Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1919-05-11

ciated Press An official narrative of
the part American industry played in
providing munitions for the American
book being prepared under the di-
rection of Assistant Secretary Crowel.,
of the war department, who was
director of munitions up to the close
of hostilities, when he was especially
assigned by the president to direct
the rehabilitation of material.
Advance pages of two sections of the
book, those dealing with the chemical
warfare material, offensive and de-
fensive, and with the equipment for
the Signal Corps were made availa-
BILE today, telling for the first time
officially and completely not only of
the stupendous scope of the projects;
but of the difficulties and delays en-
countered and of the patriotic support
of the war program given by Ameri-
can business generally
The chemical warfare sections tells
of the original work done by the ord
nance department toward obtaining
toxic gases and antigas devices for
the use of American troops. SubSe-
quently this service became a sepa-
rate branch of the army under the di-
rection of Major General w. L. ST.
bert.
Among other secrets disclosed is the
basis of frequent statements that at
the time of the signing of the armis-
tice, the United States alone was pro-
ducing gases for military use at rate
ten times in excess of the best pro-
duction Germany could obtain The
Germans produced, with all their ia
cilities about six tons of mustard gas
per day, while the United States was
producing more than so tons a day
and employing methods of production
far more modern and efficient than
anything attained by the enemy.
Three Plants at Work.
There were three plants at work
on mustard gas, the Edgewood, Md,
arsenal which was manufacturing 30
tons day by November IL, and had
turned out I'll tons up to that day; the
plant at Hastings, N. Y, which was
to have capacity of so tons day
and was ready to operate on Nov. IL,
and the so ton plant of the National
Aniline and Chemical Co., at Buffalo,
N. Y, which was so per cent COM
plete.
The chemical name of this &C npound
h is acknowledgements and its. popular
name of mustard gas comes from its
odor.
Another element of the program was
the production of tear gases, not dead
" under ordinary circumstances, but
designed to produce blindness, thus
forcing the troops to use masks ex-
tensively, impairing their military eff
ficiency. The foundation of these gases
was bromine the main supply of which
is obtained from subterranean solu-
lions found chiefly in the vicinity OF
Midland. Mich, where the government
financed the sinking of IL brine wells
under direction of the Dow Chemical
Co, which were prepared to supply
$4,000 tons a year
The other chief gases are the So
called Killers, the gases so deadly
as to bring death unless safeguards
are provided, chlorine and chloripicrin
and phosgene. The only one of these
produced commercially in the United
States was chlorine and even with
that the supply was utterly inadequate
to the demand.
statistical table shows that l,4SS
tons of chlorine in liquid form; 1908
tons of chlorpicrin; 420 tons of phos-
gene and 100 tons of mustard oil were
actually shipped overseas from Janu-
, ary to November, 1918. In addition
100000 Z5-mm shells loaded with
chforpicrin and 10000 loaded with
mustard oil went abroad, ten ship
ments including 224,0OO PHOSPHORUS
grenades as smoke bombs and lS,bOO
phosgene bombs for Livens mortars.
The capacity for filling shells and
bombs on the day of the armistlce
exceeded 100000 month. At that
time the practice of shipping gases
abroad in bulk to be loaded into pro-
jectiles on the other side had been
abandoned.
1--WE therefore shipped to Europe IN
bulk" the report states, 1862 tons OF
gas or it's equivalent, which gas was
largely loaded into shells ana usea by
the United States troops or those OF
the Allies This quantity was suff1-
cient to load 100000 shells, two
thirds of them being of the 75-mm cal
ibre and the other one third being
155-min. the total number being
! thought to be at least equal to the
D total number of gas shells fired by the
American troops in action.
Thus while American gas }as not
actually fired in American shell
against the Germans, American gas
was used against the enemy and Am
erica furnished at least as much gas