The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-04-10
HULL PROPOSES
BILL TO REVIVE
1 ARSENAL WORK
schrfser Mission to Washington
Bears Fruit; Passage Of Meas
ure Would Give Jobs.

ULC UUMH8 wv
Reffsf for Arsenal employees out
Of work when war contracts ceased
ID the object Of q bill introduced in
the house Of representatives March
20.
N proposes that the renovation
or production OF all military or
naval supplies, including clothing.
shall be given to government indus
trial plants insofar as those plants
are equipped to do such work.
LITERALLY it gives the government
pIanfs the right to bid on these
contracts. IL is believed the COM
petitive bidding by the government
pIants and private manufactures
would result in substantial under
bidding by the arsenals.
The bill is the direct result II
agitation led by Rock Island men
interested in relieving unemploy-
r11ent among the former arsenal
workers. When a delegation headed
By Mayor Harry NJ. Schriver went
to Washington over a year ago 10
propose the plan of having all sup
niles for the various government
agencies manufactured in the arse
mails 1t was told that continuous
operation in all the government
plants as now equipped would be
sufficient to make only about
third OF all the military and naval
small equipment, perform recon
ditioning work on this material, ana
produce mail service and other
supplies. The new bill is COM
promise, giving government plants
the equal right 10 offer estimates
on all contract jobs they are fitted
to produce with private plants.
Much more work, jobs for hum
dreds of the unemployed in the trl-
cities, will probably result II the
bill becomes a law.
introduced by Harry E. Hull,
Representative from the Second
Iowa district, the title of the bill
is, ITO relieve unemployment
among civilian workers of the gov
eminent. to remove the financial
Incentives to war, to stabilize pro-
duction in federal industrial plants,
to promote the economical and eff
for other purposes"
During the war, when arsenals
were working day and night turn
ing out ordnance equipment and
snch other equipment as they could,
the smaller contract work went TO
private concerns When no more
ordnance work remained to be done
and all the other war work ceased
came the cessation of employment
for thousands of laborers of all
kinds. But in the meantime the
private plants making governm mt
goods continued operating. 1t was
this fact that made Rock Island
city officials seek to place peace
time manufacturing and like work
in Rock Island and the other ar
senals and government plants,
where, as they claimed. it belonged.
In U. s. Plants.
Section / Of the bill provides
that "All vessels, machinery, equip
ment and accouterments for sucn
vessels, naval ordnance and ord
nance materials for the navy, ord
nance and ordnance materials for
the army and other military forces
of the United States, and military
equipment and supplies, including
clothing. shall be constructed, re-
conditioned, repaired. manufac-
tured or produced in the govern
nient navy yards, arsenalS or other
industrial establishments owned
and operated by the United States"
There is a provision that the plants
must be equipped or capable of De-
TO k1
work.
Section authorizes any depart
ment or agency of the government
in charge of any of those plants to
submit estimates OF bids upon any
commercial or other work. In the
event this estimate or bid is lower
than those submitted by private
firms or contractors, the work shall
be awarded to the government es-
adjustment. All departments are
authorized TO give the government
plant authorities an equal Oppor-
tunity with private contractors to
bid on any government work of the
kind dealt with in the bill.
Make New Bureau.
Management of the finances of
plants acting in accord with this
bill, provision for a bureau under
the supervision of the secretary of
the navy and the secretary of war,
10 review, revise and control the
estimates and bids. constitute the
remaining four sections of the bill.
"A copy of this document was to-
day received by Mayor Schriver,
who, on looking fhe bill over, pro-
cd 20
Islands unemployment situation
materially if it is enacted into a
law.