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The year before the war the American
custom house listed 5674 distinct brands of synthetic dyes imported,
chiefly from Germany, but some of these were trade names for the same
product made by different firms or represented by different degrees of
purity or form of preparation. Although the number of possible products
is unlimited and over five thousand dyes are known, yet only about nine
hundred are in use. We can summarize the situation so:
Coal-tar --> 10 crudes --> 300 intermediates --> 900 dyes --> 5000 brands.
Or, to borrow the neat simile used by Dr. Bernhard C. Hesse, it is like
cloth-making where "ten fibers make 300 yarns which are woven into 900
patterns."
The advantage of the artificial dyestuffs over those found in nature
lies in their variety and adaptability. Practically any desired tint or
shade can be made for any particular fabric. If my lady wants a new kind
of green for her stockings or her hair she can have it. Candies and
jellies and drinks can be made more attractive and therefore more
appetizing by varied colors.


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