Evening journal., 1921-06-14
PICRIC ACID
FOR Peace Use
Farmers to Get 100000
Pounds Because Major
Violated Order
OVER $5,OOO,OOO
SAVED GOVERNMENT

WASHINGTON, June 14.-Eleven
million pounds Of picric acid will
shortly be distributed 10 the farm
ers Of the West for blasting purposes
This acid, a part of the great store
OF explosives intended by the United
States Army to blow the Huns out
of their trenches in France, will be
turned over to the farmer at cost by
the United States Department of
Agriculture. Picric acid is very
similar to TINT. $4,000, 900 pounds Of
which we're distributed by the de-
partment TO the States for highway
construction.
Behind this prosaic announcement
of the Department OF Agriculture
there is a story of a major in the
ordnance department of the United
States Army who was confronted
with seeing this 10000, 900 of valu-
able property dumped into the ocean
or with risking courtmartial to save
it
This was the dilemma that Major
M. ]. Connolly, explosives officer.
Division of Ordnance, faced at the
signing Of the armistice, November,
] A'Aos iiAt W ar department eAn-
nounced that 26,O0O,0OO pounds of
INT would be dumped into the
Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Major
Connolly at his desk in the Ordnance
Department, read the official order
before it got to the newspapers
Major Connolly, who is a chemical
engineer himself. knew that TINT
had cost the United States from 35
to so cents a pound. and that before
America got into tho war II had sold
as high as s1.25 per pound. He
did not know how he could convert
an explosive intended TO blow hu-
man beings to pieces into an ex-
plosive that could blow stumps and
blasting rock. But nevertheless he
was convinced that, il could be done.
He appealed to his chief to rescind
the order. and failing there, he ap-
pealed to Secretary of War Baker.
thereby laying himself liable TO army
discipline. Failing to convince the
Secretary of War he carried his ap-
peal to the late Secretary OF the In
terror Franklin X Lane, thereby ag-
gravating the original offense.
''Mr. Lane" said the Major, IF
you will get this 26,00O,0OO pounds
OF INT from the War Department /
will find the way that you can use it
in building roads. in carrying out
your reclamation work and in every
project that the Government has on
hand in connection with waste land.
There is not a chemical manufacture
ed by this Government for war pur-
poses that can't be converted now
into peace usage. Anything that
the Government has in chemicals
that those fellows say has no value
J let me work with it and will prove
that they are wrong"
Secretary Lane saw the point. HI
requested the Secretary OF War [,
turn over the INT to the Depart
ment Of the Interior. Secretar.
Baker agreed to do it, but il wal
found that special legislation b!
Congress was necessary before thii
could be done.
Tests made by the Bureau of Mines
at Pittsburgh showed that TINT
blended with grenade powder made
a better blasting explosive than many
of the commercial dynamites. II
was found to be less dangerous q
handle and more effective in blast
ing work. As there was only Z
limited supply of the grenade pow
der allotted from the War Depart
ment, however, the larger part o
the 26.OO0,000 pounds of INT wa
, used without mixing. II was turn
ed over to the Bureau of Publi
Roads. Department of Agriculture
and by them delivered to the variou
l. F.,,-
I building of highways. The actua
cost to the commissions was the cos
OF handling, about 10 cents pound
q As the cost OF commercial dynamit
is 80 cents a pound. the direct savinl
g on this one item was over $4,000
In addition, the army had 7,0O0,O0'
detonators worth to cents apiece
G for which there was practically n