Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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v>‘ a McCORMICK MESSENGER, McCORMICK, S. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1938 Aluminum, Once Royalty’s Tableware, WHAT to EAT and WHY Completes 50 Years of Practicability Industry’s Golden Jubilee Recalls Early Struggle Of Co-Pioneers. By JOSEPH W. LaBINE Fifty years ago this Novem ber, in a little “two-by-four” building in Pittsburgh, Charles Martin Hall and Arthur Vining Davis tinkered with a dyspep tic electric generator, a few carbon electrodes and a car bon-lined “pot” for an “elec trolytic bath.” One of them closed a switch, the electrodes sput tered, the current began to pass through the mass in the pot—and a new industry was born which was destined to affect virtually all of the nation’s popula tion. Their discovery: Aluminum. For more than half a century sci entists of the world had sought to produce it cheaply enough to re move it from the category of an emperor’s tableware to a practical metal. Napoleon III had sunk a fortune trying to produce it for light weight trappings that would give his cavalry an edge on its foes. In 1855, the king of Siam had selected a bar of aluminum as the most un usual object at the world’s fair in Paris, had a watch fob made from it, and bore it proudly back to Bang kok. Today, as it prepares to celebrate its golden anniversary, the alumi num industry furnishes jobs direct ly for 51,200 workers with an annual payroll of $68,000,000, the Aluminum association, a trade group of some of the 200 manufacturers of more than 2,000 aluminum products, esti mates. Indirectly, it provides jobs for 150,000 more, the industry claims. Metallic Reincarnation Yet it is probably impossible to make an accurate estimate, says Capt. Kenneth G. Castleman, sec retary of the association, for by far the major tonnage of virgin alumi num produced becomes a perma nent part of the American scene, since the “scrap” is highly recov erable by remelting and returns oft en a dozen times to make competi tion for the new metal produced. “The aluminum foil which wrapped your rrioming cigar may Day- Picture Day Aluminum is used in countless forms—sheet, tubing, forg ings, extruded shapes, impact extrusions, foil and wire, to name a few. This workman is pouring small sand castings. A favorite American politi cal game is having your pic ture taken while voting. Herefs a preview of three politicians as they will appear November 8. Above: Sen Millard E. Tydings of Maryland. have gotten its original start in life in a cast touring body of the now extinct Franklin automobile or one of the famed ‘White Steamers,’ ” Castleman says. “Sold as scrap from an automobile boneyard, it might have been restored to useful ness successively as a cooking uten sil, an automobile piston, a washing machine or vacuum cleaner part, a bit of a permanent wave machine, a hair curler, a toy kite, a souve nir calendar-back or even a set of false teeth. When you throw the cigar wrapper away, more than likely someone will rescue it from the city dump and it will return again to service, possibly as a con denser in your television radio set.” In the short space of 50 years (aluminum, commercially, is 10 years younger than electric light) it has assumed fourth place in vol ume among metals, although it has had to battle for its position with other materials commonly employed for thousands of years. The first twinkling dawn of a bright future probably appeared on a February morning in 1886, when Charles Martin Hall, then a youth just out of Oberlin college, rushed from his crude, woodshed labora tory to the home of his former chemistry professor, crying, “I’ve succeeded, at last I’ve succeeded!” In his hands were some pellets of the first aluminum to be made by the electrolytic process which still produces all the nation’s aluminum. Headaches, Heartaches But Hall’s experiments had been made in the laboratory. There was no assurance they would work on an industrial scale. He couldn’t find a backer, and it was two years be fore Capt. A. E. Hunt, George S. Clapp and a few other Pittsburgh men decided to take a gamble and invest $20,000 in an experimental, or “pilot,” plant. Hall’s process had so many “bugs” that for the first year or two the little plant was hardly more than an experimental laboratory it self. Arthur \. Davis, another young college boy who had been hired as night superintendent, now recalls the early days with a twinkle in his eye. “Hall and I roomed at the same house, and each of us worked a hec- <*>- Gov. George H. Earle of Penntylvania was winning the Democratic senatorial nomi nation when this picture was taken at the primary election. On November 8 he will vote again, sighing hopefully. Sen. Ellison D (Cotton Ed) Smith of South Carolina knows he f ll win, but isn*t very happy about it. Throughout Ameri ca, election day finds news photographers waiting at the polls for personalities. tic 12-hour shift,” Davis, today the outstanding figure in the aluminum industry, reminisces. “Something was always going wrong with the plant. The machinery would break down, the current would fail. “It’s rather an amusing thing that for a while during the first year the only time we were able to produce any aluminum was when the plant broke down and the bath would harden, or ‘freeze.’ In hammering this black, dirty mess out of the pots, we’d usually come across a few pellets of comparatively pure aluminum. For the first year we kept the metal in the office safe, because it was worth $5 a pound at that time, although today the price is listed at 20 cents.” But after they had produced their lightweight metal. Hall and Davis slowly awakened to the surprising revelation that hardly anybody wanted it. True, there was some little sale for mustache combs, la dies’ fans, cigar cases and a few similar novelties popular in the nineties. But to make their orphan industry successful, these pioneers knew they must get it into fields of common use. Like cooking utensils, for in stance. Aluminum is light, conducts heat evenly and does not contami nate food. Today nearly 400,000,000 aluminum cooking utensils have been made. But in the early days it was impossible to get a utensil manufacturer to give the metal a try. He Has the Evidence “As a matter of fact, I made the first aluminum cooking utensil my self,” says Davis, and he still has the original article—a teapot—on display in his office to prove it. “We had to build our own sheet mill and eventually a cooking utensil plant to get them on the market at all. Then many of the stores re fused to stock them, because they were already making a profit on more familiar goods made of other materials. So we peddled our wares house to house. That was where the ‘working - my - way - through - college’ sales approach was born. One of our collegiate salesman, in cidentally, was Huey Long.” The same story was true of elec trical conductor wire, which now con sumes one-eighth of the nation’s alu minum. Davis, after long travail, succeeded in persuading a customer to try aluminum cable—and then found there wasn’t a solitary mill capable of producing it. He had the double trouble of keeping the customer happy while building a cable plant in a whale of a hurry at the san>e time. To make aluminum generally available, the founders of the indus try themselves had to find new uses for the metal and often turn out the fabricated products themselves. From their research laboratories have come the discoveries leading to streamlined trains; new oxide fin ishes which opened up wide fields in architecture and construction; alu minum foil to wrap foods and in sulate buildings; weather-resisting aluminum paint, and countless al loys which make the metal adapta ble to almost any purpose. The American aluminum industry produced 292,000,000 pounds of virgin ingot last year. Yet it is within the memory of persons now living that a certain young man in Pittsburgh once brought from London a pair of opera glasses with frames of alu minum as a precious present for his bride; he could have had platinum, but alpminum was so much more unusual—and they were both the same price! @ Western Newspaper Union. C. Houston Goudiss Describes Food Value and Versatility of Gelatin; Outlines Its Many Uses in the Diet By C. HOUSTON GOUDISS W HEN we try to appraise the nutritional values of any one food in comparison with others, as a rule we have a difficult task. Most foodstuffs are composed of so many different substances that what is lacking in one will be sup plied by another, and making comparisons may therefore be misleading as well as futile. But there is one food which is outstanding, not only because it is far less complex than most others, but because it isf> no exaggeration to say that without it, some of us might not be alive, and those of us who are alive would obtain far less enjoyment from our daily existence. That food is gelatin! ice creams Whaf Is Gelatin? Gelatin is a protein food which has no equal as a carrier, binder and “extender” of a wide variety of other nutritive ma terials. Chemical ly, it is classed as a colloid, which means that in solu tion, it can be re moved from its sol vent by filtration. It is because of this that it is so useful in producing smooth, delicious and other dainties, free from ice crystals. Gelatin is an almost pure pro tein—a kind of protein known as an albuminoid. It is not a com plete protein, because it is defi cient in three of the amino acids that are necessary both to support growth and repair body tissues. In this it differs from meat, cheese, fish, eggs and milk, which are known as complete proteins. It cannot be used as the sole source of protein in the diet, be cause those three missing amine acids are necessary for the for mation of new body tissue. But it is especially rich in lysine, one ef the protein building stones that is particularly important in the diet of children. Experiments indicate that no other amino acid can take the place of lysine and that it must be furnished by the food if adequate nutrition is to be main tained. That coupled with the fact that it is non-irritating and easily di gestible accounts for the large part it plays in the diet of infants and young children. Contrary to old wives’ tales, gel atin is not made from hoofs and horns. In fact, there is no gelatin Building, Maintaining Healthy Teeth By C. HOUSTON GOUDISS It is an alarming fact that al most every adult in this great land of ours is affected by some form of oral disease, and fhat more than 90 per cent of our school children have decayed teeth. A prominent medical authority made the statement that if dental decay became rare, instead of almost universal, more than half of all sickness would be eliminated. Remarkable and widely herald ed advances have been made in our knowledge of how to control and prevent many dangerous and debilitating diseases. A decayed tooth is a poison factory, distribut ing its noxious product to every part of the body. In the body, that poison attacks and centers in the weakest spot. It may lead to neuritis, rheumatic ailments, dyspepsia, or duodenal ulcers. It may even be a contributing cause of heart disease. Only a small percentage of our population is yet aware of the far- reaching effects of teeth upon health. There is a close relation ship between healthy teeth and healthy bodies, and between de cayed teeth and sickly bodies. By learning something of the importance of caring properly for the teeth, some men and women of middle age look and feel young er than their parents did at the same age. I have endeavored in many of the WHAT TO EAT AND WHY articles, which have appeared in this newspaper over my signature, to point out the close relationship between diet and dental disease; between frequent and thorough brushing of the teeth with an effi cient dentifrice so as to remove all food particles, and strong, beautiful teeth. I have received many letters from readers of these articles, showing that homemakers are eager for sound, authoritative ad vice on the proper care of the teeth. To help these and other readers to know how to properly care for their teeth, I have pre pared a booklet on BUILDING AND MAINTAINING HEALTHY TEETH which I am offering FREE, because I feel so strongly that this information should be in every home, knowing as I do, that the salvation of the human race may lie in saving their teeth. Ad dress, C. Houston Goudiss, 210 S. Desplaines St., Chicago, 111. in hoofs or horns. It is extracted from connective tissue in the skins and from the bones of food ani mals. Every homemaker who has made soup by simmering a knuckle bone for hours, and has found the soup “jellied” after standing overnight in the refrig erator, has prepared gelatin on a small scale. The same principles are followed by the gelatin manu facturer, only he operates in a much larger food kitchen, and each step of the preparation is scientifically controlled so as to insure a uniform finished product. Gelatin is sold in two forms: the unflavored, granulated prod uct which requires the addition of flavoring, and when used for dessert purposes, sweetening; and the gelatin dessert powders which contain added sugar, color, flavor and fruit acid. So popular are these convenient gelatin desserts, that about 10,000,000 pounds of gel atin are used annually for this purpose. From Infancy to Old Age Nutritionists recognize gelatin as a food possessing many unique advantages in the daily diet, and it is prescribed by physicians for a variety of special diets. New born babies, for example, are Charming, Practical All-Day Dresses T HESE two designs are so good looking and slim-lined that you’ll enjoy wearing them for shopping and runabout as well as at home. Make in percale and cal ico, and in challis, jersey or crepe. Both are easy to make as boiled dressing. Each pattern includes a detailed sew chart. Buttoned Down the Front. This softened version of the classic shirtwaist has fullness over the bust and a slight blouse at the waistline, which makes it easy to wear as well as to work in. The skirt has a nice flare to it. Shrugged shoulder sleeves and white cuffs and collar add to the crisp, smart look, and make it more becoming. You’ll find the capacious patch pockets very handy! For Large Figures. Here’s one of the most becom ing and comfortable work dresses you ever had on, if you’re in the 36 to 52 size range. Every detail is designed to give you freedom of movement, and to make you look thin. The armholes are ample. The darted waistline looks slim without being tight, and it blouses just a bit for greater ease. The scalloped front, braid-trimmed edges and white collar (with long lines, becoming to full faces) trim it up just enough. This is a dia gram design, so you can turn off half a dozen of it in no time! The Patterns. 1618 is designed for sizes 14, 16, 18, 20, 40 and 42. With long sleeves, size 16 requires 4% yards of 39-inch material; % yard for contrasting collar and cuffs; 2 yards of braid. With short sleeves 4V4 yards. 1624 is designed for sizes 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50 and 52. Size 38 requires 4% yards of 39-inch material; Vi yard for contrasting collar; 3 yards braid for trim ming. Send your order to The Sewing Circle Pattern Dept., Room 1020, 211 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago, 111. Price of patterns, 15 cents (in coins) each. <E> Bell Syndicate.—WNU Service. sometimes given a gelatin-sugar* salt solution which provides readi ly available protein to raise tha protein level of the blood. When an infant cannot readily digest milk, owing to the formation of hard curds, the doctor may rec ommend the addition of 1 per cent of gelatin dissolved in the milk. This usually causes it to be as similated easily and satisfactorily. When it comes time to change a baby’s food from liquids to sol ids, gelatin also proves useful, for its soft, semi-solid texture makes an excellent transitional food. With toddlers and school chil dren, gelatin — the carrier and “extender”—provides a splendid method for offering foods that are disliked. Vegetables that draw forth protests when presented in the usual fashion are eaten with relish when molded into a spar kling lime- or lemon-flavored sal ad. The coarse texture of certain raw vegetables, such as carrots and cabbage, or the tart flavor of some fruits, may likewise be modified by serving them in m gelatin base. And it doesn’t require statistics from nursery schools to tell moth ers how readily children eat gela tin desserts when they are bril liant with color and flavored with orange, raspberry, cherry, straw berry or other well liked flavors. Every mother knows this from her own experience—and I rather sus pect that many mothers describe these attractive molded desserts as the prize to be won in return for cleaning the plate of the main course! In the Reducing Diet Both men and women who are counting their calories, in an ef fort to avoid overweight, or to reduce, can profit by taking gela tin salads and desserts, which sat isfy hunger without providing un wanted fuel value. In cases of digestive disturb ance, gelatin is frequently recom mended because of its bland taste, and because it leaves no residue in the lower intestinal tract. This same splendid food is also advised by doctors when a high protein diet is desired to speed growth, or during convalescence from an illness. Gelatin may be added to broths, milk, fruit a"* vegetables, and these, in turn, may be incorporated in solidified gelatin. Indeed, this many-sided food stuff has come to play such a wide and varied role in nutrition, not only by itself but by enhanc ing the value of other foods, that it must be numbered among the products that help to increase na tional health and vigor. Questions Answered Mrs. S. B. L.—Even in the so- called goiter belt, simple goiter may usually be prevented by the administration of small amounts of iodine to every young girl, be fore and during adolescence, and also to expectant and nursing mothers. The amount required is quite small and may be given by a physician in the form of io dized salt. Miss A. M. G.—Bran is consid ered an excellent source of both iron and phosphorus. <£>—WNU—C. Houston Goudiss—1938—35. Difficult Parting When a Texas Tech student saw a professor drop his hat in a waste basket and walk off with some pa pers he retrieved the headpiece and spread the news about Lub bock of the “absent minded pro fessor.” The instructor received his hat back and sighed: “I guess I’ll have to take that thing home and burn it before I can get rid of it.” 'Luden’s are ’double- barrelled’... you get soothing relief plus an alkaline factor.” Charles Lewis, Chemist, New York LUDEN'S MENTHOL COUGH DROPS Reign of Ages At 20 years of age, the will reigns; at 30, the wit; and at 40, the judgment.—Gratian. Black*? Leaf 40 JUST A Cap-Bn>*K" Applicator ikes "B makes “BUCK LEAF GO MUCH FARTHCT DASH IN FEATHERS.. OR SPREAD ON ROOSTS • VoMr* Town • Your Stores Our community includes the farm home* surrounding the town. The town stores are there for the accommodation and to serve the people of our farm homes. The merchants who advertise “specials” are merchants who are sure they can meet all competition in both quality and prices.