Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1916-03-31
Is
Demanded BY
Underwood
in Army Bill

Washington. March CA determined
fight was begun in the Senate today by
Senator Underwood Of Alabama, to in
corporate i'm the army reorganization
bill a provision looking to t.e estab-
lishment of d government plant to make
nitrogen from the air for the manufac-
ture Of explosive. Efforts to incorpor-
ate such legislation in the House bill
were defeated
Attacks Powder Co.
Senator Underwood declared that no
national defense program would be COM
plete without this provision. He at
tackled the Du Pont Powder co. and its
agents. charging them with eXerting
powerful influences to defeat such leg
islation because of IA desire to control
all the powder business in the United
States and to prevent the government
from entering the field. In this connec-
ton he declared that Hudson Maxim, a
member of the navy's civilian advisory
board. was a consulting engineer Of the
Du Pont Co. and as such had charac-
terized Congressman who fought for the
government nitrate plant as pork bar
rel politicians
so says this corporation agent
speaking for his own interests and those
of his employers said the Alabama
senator u do not wish to make
charges against a big corporation. The
Du Pont Powder Co is in legitimate
business and naturally does not want
the government to compete with it. 1t
wishes to control all the powder BUSH
have its agents here attempting to de-
feat my proposal, and the Senate Of
the United States has no right to per.
nit the Du Pont Powder Co, to defeat
this legislation"
Salisbury Introduces Bill
Early in the day Senator Salisbury Of
Delaware introduced bill, prepared by
counsel for the Du Pont Co.,, provid-
ing for granting of 30-year waterpower
site leases to corporations which would
guarantee to erect hydro-electric plant
for the production of nitrate from the
air anu supply the government at a
price to be fiXe,. by the secretary of
war.
Senator Underwood referred to this
measure in presenting his attack upon
the powder company.
An amendment to the pending Sem
ate substitute for the army re-organ-
ization bill was introduced by Mr.. I'm
derwood to authorize engineers to in
vesti5,ate and report to Congress on
the best process for fixation of atmos-
pheric nitrogen and the best site for
the production of an adequate supply
for use in manufacture of munitions in
time of war and fertilizer in time of
peace.
The Available Sites
Senator Gallinger, referring to hear
ings before the Senate agricultural
committee on the bill of Senator Smith
of South Carolina to appropriate s15,-
0oo, geo for development OF government
nitrate plants, said he understood there
were only two available sites in the
United States for such a purpose. Sen
ator Smith asserted that experts had
told the committee that there were
numerous sites for such an enterprise.
One expert, he said, however, had de-
clared that there were only two sites
capable Of developing enough power
for production of enough nitrogen to
supply the needs of the United States.
One Of these was at Muscle shoals
on the Tennessee river in Alabama and
the other on the Columbia river in
Washington.
The South Carolina senator cham
pioned his bill as against the Under
wood amendment, maintaining that it
would prove a means Of immediate ac-
QUESTION Of government waterpower
sites before all available sites had been
pre-empted by private corporations.
An amendment restricting the en-
listed strength Of the regular army to
1000 in times of peace was intro
duced by Chairman Chamberlain, but
va not considered