The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-04
HOUSE HAL LTEDBY
 ANOTHER WAVE OF
 WILSON DAM TALK
Southerners Demand Time to Speak In Bhalf of Ten Million Dollar Nitrate Plant
 Amendment
By Associated Press

through nearly a fourth of the III pages of the sundry civil bill first of the be- ginning of the appropriation measures, the House tonight was halted by an- other wave of talk over an amendment providing s10,000 900 for work on the Will son dam, part of the Muscle Shoals nj trate plant project in Alabama.
 There were insistent demands for time. southern members especially desiring to speak in behalf of the amendment, of- fered by Representative Byrnes. Tennes- see, ranking democrat of the appropria- tions committee. It finally was agreed to limit debate tomorrow to an hour and a half Republicans ready to make a point of order against the amendment, with every assurance that it would De sustained, declined to press it so that everybody could talk and then bring the question squarely to vote.
 , In taking up the bill item by item be- fore reaching the Muscle Shoals ques- tion, the House approved it with few changes.
 An appropriation of sD,oO for the council of national defense was stricken out 45 to 23, with the result that this war created agency will be left without funds after July 1s The expected fight on the shipping board item fell down, although the paragraph directing the board to sell it's ships and build no more was ordered out on the ground that It was covered by existing laws. Char man Good of the appropriations commit tee said the paragraph had been put there because it was desired to go to any length to compel the board to do what Congress already had directed.
 It was explained later that the House action in eliminating the paragraph would leave the shipping board without funds after July l., except for $459,000 for sai- aries of commissioners and for expenses of the board in the District of Columbia and of an investigation of foreign dis crimination against American vessels and shippers.
 The board originally asked for an ap- propriation og $t47, 1000. Instead of all lowing this amount, the appropriations committee inserted a paragraph in the sundry civil bill authorizing the board to use funds on hand July the amount received during the coming fiscal year from operation of ships and not to ex- ceed s55O00,000 derived from the sale or the ships and equipment.
 By striking out this paragraph, 1t was explained, the House left the board With out authority even to use funds oefiVeo from salvaging of it's equipment Tor operating expenses
 It was predicted that an appropria- ton for the board would be inserted Tn inc ,,ill wlran # reaches the, Senate.
 DAM WORK WILL CEASE N Work on the Wilson dam will cease after next June unless more money IS provided Representative Byrnes de- clared This- he added, would cause the disiategration of the present force or nearly 4.O.N iaborers. a loss of over s4.0o0,00o, and the possibility of further loss of money already invested in that part of the work which is completed.
 Ut is inconceivable that Congress in- tends to abandon this plant the Ten nessee member asserted. 'Every one is agreed that it should be retained as 2 war emergency" The national de- fense act, he continued, contemplated retention of the plant in peace times, and water power was necessary because manufacture of fertilizer by steam power was too expensive.
 Lack of any more funds he said. would mean the lying idle of the $so,- 000 900 investment and the denial to the farmers of cheaper fertilizer they ex- pect to receive from the operation of this plant" NJ
 Support of the proposition was urged 1y representatives of farmers organi- zations, in joint letter read by Repre- sentatives Byrnes. These included the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Farmers union. and the Ma tional Board of Farm Organization.
 
 to carry out the farmers programme in the interest of the producers and con- 1eumers. Y "This is a clean-cut issue.' declared MT. Byrnes whether you are going to grant the demands of the farmers or yield to the demands of the fertilizer trust"
 MT. Byrnes, facing the republican side, declared:
 "This is going to be your answer to the recognition which Tennessee gave you in the last election"
 MUST CUT EXTRAVAGANCE
 Representative Frear republican, 'eWisconsin, declared Congress must shut down the flood gates of extrava- gance." The people of Tennessee in giving the publican ticket majority in the last election undoubtedly voted to stop extravagant expenditures" he as- serted. He denied there had been any sectionalism shown, citing appropria tions for the Mississippi, Tennessee and other rivers in support of his statement.
 We put over billion dollars in air craft and got nothing. and hundreds of thousands in the shipping board' MT. Frear continued. in opposing any further appropriation until Congress determined a policy to be followed.
 Representative Caldwell, democrat, New York. advocated the appropriation as part of preparedness and necessary for the national defense.
 Representative Quin, democrat. Mis- tkpissippi said after all the talk in the House about aiding the farmers lat the first opportunity of demonstrating some interest to the farmers you turn q deaf ear" He asserted the opposition came from those who have money invested in commercial fertilizer plants. Farmers, he charged, would continue to be ''ex- ploited' by these interests unless some competition could be furnished. which "this nitrate plant would do.r
 "The agricultural classes are cryins for cheaper fertilizer" he asserted.
 Representative Green. republican,