Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-11-05
PREPAREDNESS CAN HELP
THE SOUTHERN FARMERS
Governments Proposed Air-Nitrate
Plant VIII Prove blessing to
Tobacco Growers.
THE LOGICAL LOCATION FOUND
Some Valuable Industrial Lessons
Taught by the European War.
Needed Material to BE Pumped
Out Of the Air-Virginia to Profit.

a.r" NDASp y Ok iil'S
Out OF the Air-Virginia to Profit.
Virginia farmers will receive much
of the benefit. TO be. derived from the
air-ritrate plant. which has ,l,cu au-
thort2ed by Congress. and which II has
been proposed to locate at Mdssci
Shoals. the S-cat powcr-sitc on the
Tennessee River In Northern Alabama.
Intended primarily as q military mea-
sure for the purpose OF assuring the
government n supply OF nltrat,s for
ammunition in case OF war. IL viii bc
or important service In time OF peace
by producing nitrogen fertilizer. There
Is hardly n crop I'm which nitrogen is
necessary in as great q degree MS
tobacco and the supplying of fertilizer
containing this clement AZ half the
unit cost of present fertilizers will
meaIt Il big reduction in the cost Of
his crop. Tobacco farmers
OF Virginia and North Carolina are now
large buyers of fertilizer OF this kind.
hut, with the production OF this ma
teriRl by the government nir-nitratc
plant. IT will he - practical matter ior
them TO use j; in greatly Increased
taking full advantage OF the
cpportuni,y for bigger crops per acre.
German farms make Il profit on tho
fertilizer they use on tobacco more
than double that OF American farmers,
because OF the fact tina they obtain
their fertilizer at half the COS, Of the
American product and are enabled to
use II in larger quantities..
PROPOSED LOCATION Is
CLOSE TO TOBACCO REGION
There is little doubt that Alussel
Shoa Is Will he selected for this plant. as
ii mas been suggested for this use
by tl,r Board Of Engineers Tor Rivers
and Harbors and the chief OF the Tn
Einecrs' CORPS, L. =. Army. II is. in
deed. the only powcr-site which iul-
fills the requirements OF enormous pow
CT that is within the safety area cut
lined by the War Collcgc-thc seq
tion between the Allegheny and Rock
Mountains and 200 miles from, any
boundary-and in addition. It l. we'll
qualified by the presence OF phosphate
rock, limestone. and coke, AMI the
DroN. nifty OF iron. copper. aluminium.
cotton and other materials for military
manufactures.
AT the present time the United States
is depending for its supply OF n!tratcs
upon the fields Of Chile. both fox Ter
tiliGcr and ammunition. II is Il vital
part OF the defense plan tina; :,omc
: internal source of nitrogen De fOuni,
rs IL would be an easy matter other
wise for an enemy 10 cut us OF from
receiving these nitratcS In Time or war:
while even with uninterrupted comnu-
nication. We could obtain but q small
portion OF the nitrate required in wa
tarH as IL is carried on to-day. TIVE
European nations have nil nrlarS d
their facilities for ohinitinG nitrogen
from tho air by mcanH OF electricity,
dcvelopSd by water power.
L~oNG-FELT WANT NAY
NOW he SUPPLIED
II is we'll known that "a great need
OF modern agriculture is cheaper nj
trates. The air-nitroErn plants OF
Europe have enabled European coun-
tries to use nve times the amount of
nitrogen per acre that we 10 and the
result is seen in their crops, twice ours
per acre. Their average in wheat Is
t~hirty-two bushels, while ours is bu:
iktteen bushels, and the result is the
same in other crops
Dr.. Thomas|H. Norton. an expert Of
the Department of and la
Dor, who was sent to Europ. n 1911
TO Stuu; this question. declared that
able land for agricultural purposes Is
no longer available. the necessity for
q liberal use OF |nitroEcnous fertilizers
will soon he imperative throughout all
sections of the United States"
y This particularly applies To the to-
bacco. 6 .op, as II Isl soil-e%hausting.
III addition to the n!trRtcs OF Chile
POI witch NirEinia farmers are pay
ing an export IAN of GO per cent to the
Chilean government. besides expensive
steamship and railroad freight rates
fertiiizei is being made from cotton
seed meal. which is rapidly growing
IN demand rs a cattle feed and. hence.
il &ettiur higher in r'!re.
ammonia vf th@. coke foNcns. which is
also very costly Some idea ot the
saving to result from the use o; air
nitrogen may bc gained by comparing
the present price of II cents per pound
for ammonia gas with the press OF
ammonia from nitrogen OF the air.
which IS less than & cents per pound.
SOME OF II WAYS
THE THING IS DONE:
4 number OF methods Of extracting
the nitrogen from the air have been
IN use In Europe. all OF them depend
ins upon obtaining cheap electricity
by water-power development. The
method FOR this country
by DR.. Norton as a result Of his inves-
legations. and which, 4 Is expected.
Will be adopted by the War Depart
ment. il the ~c!;na:nid process. IN this,
air Is condensed until IL reaches the
liquid stage 1t a very low tcmpera-
turc. The nitrogen, which is the most
difficult constituent 70 condense. re-
turns to The form Of Sos on Sigh,
warming. and is passe OFF by riVes,
Coke ana limestone have been pa.
viously fused by electricity 10 make
Z carbide-kn"wn tnrouuh it's Use in
a~cetyicne lighting - which absOrbs
nitrogen and holds IL in tho cnrm o!
calcium c:ana:nide. which. on being
put into the soil, readily turns to am
4 monia. IL is desired 10 add phosphate
10 this material 10 form ammonia
phosphate. which contains 10 per cont
OF plant food. "a against II per cenr
In the ordinary fertilizer. making ,hs
former more easily Transported 20, the
am amount Of aciua! ie:tili2ins m.
terial.
The National Grange and the Farm.
I ers' Cnion have passed Joint rcSolu.
! tons asking for the establishment o.
Il government nitrate plant. and have
. also asked that il be located in a re.
9 G;on OF great water power. where coal
limestone and phosphate are available
and near the greatest consumption o.
fertilizer. As the South IL uudoub;
cdly this section. II - fortunate ;hn'
II contains this sit" which posscSsc,
al enormous potential power and ~
the materials necessary for botn Hisri
culture and munition manufacture. to