The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-06-12
EWING PREPARING DATAFOR b0ARDON
 GAS PROPOSITION
President George G. Craw. ford of Tennessee Co.,, Says They Have No
 Waste Gas

Robert W. Ewing, president of the Board of Trade. has some very decided views on the gas question.
 He is preparing some data in that con- rection which it is expected will be made public. That data is in measure eau cational and will be given out to assist the people of the city in comprehending the issues involved.
 The members of the Board of Trade. after a careful study of the question, propose to issue statements in eonnec- tion with the gas matter which will tend to inform the voters of Birmingham thor oughly upon the issues involved in the gas controversy.
 It may be that the committee from the Board of Trade intends to use the in formation that is being gathered to in form the commissioners in the hope that at least Judge Lane or MT Weatherly will join President George B. Ward in hls position.
 However, the gas issue is not dead, There is still hope to cling to that there will be an adjustment of the diff ferences existing which will result in the people of this city getting gas at the low prices offered.
 In connection with the gas controversy George Gordon Crawford, president of the Tennessee Coal. Iron and Railroad com pany issued this statement yesterday:
 ''Between Fairfield by-product ovens and the Ensley plant is a 24-inch gas line two and a quarter miles long, connected with a pumping station of two units; one of 2500O,000 cubic feet capacity per day and the other of 30000.000 cubic feet capacity per day. These pumping units raise the pressure of the surplus gas from the Kop pers coke ovens, three and one-half pounds, which Is sufficient to deliver it to the Ensley plant, where, during the week days the gas Is used under boilers and in the open hearth furnaces and soak ing pits. displacing coal, or displacing gas produced from coal in gas producers. On Sunday, a large portion of the gas is used in keeping the furnace hot over the Sunday shutdown; but there is some vast ed gas on Sundays.
 There is small and variable quantity of gas burning at the blow-off at the Koppers plant during the week days. This cannot be considered as waste gas, and would in wise be affected by the con tract which was at one time offered by the Birmingham Railway, Light and Power company, for the reason that the production of gas at th- ovens is almost a constant, while the consumption of gas is a variant. There arv hourly variations in the consumption, and these variations cause slight loss of gas which could only be prevented by the building of large gas holders to store the surplus gas. The interest and depreciation on the gas hold CTS is figured to cost more than the value of the gas which is lost under the present method of adjustment Had the contract with the Birmingham Railway, Light and Power company been consummated this small quantity of gas would continue to be lost if is at present. It is not prob able that the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company would spend s140.O00 to deliver the gas from the Koppers ovens to it's Ensley plant for the purpose of wasting 1t. Many thousand tons of coal per month are still used for making gas fin the producers at the Ensley plant, and if we had several times the quantity of surplus gas from the oy-product ovens that we have al the present time. it could be used to advantage at our Ensley plant.
 "Inasmuch as all the by-product gas produced Is used within the limits of com mercial practicability, and it would con tinue to be so under the proposed con tract, it is correct to state that there is no waste gas.'