The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-06-11
UNDERWOOD WORKS FOR TESTING PLANT Enormous Cut Has Been Made
 in Appropriation MINERAL PRODUCTS SUFFER Station at St. Louis Has Been Doing Good Work and Now it is Pro- posed to Make it Practically
 ineffective.
MINERAL PRODUCTS SUFFER

Washington, June 10.-(Special )-For several years Congress has been making an appropriation authorizing the director of the geological survey to make investi- gations into the fuel resources of the United States. The appropriation for the current year amounts to $a02, 600. The committee on appropriations has reported in the sundry civil bill an appropriation of $100OO0 for next year. or a reduction of $102 GOO The amount recommended by tho department for the coming year was s250, GOO, including $2O0,000 for operating expenses and $5O,OOO to cover the cost of additional equipment and the removal of the plant from it's present site.
 The plant is situated in the park at St Louis, where the recent exposition was held. The city now requires that it should be removed and therefore 1t ds necessary to have sufficient money to place the testing plant on a new site Taking S50,O0O the cost of removal, from the appropriation proposed by the com mittee and 1t would practically leave nothing for an investigation for the com ing year.
 Underwood Favors Continuance.
 Representative Underwood of Alabama believes that it is of great importance that these investigations be continued. ''They have already given information that is of much benefit to the people," said MT. Underwood today, "and the con- tinuation of the investigation will add a great deal to the early economic inves- tigation of the mineral resources of our country.
 "The purpose of the investigation is to lessen the waste of the nations fuel sup ply by showing how this fuel can be mined and used more efficiently; to ex- tend the nations supply of fuel and les sen the transportation cost in fuel by in dicating how Ignite, peat and other min eral now little used may be made valu- able as fuel In portions of the country having no ordinary coal; to find how to prevent the spontaneous combustion of coal stored on ships, naval stations and at the mines, to remedy the loss sustained in the production of fine coal In mining through slack; to demonstrate the saving of by-products now wasted in the man. ufacture of coke, which If completely saved would be worth at present prices more than s50OO0,OOO yearly, and prevent large imports of such by-products. In the cokeing of forty millions of tons of coal yearly there are now wasted am monium sulphate enough to fertilize all of our crops; creosote enough to preserve our timber; pitch and tar enough to roof our houses.
 Investigation Very Important. q consider this investigation a very important one. We are spending millions and millions of dollars in the Philippines; millions of dollars on battleships for wars that may never come and yet the repub lican party seems to have adopted a cheese-paring policy, so far as the min eral and agricultural resources of the country are concerned, and instead of in creasing the appropriation with the growth and development of the coun- try are cutting them down in driblets until they are so small that they are practically of little use. intend to make a fight on the floor to increase this ap- propriation to the amount that the de- pertinent desires and am very anxious to