Millions from Waste

by Frederick Arthur Ambrose Talbot

The German is nothing if not thorough. He does not hesitate to harness science to the wheels of industry when the occasion so demands. He realized that to utilize sawdust as a floor-covering it would be necessary to follow strict scientific lines. Accordingly the chemist was called in. He, as a result of prolonged investigations and numerous tests, succeeded in overcoming the outstanding inherent defect of the sawdust paving, and at the same time emphasized that control of the proportions of sawdust and magnesium chloride was essential owing to the first-named varying so widely in its characteristics according to the nature of the wood from which it is derived. Consequently the manufacture of this floor-covering is now supervised by the chemist, and the hygroscopic difficulty has been effectively overcome. The material has achieved a distinct vogue, not only in Germany, but in other countries. It is extremely effective and is relatively inexpensive—the cost averages from 5 to 7 shillings ($1.25 to $1.75) per square yard—bearing in mind its durable and wearing qualities. Incidentally the country has found a highly profitable outlet for its accumulations of sawdust.

The world’s consumption of tin-plate has risen to enormous proportions, the extraordinary expansion of the tinned or canned food industry being responsible for this development. Thousands of tons of steel are absorbed in the manufacture of these containers, as well as hundreds of tons of tin and solder. Upon the removal of the contents the tins are generally thrown away, especially by the prodigal nations. This wastage became so flagrant as to arouse the severe condemnation of economists in every country, but these would-be apostles found it well-nigh hopeless to persuade their compatriots to endeavour to exploit the empty tins. Here and there spasmodic efforts were made upon a limited scale to recover the solder, tin, and steel-plate for further use, but the problem did not prove so easy of solution as it had appeared.

The bulk of the vessel constituted a formidable obstacle, while its susceptibility to the ravages of rust was also discovered to be a distinct drawback. In this country the general practice has beep to crush the tins flat and to feed them into the blast furnaces as scrap, but in this process the tin vanishes up the chimney, while the solder is also lost, though the steel-plate, which forms 99 per cent. of the composition of the vessel, becomes available as raw material. Nevertheless, although the quantity of tin used is trifling, representing only approximately one per cent., the Germans considered it to be quite worthy of recovery, especially when tin commanded from £150 to £200—$750 to $1,000—per ton.

The Teuton attacked the tin-recovery problem more energetically than his colleagues in other countries and apparently achieved success, although the degree of triumph recorded in this connection has always remained a matter for considerable speculation. Be that as it may the German interests concerned were quite prepared to purchase empty British tins and to ship them across the North Sea to be treated in their home plants. From this fact it is only logical to assume that they had found practical ways and means to consummate the desired end, otherwise they would scarcely have gone to the lengths of organizing a complete collecting system in these islands, and of incurring the freightage charges, although the waste was carried at a low figure. With the outbreak of war, and the rise in the price of tin to approximately £300 ($1,500) a ton, we were forced to inquire into the possibilities of recovering the tin and solder from this refuse, and by energetic action were able to equal, if not to surpass, German effort, so that to-day de-tinning may be said to represent an established British industry.

The fact that Germany was compelled to depend extensively upon outside sources for supplies of raw materials prompted the theory in many quarters that, once the British blockade was firmly established, surrender must follow quickly from economic pressure. But the enemy displayed his ability to hold out for a far longer period than we had anticipated. Why? Simply because the moment he saw himself isolated from his outside sources of supply he inaugurated a more rigid system for the compulsory collection, segregation and utilization of his domestic waste. We know to-day how sternly these orders were enforced, and how completely the country was covered by official organizations established to this end.

To ensure that nothing of industrial value should be lost a collecting centre was established in every village and hamlet, the local chief magistrate being vested with wide powers for the conduct of the work placed in his charge. It was his duty to see that everything and anything capable of further exploitation was retrieved. The inhabitants were notified by public placard that they must bring and surrender their accumulations of refuse to the collecting centre at specific intervals, according to the available machinery and the population of the village. The head of every family or household was held personally responsible for the preservation of anything capable of further use and residue incurred within his home. Any dereliction in this respect, or infraction of the official commands, was subject to punishment according to the nature of the offence.

The materials which were in greatest demand were duly set forth. They included such junk as old metal of every description, from useless cooking utensils to fragments of wire, worn-out tools, abandoned implements and nails recovered from packing cases: textile odds and ends no matter how old and threadbare from the heterogeneous contents of the rag-bag to discarded suits, dresses, hosiery, frills, ribbon, and hats: and kitchen waste in infinite variety. The metal was turned over to the munition plants, the textile waste to the woollen, paper, and other mills, while the organic waste was distributed throughout the countryside for feeding stock after the fats and greases had been extracted.

In the towns and cities similar organizations were created, only in these instances the regulations were somewhat more stringent. All and every kind of kitchen waste had to be surrendered daily. In the leading cities it was incumbent upon every householder to have his accumulation of refuse from the previous day ready for the arrival of the official collecting cart. As this passed through the street in which he resided he had to carry and discharge his consignment of refuse into the vehicle. In some instances, as in Berlin, this task involved early rising because the collecting duty had to be completed before 7 a.m.

In the towns and cities the waste was most rigorously controlled. It was criminal for the housewife or maid to permit the grease clinging to the plates and dishes from the table to escape down the sink. This fat had to be emptied into a special pail, and with the minimum of water. Terse instructions as to how this could be done to the satisfaction of the authorities were issued. It would seem as if the salvage of grease were carried to an absurdly fine degree, but in view of the prevailing circumstances the authorities were justified in compelling the recovery of such an apparently insignificant trifle as a dab or two of grease upon a dinner-plate, since it was found that the daily yield of fat from the average town was about 8,000 pounds. Truly the enemy may be said to have fully realized the truth that “many a mickle makes a muckle.”

But the inhabitants, though forced to gather all their fat with such scrupulous care and to surrender it to the authorities, were enabled to receive a certain proportion back again—by paying for it—in the form of soap. The fat was secured in order to extract its glycerine content for the production of explosives, a certain quantity being set on one side to be turned into a lubricating grease to keep the oil-starved mammoth machine plants of the country going. The residue remaining after the extraction of the glycerine was turned into soap.