![Item #45430 [ALS] Chemist Charles M. Wetherill Remarks on Reliable Calculations & References in the Decade Prior to the Invention of the Periodic Table. Charles M. Wetherill.](https://kaaterskillbooks.cdn.bibliopolis.com/pictures/45430.jpeg?width=768&height=1000&fit=bounds&auto=webp&v=1775324287)
[ALS] Chemist Charles M. Wetherill Remarks on Reliable Calculations & References in the Decade Prior to the Invention of the Periodic Table.
Philadelphia: 1855. [3] pp. Bifolium. 8.5 x 10.5 inches. About very good, chipped and torn along edges and folds, with minor effect on text, moderate soiling, staining, and ink bleed through. Item #45430
In his January 6th, 1855 letter to Charles Harris, M.D., of Somerville, NJ, Wetherill illustrates the painstaking process of establishing reliable calculations in the field of chemistry, advising Harris on his use of the standard references. He cites both the values and the shortcomings a variety of published tables, and provides a few examples of streamlined formulas.
Charles M. Wetherill (1825-1871) was a professor of chemistry at Lehigh University. He authored a number of works, including "Description of an Apparatus for Organic Analysis by Illuminating Gas; And on the Use of This Gas in Experimental Laboratories," (1854) & "The Manufacture of Vinegar: Its Theory and Practice, with Especial Reference to the Quick Process," (1860).
In 1862, President Lincoln appointed Wetherill as the first chemist for the Chemical Division in the new Department of Agriculture, which would eventually become the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). "That position early on focused on means to improve the wine industry, fertilizers, and other endeavors, but soon the chemist began investigating the adulteration of agricultural commodities. The position eventually grew into a Division and, by the turn of the 20th century, into the Bureau of Chemistry. It was the Bureau that Congress charged to carry out the 1906 Pure Food and Drugs Act, the milestone that marks the beginning of the modern Food and Drug Administration." (FDA Organizational Histories). Also see Philip J. Hilts: Protecting America's Health: The FDA, Business and One Hundred Years of Regulation. (University of North Carolina Press 2004).
Price: $200.00