The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1915-06-10
$l00,000,000
IN WAR ORDER
General Electric Company
Planning to Supply Allies
with Supplies
$50, 900 SHELLS AS
DAILY MINIMUM

AL u tHe FIantS IN several C1t1eS TO
Be Utilized-Large Contracts Have
Also Been Placed with Two Powder
Companies.
NEW YORK, June 1O.-Acting through
j. T. Morgan & Co, the General Electric
Company has practically completed nego-
tatlons with the allied governments for
the manufacture of shrapnel and high
explosive shells on the greatest scale yet
undertaken by an American corporation.
Directors of the company admitted yester-
day, after rumors of a tremendous con-
tract had been circulated, that the total
would be at least 100000. 900. and per
haps would run far in excess of this fig
IRE. In fact, the order was spoken of as
unlimited, depending more upon the ca
paclty of the General Electric plants than
the desire of the foreign buyers for am
munition.
Great as is the Importance of this huge
order, even greater Importance was at
tached IN the financial district to develop
ments that have accompanied the negotia-
tons 1t was learned that the British
purchasing agents, who are looking to a
wide extent after the interests of France
and Russia, are considering a marked
change OF procedure in placing their con-
tracts in this country There has been
valuable time lost, it was said yesterday,
by the distribution of orders among
score or so Of different concerns which
have the facilities for making shells and
ordnance. Competitive bidding for por-
tons Of contracts-for the different parts
of shells-has also held back manufact,r.
| ing operations, and successful bidders have
been handicapped frequently through in
ability to secure proper machinery
| British military experts now in this
country declare that their previous esti-
mates of the amount of shells required for
daily consumption by the allies have been
far too low. They consider now that
100000 shells day is fair average
plan to speed up manufacturing is be-
ing worked out, with David Lloyd George
the new British minister of munitions.
standing in the background, and through
the fundamentally of j p Morgan & Co.
ut IS said, whereby munition making of
future orders will be centered in a few
great companies, with the General Electric
Company as the dominant unit The con
Germs selected for what viii amount prae-
tically, to a combination of resources for
rapid manufacturing Of shells and cart
ridges, will be those whose equipment can.
new work
The General Electric Company. accord
: ing to director, is in position to begin to
turn out shells at high daily rate as soon
as the contract is signed. This company
, will not, according to present plans, sub
let any Of the S100,000,000 order, as there
IL capacity available in the plants al
/ Schenectady, Lynn, Mass, Harrison, n. j .
/ Pittsfeld and Fort Wayne, Ind, to carry
{ on the work rapidly at the same time that
the ordinary electrical manufacturing is
, being conducted.
Persons in touch with the progress being
made in the war orders state that the
/ British authorities have become greatly
concerned over their supplies of ammuni
ton, at hand and in process of manufac
ture.
" While orders aggregating many hundred.
of millions of dollars have been placed il
this country and Canada deliveries have
: been disappointing. Canadian plants go
to work early in the war, but the delay il
\ ordering supplies in the United States anC
: other neutral countries has seriously af
fected the efficiency of the allied arimes il
!. France and Belgium
The experience of the American Loco
; motive Company is typical of the situa
8 ton. After negotiations, which covered
t several weeks, the company secured a con
;. tract which Is said to amount to approx
mately 100000 for shells During tn
r discussion of terms and even before TIN
4 locomotive officials were busy buying tn
V necessary lathes and other machinery, Blu
V installation of equipment and the training
Q of men could not be done in few days
o The contract was definitely closed 81
il weeks ago, but the company has only begun
5 plant, and it was said in AUTHORITATIVE
/ quarters that several weeks more woul
pass before anything like u substantial
n output would be possible.
e Another large war contract which ha
= Just been signed is between the Tennessee
e Copper Company and the Du Pont Powde
s. Company. The former has agreed to dc
J. liver to the latter a big tonnage of su
d phuric acid, which is used to a large ex
n tent in the manufacture of powder. Will
e no figures giving the amount of this tor
= mage or the value have been made know
o a director of the company said yesterda
that the acid sold to the Du Pont Con
1t pany would be of better quality tina
r that called for in the company's contrac
S. with the International Agricultural Coz
It lporation, and hence would command
d much better price.
The company, to take care of its increal
ing war business, is constructing a ne7
unit to its plants, which will augmen
their capacity from one-third to one-hal