The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-05
LII COP.
 AID UNABLE ID
 GET DAM FUNDS
Ten Million Dollar Appropria- ton Amendment Is Lost By Seven Votes, But New
 Fight Is Planned
By HUGH W. ROBERTS Washington Bureau The Ape Herald
 800 Davidson Building


 Washington, January A. Especial. i.)-Aiabarnians are 50 encouraged with the result of the spectacular fight in behalf of an appropriation for Muscle Shoals that tonight they are predicting that when the mem bers are required to go on rec ord either as supporting or op- posing the farmers of the coun- try, enough of them will weak en to save the day.
 Despite republican politics and sec Chilean interests and gunpowder ana fertilizer trusts, the vote was so close that the change of four would nave guaranteed the appropriation. Rep resentative Almon of the Eighth dis- trict was especially pleased with the support of Representative Mann Of illinois, former republican leader, and one of the ablest of that party in the House He declared that the fight would be maintained and expr essed hope that it would be victorious. Sen ator Underwood was also pleased with the result. He declared the possi5il- ity of the House reversing itself when required to answer roll call.
 Tn any event" he said, the situa- tion is os close that if the Senate amends the bill so as to authorize the appropriation the House will probably MI .d<,., ia nC "a the Senate measure.
 In course of debate in the house, Representative Longworth of Ohio, an embittered enemy fo Muscle Shoals, charged that the cyanimid process was obsolete. Representative Almon, in reply, explained that whereas there were only 14 cyanimid plants prior to the war, there are now 35, and that py i the cyanimid process Germany is now producing 120,000 tons of nitrate per annum.
 The south's support of the proposed appropriation was unanimous.
 By Associated Press
 Washington, January 1.-The assist- ance of such powerful republican leai- CTS as Representative Mann of Illi- nois, former floor leader of his party failed in the House today to rally enough votes for the democrats to Lut across the $10,000,000 appropriation wanted for the continuation of the work on the Wilson dam at Muscle Shoals in Alabama.
 The amendment was lost by just
 seven votes. but another fight will
 be made to get funds when the
 sundry civil hill is taken up by
 the House itself. The vote today
 was in committee of the whole.
 Trdo ba in ra qA tives Byrne and Garrett of Tennessee the democrats made vigorous fight for the project. They were joined by several republicans, among them being Newton of Missouri, Hull of Iowa, Smith of Michigan, Curry and Barr bour of California, Houghen of Iowa, Graham of Pennsylvania, Mann of Illinois, Sinnot of Oregon and Sells of Tennessee. But the final vote showed 125 for the amendment and 132 against.
 Representative Mann brought chsers from the democratic side when i.e de- clared the fertility of the soil was ok supreme importance to an agricultYral country. Everything. possible should he done to aid the producers and con sumers in getting fertilizer as chel ply as possible, he asserted.
 "shaH we scrap a plant because
 we don't like its cost throw 1t
 away because we don't like the
 men who were responsible for
 building tf1 MT. Mann asked.
 There were never enough Chilean
 nitrates, he said, and everything
 possible should be don't to increase
 the supply of fertilizer for the
 farmers.
 WORST EXAMPLE OF WASTE
 Representative Mondell.. Wyoming, republican leader, declared that of "all the examples of waste under demo- cratic administration. the expenditures at Muscle Shoals and whereabouts was the worst" The expenditures. he said, was the greatest single issue of the recent cam paign and largely responsible for the democratic defeat There is money enough to carry on the work at Muscle Shoals until June, he added, and there would be plenty of time for the new Congress to inquire into the matter carefully before making any further appropriation. From the standpoint of national defense. he said, the project stands completed and he did not think the farmers were very much given to paternalisttc enterprises"
 In closing the debate on the demo- cratic side, Representative Garritt, Tennessee. said it was no new enter prise on which the government is being asked to embark. The question was whether the investment already made should be deliberately thrown away he said, or completed for the benefit of the whole country. Turning to the mill itary aspect, he said the United States must never again be at the mercy of foreign countries for it's supply of ex- plosives.
 Ut would be the height of folly to stop this great work" he asserted.
 Representative Wood of Indiana chairman of the appropriations subcom- mittee. said the Wilson dam project was proposition to throw away $1O.000, 900, and every man who votes for it will and ought to receive the same con- demnation the President received for his extravagance."
 DEBATE ABRUPTLY HALTED
 Debate on the sundry civil bill. to which the Wilson dam appropriation would have been an amendment, came to an abrupt halt tonight when fight was started on a paragraph appropriat- ing $1,250,444 for Improvements along several rivers in the south. Represen- tative Frear. republican,, Wisconsin. tried to have the paragraph stricken s out on tho ground that 1t was new reg islation.
 Representative Bankhead, demo- crat. Aiahama declared that long con- trovegpy VAS imminent and made .
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