America has furnished some eminent chemists in the Nineteenth Century, who have made valuable contributions to the science, notably in the field of metallurgy. It is a fact, however, which must be admitted with regret, that America has not in the field of chemical research occupied the leading place she has in mechanical progress. The European laboratory is the birthplace of most modern inventions in the chemical field, and this is so simply by reason of the fact that these more patient investigators have set themselves studiously, systematically and persistently to the work of chemical invention. It is said that some of the large commercial works in Germany have over 100 Ph. D.’s in a single manufacturing establishment, whose work is not directed to the management of the manufacture, but solely to original research, and the making of inventions. The laboratories in such works differ from those in the universities only in being more perfectly equipped, and more sumptuously appointed. The result of this is seen in the fact that in 1899 the United States imported coal tar dyes alone to the extent of $3,799,353, and 5,227,098 pounds of alizarine, most of which came from Germany, and for which we paid a good price, since the German manufacturers control the United States patents. The alizarine dyes are for the most part the artificial kind made by German chemists. Prior to 1869 the red alizarine dye was of plant origin, being obtained from madder root, and it cost $2 a pound. The German chemist produced an artificially made product, which took the place of the madder dye, and was sold at $1.20 a pound. At the end of the patent term (seventeen years) the price fell to 15c. a pound, showing that the product was produced at a profit of more than $1.05 a pound, and as millions of pounds were imported annually, it is estimated that $35,000,000 was the price paid the German chemists for their foresight in combining science with business. Many United States patents granted to foreign chemists are still in force, and the rich reward of their skill is reaped at our expense. _Discovery of elements._--In the early days of chemical knowledge, fire, air, earth and water constituted the insignificant category of the elements, which was as faulty in classification as it was small in size. Gradual splitting up of compounds, and an increase in the number of elements, has gone on progressively for some hundreds of years, until to-day the list extends well on to one hundred elementary bodies. Those which belong to the credit of the Nineteenth Century are given in the table following, with the name of the discoverer, and the date of its discovery. ELEMENTS DISCOVERED IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. ELEMENTS. DISCOVERER. YEAR.