAF 40"
/Keeps Dogs Away from
| Evergreens,Shnibs etc.
- 1986 Use 1 Vi Teaspoonful
per Gallon of Spray.
Worms cause much distress to children and
anxiety to parents. Dr. Peery’s “Dead Shot”
removes the cause with a single dose. 60c.
All Drug-gists
Dr Peery’s
^ Dtaa Shot for WORMS
vermifuge
Wrights Pill Co.. 100 Gold Street. N. Y. City
Friendly Silence
Silence is a true friend who
never betrays.—Confucius.
|SNOW WHITE PETROLEUM JELLY |
LARGE JARS 5*AMD!Ot
CHEW LONG BILL NAVY TOBACCO
St
PLUG
Your Advertising Dollar
buys something more than space and circulation in
the columns of this newspaper. It buys space and
circulation plus the favorable consideration of our
readers for this newspaper and its advertising patrons.
Let us tell you more about it.