The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-12-20
Tert of Strong Resolution Endorsing Muscle Shoals
 Presented 10 President
By HUGH w. ROBERTS

Washington December 19.--(Special) The following resolution adopted by the Southern Commercial congress in Nor folk Wednesday night, a resolution urging the President to designate Muscle Shoals as the source of power for the operation of the $2O, COG, 900 government nitrate plant, has been presented to the chief execu- tive:
 Conditions and events in the world today have convinced all thoughtful men that our nation must beAnade more eff ficient at all times and self-sufficient in event of Q war with foreign nations. In addition, the rising price of food stuffs has become a serious menace to our economic well-being, which is due in a large part, to the exhaustion of pub lie arabic lands. In order then to reduce prices and yet give the farmer his proper return, the rate of yield must be in- creased. This increased production can be secured only by a greater use of com mercial fertilizer, which is the means em- pleyed by the other civilized nations, who have far outstripped us in this regard.
 
 Recent government reports show that
 the United States has no adequate nitrate deposits The Chilean supply of nitrates at the present rate of consumption will
 be exhausted. Yet these are the basis
 of the most productive fertilizers as well as the source of raw material for the manufacture of all modern explosives. | Nitrogen can be secured in adequate quantities within the United States only ! by the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen l by the electric process. Therefore to be- come independent of foreign supplies we must develop the resources within our borders.
 With these facts and problems before I it, the Sixty-fourth Congress of the Uni ] ted States wisely appropriated $2O,000,000 l for the purpose of constructing hydro electric plant for the manufacture of nitrogen products for use in explosives and fertilizers.
 MUSCLE SHOALS NAMED l Now, whereas, at Muscle Shoals on l the Tennessee river in Alabama there l exists, in a place, strategically safe, an abundance of water power for producing such nitrogen products from the atmos- phere in an economical manner. | | approved by government engineers as available for said purpose and is situated
 near abundant supplies of phosphate rock
 coking coal, high grade limestone and
 many other materials used in the manu- | facture of munitions of war and com mercial fertilizers, and situated where
 such products can be shipped most cheap I ly and efficiently, by rail and water,
 ACTION OF FARMERS 1 And whereas, the Farmers union, and other national organizations, commercial
 and engineering bodies and state ltgisla- l lures appreciating our fundamental re- quirements for an adequate food supply at reasonable cost and our need for raw
 materials for the manufacture of explo-
 sives, have already officially approved
 this project and the Farmers union has | further specifically resolved that this government nitrate plant ought to be placed on "a navigable stream that will
 most economically facilitate the cheaper
 distribution of fertilizers by water trans
 portaton to the largest number of users,
 and whereas, no location so favorable as | that at Muscle Shoals can be found at any point in the United States. THE RESOLUTION i Therefore be it resolved, That the
 Southern Commercial congress, as the chief exponent of the commercial interests of the south and as loyal and patriotic | social institution, vitally interested in the defense of our country and in the ad- vancement of all of it's great agricul- 1 tural and commercial interests, in it's eighth annual convention, assembled in | Norfolk, Va, on December 11-14, 1916 respectfully and urgently recommends to | the President of the United States and i to any others upon whom may devolve
 the choice of location, that the govern ment's nitrate plant shall be constructed | at Muscle Shoals.
 | And, be it further resolved, That