New-York tribune., 1921-03-08
T uts
U p Gas Plants
For New w ar
DR.. Charles III. Herty Says
Her Growing Dye Works
Are Designed TO Pour Out
Clouds of Poison Fumes
Will Be Chief Weapon
Declares Ireaty's Failure TO
Curb Industry Leaves Her
Fully Ready for Conflict

hen Germany starts out again to
conquer the world she will have as her
strongest weapon poison gas, and it
will be produced in great volume in
plants now engaged in the manufacture
of dyes, for which double purpose these
plants are adequately equipped. This
statement was made yesterday by Dr.
Charles II. Herty, authority on chem
ical warfare and chairman Of the COM
mittee of the American Chemical So
ciety, which, as an advisory body, WAS
in large part responsible for the de-
velopNent of the chemical warfare
branch Of the United States Army.
In spite of the war which resulted
in her defeat and regardless of her
apparent present inability to engage
the Allies in conflict again DR.. Herty
DECLARES, Germany to-day, by reason
Of the greatest and most active dye
stuff industry in the world, is in as
good if not better position to launch
modern military offensive than she
was prior to the World War.
Besides being chairman Ct the adj
visory committee Of the American
Chemical Society, Or. Herty is editor
Of The Journal of Industrial and Engi-
ncering Chemistry, ] Madison Avenue.
Following the signing Of the armstIce
he was sent to Europe by the govern
ment OH mission which had to do
with the chemical warfare service.
During and since that time he has been
in close touch with virtually every
phase of German industrial activity,
and less than two weeks ago was called
to Washington to testify before a com
mittee of Congress concerned with APP
preparations for the chemical warfare
branch of the army. at that time he
pleaded for an appropriation Of S4-
100000 for chemical warfare research
and development of this branch of the
military service on TIE ground that
Germany had already established lead
in production Of dyes which constituted
new menace to world peace.
Germany Gets LoophoIe
The fact that the League Of Nations,
as such, has made no demands upon
Germany for dismantling Of her dye
industry left Germany the desired
loophole through which to plan another
war, but not, DR.. Herty says, war
Win heaVy guns ana DaCCleShlpS.
"Under the postwar conditions i'm
posed by the Allies Germany's dye
plants have been closely supervised by
Allied soldiery," Dr.. Herty said 81
know that in all negotiations going on
within the last year the Germans have
been willing and have sacrificed many
things in order TO get rid of this super
vision y To-day they are free from it,
| am informed of this by an official of
the government who only recently re-
turned from Europe. What would
like to know is why were they the
Germans SO anxious to get rid Of that
supervision?
Before the war Germany supplied
the whole world with dyes from her
chen existing plants. There is no ques-
tion that her plants have been
largely expanded during and since the
war. Evidence is her dye production
for January, which was $4,000 tons, or
$50 tons more than the average pre-
war monthly output. From these dye
plants came all OF the poison gases
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