Middletown transcript., 1918-08-24
TO BEAT THE HUN

~ DEAl LIE hui
Colonel Buckner Tell. Of Enormou
Output Of Dupont Company
SUPPLIED 1850, $1,000 POUND!
Colonel Buckner, Vlce-President 0
the du Pont Company. reveals for tn
first time the enormous resources in ex
plosives, built up in this coun Try. whicl
saved the Allies from the first Germal
onslaughts and now gives powder su
periority to the nations fighting TO
Democracy.
The Colonel revealed that the powde
company has supplied 1,5OO, 600, OO
pounds of explosives for our own Gov
ernment and the Allies under contract
aggregating $1.Ol1, 100000 andy as HI
expressed it, never missed trick
never disappointed customer, and wa!
always there with the goods" Thi'
huge total, measured by the Company.
largest years output before the war
amounts to 26 years business, or fol
government business only, to 276 year..
business
The Company, had also come to the
financial assistance of our own anc
foreign governments by taking over al
various times foreign securities amount
ing to Sill, 500, 900 and United States
securities amounting to $125, $50, 900.
In addition to that it had contributed
$2,05O, 900 to tn. Red Cross funds and
Y. NJ. C. A. can paigns and has paid in
Federal taxes, during the last two
years, $36. .622,00O.
The speaker discussed the large
profits which his company has made
out of these contracts and gave figures
to show that these profits did not come
from excessive prices but from high
efficiency and the work Of perfect
organization, which, in spite of con-
stantly increasing prices Of raw ma
terials and labor. made it possible for
tne company to REDUCE the price OF
its product from $1.OO per pound at the
beginning Of the war, to A.. cents
pound; price lower than smokeless
powder was sold to the Government o:
the United States even before the war
when Congre IS had fixed So cents PEI
pound as the figure. During all the
time of high prices the price to tn,
United States Government was never
raised nor was there any increase il
the price of explosives supplied to the
various cartridge an loading companies
in the United states.
The secret Of all this success, the
Colonel pointed out, was the rapid com
plet;on Of thoroIy efficient organiza
tion, the invention of new processes
and labor-saving devices, and back Of j
all hundred years of experience ant
a tnoro knowledge of how to do it.
Before the war the du Points coult
only make $4,000, 900 pounds of powder
a year, costing 80 cents pound. II
the face of many risks, the rising cos
of labor and materials; the threats OF
German sympathizers that no aid shoulc
reach the Allies; the uncertainty of the
Governments allowing shipments OF
war materials, &c. the du Points still
only raised the cost 20 cents pound
"A modest increase" as the Colonel
claims, as compared with the 100 and
25O per cent. increase demanded of the
Government by the Steel Trust, the
Cotton Trust, Standard Oil, the Lumber
Trust, etc.
The Allies agreed to advance so cents
a pound to enable the Company to build
new plants; contracts came in SO fast
we were forced to start a new plant
nearly every day."
Col.nel Buckner told how General
Hedlam, of the British Army, declared
that the du Pont Company is entitled to
the credit of saving the British Empire!
He read letter from the British
Ministry of munitions signed by Chris.
topher Addison in which he said. Gal
low me to record the British sense of
obligation to your company for these,
and other magnificent services it has
rendered to the Allied cause" This let
ter referred to the fact that the du
Pont Company had lent its aid to the
British Government in the building of
big powder plant, had furnished the
layout, the plans, drawings of all ma
chinery, and had sent some of its best
men to do the work without cost to the
British Government. Lord Moulton in
acknowledging these services said 1--WE
have always known each other as
cousins and when we joined in this war
we became partners, but such acts as
these convince me that we are now
brothers"
Colonel Buckner summed up the Com
pany's work: ''Since August 1914, we
have sold to the Allies and the United
States over 1.5OO, OoO. 900 pounds of ex-
plosives and contracted to loan 80, 000,-
600 shells, detonators, &c.
We have also furnished the Govern
ment with layout and all drawings for
the Smokeless Powder plant which the
Army is building at Charleston, W.
Va, and have agreed to operate two
large plants for loading Smokeless
Powder charges into bags.