The Penn's Grove record., 1914-11-13
PENIS GROVES Big POWDEE
,L..lN
Carney's Point Powder Works Rrla-
ed To FIJI Orders

80 = - ~
The great European War has glven 9
! boom to several industries in the Urit5q
States. One of them is the masing d
steel shells and another the maine u
powder. DuPonts' Smokeless Powder
plant on Carney's Point, where tei1s
Grove workmen are mostly EN- p4oye0,
was never so rushed with orders. 1
the largest OF its kind in the United s4 beg
before work was slack six mo III
when the force of workingmen bas ses
duced to about 800 men and no tasldin2
nor improvements were conten p5atea.
But the European-Asiatic war has chang
ed the course of commerce and in0as6fy
all over.the world and given All iropfe3s
dent boom to powder making in til tb>it
ed States.
In a month after the Great War began
there were signs of increased business for
Carney's Point and within the last moetl
the machinery has been rushed c~onsinu.
ously night and day on eight hour slli!ts.
Between 700 and 800 men are now eu
ployed. A large force of carpenters have
been working night and day to make iaofs
houses in which to dry powder. Add
tlonal civil engineers and chemists bsge
been put to work and the humble cf
workmen are so large that some ..ase
difficulty in getting satisfactory boz aiding
places in Penns Grove.
The fortnightly pay roll has iDcr sagsC
from SIC, 900 or less to more than 81 500
on the last pay day.
1t is rumored that two and three oel
loads Of powder or material not entirely
finished leaves Carney's Point every sight
| the definite destination not being known
The money for payment is reported 70
in Wilmington Banks and is turned 5
when the products leave the Point
then belongs to persons unknown anu iSs
destination is unknown. 1t is surmised
that some may reach Canada, British
territory, and may go to help da stroy
those Germans with minds so obsessed
that they believe Emperor Wilhelm is
the great god who must be obeyed,
even tho he be infatuated with the spirit
of the mythical German god, Thor.
On Carney's Point the basis for other
than %smokeless powder is made and ship
ped to other works where different ex-
~plosives are finished. This basis is made
from the hulls Of the cotton seeds, which
use to be considered of little value, ex-
cept for fertilizer. The bulls, or bran,
from the cotton seeds retain a fine fiber
OF cotton which cannot be removed by
the cotton gin. These hulls and cotton
fiber are made into a liquid about like
swill. The liquid is reduced until finally
the fiber is made into cotton sheets by
the means of paper making machinery.
The cotton is next ground into a fine
powder and treated with ether, alcohol,
murlatic and nitric acids in proportion
which make effective explosives.
formerly the waste from cotton knit
ting mills was used for a basis for smoke
powder. By utilizing the cheaper ma
| b6Iid dI llICi CdSCO foluO iIdo OCCH kitCH
to cotton seed and a decreased cost to
smokeless powder. This cotton basis
made mostly on Carney's Point, is ship
ped elsewhere for basis OF explosives man
ufactured.
The extra demand for war material is
not the only extra demand for high grade
explosives. Cutting off European sup
plies of explosi yes sent to this and other
countries has increased the demand for
the superior product made by the duPonts
on Carney's Point.
1t is rumored that Francis l. DUPONT,
one of the greatest chemist of the famous
powder making family, has discovered a
process of making powder in a state that
is extraordinarily safe for transportation
in a damp condition and by al easy pro-
cess with small machinery and low cost
it is made into a powerful explosive at
the place where needed for use.
The increased orders for Carney's Point
works will last longer than the expecta-
tons OF the European War, because of
the industrial orders. The prospects are
that there will be orders to last two or
three years, and are larger than were had
previous to nine months ago before the
U. S. Government orders were reduced.
While there will, undoubtedly, be a slack
ening when the wal ends the impetus re-
ceived from other sources is likely to give
PennsG Grove increased prosperity for some
years.
We are making history rapidly. The
above is a history OF local industrial de-
velopement. We leave others to verify
rumors into facts, because large business
concerns give cut no authentic informa-
ton.
The dynamite plant at Gibbstown is
also rushed with work and workmen
have d~iffiuIty in getting houses.