Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1921-09-08

| Va LAY A'tSi ~ - -
fore you. a. -,
The first part of the Ford offer is
to lease the Wilson Dam and Dam
Number 8 for 100 years, with lndefl-
! mite renewals, provided the Govern
:: ment will complete them and install
/: machinery to produce $4,000 horse
power. Mr.. Ford offers to pay . per
cent on the % million dollars which
he estimates will be necessary to COM
plete this work, or 3 40 per cent on
4s million dollars Mr.. Ford's own
estimate of the whole Government IN
| vestment in dams, locks, and power
| houses. Even if we add all other an
I nual payments (the so-called amortl-
cation payment, and the payments
| for the repair, maintenance. and
| operation of dams, gates and locks),
the total would be equivalent to IN
terest at the rate of only 6-lO per
! cent. Mr.. Ford offers also to give
the Government 800 horsepower to
operate the locks.
Please note that for the water
power itself Mr.. Ford would pay moth
| ing. and that he would be free from
| all taxes on the property. Other les
sees of waterpower tights from the
Government not only bear the total
cost of building their own dams anG
powerhouses and pay taxes on them,
but they also pay for the waterpowerr
| in addition. The Ford offer is like OF
fering a man 3 Clio per cent on the
cost of his factory as rent, and then
asking him to throw in a coal mine
to supply fuel for the engines for
| nothing.
There is no allowance for deprecia-
ton, and the Government would be-
yond question have to pay the cost OF
| injury to the dams or locks from
floods or other causes. Moreover,
there is nothing in the offer to IN
dictate that the Government, in order
to protect it's own property, would not
have to bear the expense of replac-
ing enormously costly machinery
| when it had been worn out in Mr..
| Ford's service.
The second part of the Ford offer
is to buy Nitrate Plant Number l.,
which cost the Government in round
numbers 13 million dollars, Nitrate
Plant Number 2 which cost the Gov
ernment in round numbers 10 million
] dollars, and. other property which
brings the total cost to IS million dol
lars, and pay million dollars for it
all. The property for which this Of
fer is made includes steam machinery
! to produce 100 thousand horsepower,
which enc is worth far more than
Mr.. Fords offer for the whole. In
addition, the Government is to buy
from Alabama Power Company the
land which certain Of the foregoing
structures were built, and to turn that
over to Mr.. Ford also.
In return for the lease, for the pur-
| chased property, and for the water
power without charge, Mr.. Ford Of
| fers in addition to the payments men
toned above, to do three principal
things:
First-"To maintain Nitrate Plant
Number ready to be operated in time
of war for the production of explo-
sives," and in the event of war to turn
| it over to the Government for that
purpose.
Second-"To operate Nitrate Plant
Number 2 to approximate present
capacity in the production of nitro
gen and other fertilizer compounds,
and in this business to limit his nct
profit from the manufacture and sale
of fertilizer products to eight per
cent.
Third-The offer as written sug-
gests producing, but contains no d.
rect proposal to produce, fertilizer fer
the benefit of American farmers.
That could, of course, be corrected In
the final contract, for ! have no
doubt that Mr.. Ford desires to make
fertilizer at a total net profit of eight
per cent. Nitrate Plant Number :,
however, is not adapted to making
fertilizer, but only cyanimid, one OF
several materials used for the pro-
duction of fertilizer, and not one OF
the best at that.
The fact is that the Ford offer is
not mainly a fertilizer proposition. 1t
is seven parts waterpower to one part
fertilizer even if the fertilizer part
should work out For, if Nitrate Plant
Number were to be permanently en-
ployed in the manufacture OF 1ertl-
lizer it would consume but 100 thou
sand horsepower out of the S30,OOO
installation. This is the heart OF the
whole matter.
AS waterpower proposition, the
Ford offer is in every important point
directly contrary to the Roosevelt
waterpower policy, which after Is
years of struggle was finally enacted
into law last year.
The Roosevelt policy provides that
all waterpower leases shall be limited
to fifty years. The Ford offer asks for
100 years with indefinite renewals.
The Roosevelt policy provides for
return of the Government works at
the end of fifty years. The Ford OF
fer provides for indefinite private
possession of the Government works.
The Roosevelt policy provides for
regulation of the price to the power
consumer. The Ford offer, so far as
Il