Peter Moloney was the first chemist who was also a graduate of St. Michael's College, U of T. After being only a short time at Cutter Laboratory, Berkeley, Moloney decided to take the offer of a job at Ottawa, for the Government at the Experimental Farms. He went there in August 1916.
After working on the extraction of hippuric acid Moloney wrote to Eastman's looking for a job. They answered by phone saying they would be glad if he went. Moloney spoke of this offer to Prof. Lash Miller, who was much impressed by the hippuric acid work which Moloney had done, and called him pH Moloney because Peter had invented a new pH electrode. "Don't go to them", Miller said. "They'd steal the coppers off a dead man's eyes." Prof Miller phoned Sir John Eaton, but he had no job available. But he said, "There is Fitzgerald, he's looking for a man."
Prof. Miller took Dad up to the old Faculty Club, in University College. Fitzgerald said, "Write me a letter", and then answered it afterwards by offering a better salary: $2000 as compared to $1200 at Ottawa. Taking Moloney on in this way, at Connaught Lab, Toronto, Dr. Fitzgerald asked: "What would you want in a chemistry laboratory?"
"He was always good to me", Peter Moloney acknowledged later on, speaking of Dr. Fitzgerald.
