The age-herald., 1897-09-07
SOUTHERN E INTERESTED In Getting Armor Plate Commit
 tee to Come South. MIR. SPENCER IN A LETTER Urges Assistant Secretary Roosevelt to Have the Committee Visit Rirmingham-Rep- resentatiye Underwood Confident
MIR. SPENCER IN A LETTER

''I am yet confident the arror factory committee will come to Birmingham, said Representative, o. W. Underwood. Influences are being brought to bear that cannot be ignored"
 MT. Underwood has received the fol- lowing letter which was written by Pres idsnt Spencer of the Southern railroad to Assistant Secretary of the Navy Roosevelt:
 Hon. Theodore Roosevelt Assistant Sec retary of the Navy, Washington, D. c. Dear Shr-l note that a special com mNtse has been appoint5d by she sec retary of the navy, to investigate and submit reeomnle endaitlons as to the most desirable place for the necessary steel plant to manufacture. on the part of the goVernme ent, arrnor plate for na- val vessels, and l beg to call your at tention to the city of Birmingham, or its vicinity, as site for such a plant.
 Up to this time Birmingham has rot been a point of manufacture for steel, as the BeEsem=r ores do not exist in that section but it is now a well eStab- lisheld fact that steel can be manufac- tured there very cheaply by the basic or open hearth process.
 You ar+ doubtless familiar with the exceptional advantages as to the clese proximity of the Birmingham region to all of the raw materials entering into iron manufacture. The fact that none of the raw materials is required to be transported mere than few miles, has been the means of exceptionally cheap manufacture at that point of all the classes eff iron for which the ores are adapted, but for the reason above stat ed stesl has not been one of the pro- ducts of that region.
 lnrhr been known. however, that the ores are well adapted to the manufacture of basic steel, the Bir- mingham pig iron having been forward ed in large quantities to both Chcago and Pittsburg for treatment in open hearth furnaces.
 The depression of clhe past two years has only prevented the development of a basdc seel plant in Birmingham, but a plant has recently been erected, and with the present return of business ac- tivity and enterprise there is no Hea.on- able doubt thaI commercial steel plants will at an early day be established at or near that point
 The existence or non- existence of comemrcial plants I quite understand would be enkdrely secondary with the navy department in the matter of es- tabEshing i,s own plant, except in so far as they demonstrated the praetscaIbjlity and economy of steel manufacture at that point. II think, however, thal. an inyestig ation upon the pant of your com Unittee will show that the Birmingham iron has for such @ peldod and to such extent been used at Pbttssburg and at Chicago in openIflearth furnaces as to demons trate i:s adaptability for steel purposes under proper processes of manufacture.
 I hope that the committee may see fit Ito investigate the merits of Birmngha m as we'll as other points which may be under consideration.
 If I can be of any assitarce in the matter. personally or officially, please comamnd me.
 Yours very truly,
 (Signed SAMUEL SPENCER
 President.
 q am glad to see the Southern inter- ested in getting the board to come here J said Mir. Underwood. "Thfs road is in- terested in the welfare of this section, and in the event the factory is located in Birmingham all the railroads will have their share of the reward. I expect to hear omething definite from the committee wilfaln the next few days"