The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1917-09-20
Liberty Motor Is
Relied On To Open
Way Into Berlin

Washington, Sept 13.-Perfection
of the liberty motor" the engine re-
lied upon to drive the American air
planes which will strive to achieve SUI
premacy of the air and open the way
to Berlin is announced by Secretary of
War. N. D. Baker.
The secretary gave a dramatic re.
cital of the process of evolving the
vital mechanism, which began when
two celebrated engineers who had new
er before seen each other locked them.
selves in suite of rooms in a Wash
ington hotel for five days while they
designed "a motor with speed, power
and lightness sufficient to make p0ssi-
BILE Americas vast aviation program.
Motor Tested and Approved
4 The motor, Secretary. Baker an
nounced, has been given its final tests
and has been approved. It is now up
to the manufacturers to construct and
assemble the standardized parts and
turn out $4,000 engines and the $4,000
planes for which congress made an
initial appropriation of $500 100000,
The aim Of the government is. to have
several. thousand g completed atrplanes,
manned by American HERS, ready fof
action on the western front when the
1918 campaign opens next spring. <
+ To further the construction program
the senate late yesterday passed the
house bill legalizing the aircraft pro.
duction board under which the manu-
facture of the planes and motors will
be carried out in scores Of factories
Mr.. Baker said he regarded the his
tory of the production of the motor
remarkable story and that the war
has given the world no greater
achievement. 3,
Construction Kept Secret
The secretary mentioned some ex-
ceedingly interesting details Of the
construction and performance OF the
engine which constitute military in
formation and therefore may not be
published. 1t is sufficient to say that
If the government succeeds in its de-
sign to place thousands of the planes
on the western front some extremely
welcome surprises are in store.for the
American people.
It has been known in official circles
for fortnight or more that the efforts
to produce an engine equal to the
French and British motors in perform
ance has been pronounced successful
beyond expectations. One of the high
est British officials in this country in
formed his government that the Amer
ican engineers had produced remark
able motor.
Washington, Sept. 13.-Contracts
for. construction of a government own
ed shipbuilding yard at Hog Island,
Pa, and for the construction therein
of so fabricated steel merchant yes
sells. were let by the emergency fleet
corporation today to the American In
ternational corporation.
These contracts are the first actual
ly signed for the three new plants in
which the government will have built
large number of fabricated ships
The Hog island plant will cost slightly
less than $2O,000,000.
The first of the so, ships will be com.
pleted by the American International
corporation, within 10 or II months
and the entire number will be finished
probably within Is or~16 months.
Shipping board officials believe that
the fabrication of ships will mean that
America within few years will have
the largest feet of merchant ships OF
any nation in the world.
The fabrication program calls Tor
the manufacture of the parts for the
ships in the steel mills and only the
assembly of their parts in the yards.
Some officials believe that fabricatlng
methods eventually will revolutionize
ship building.