Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-02-11
VIEWS o. EXPERTS
ON FORD'S OFFER.
HEARD by CONGRESS


plants turned over to private enter
prise for developments and opera
ton, Major General c. C. Williams,
chief Of ordnance, said Thursday.
The general was testifying in the
hearing before the house military
committee into the offer of Henry
Ford to take over the Alabama
project.
An announcement by Chairman
Kahn, of the house military commit
tee, that w. B. Mayo, chief engineer
for Mr.. Ford. would testify Monday,
opened the second days investiga-
ton by congress of Henry Ford's
offer for purchase and lease of the
nitrate and power property at Mus
Gle Shoals, Ala.
"A telegram received by MIR. Kahn
from E. G. Leibold. SECRETARY to Mr.
Ford, said:
I'm view of the fact that Mr.. Ford
finds it impossible to come to Wash
ington we are asking Mr.. j. w.
Worthington to call on you and to
be of such service as is possible"
The chairman said Mr.. Worthing-
ton had visited him and had said he
and Mr.. Mayo would appear Monday.
The committee then called on Ma
ior General Williams, chief of army
ordinance, He recited in detail the
reasons for construction of the nj
trate plants, explained the processes
of nitrate manufacture and produced
figures giving the cost to the gov
eminent of the work accomplished to
date.
Referring to the Warrior power
plant and substation, the general de-
clared there was in his opinion a
moral obligation" on the part OF
the government to give the Alabama
Power company right to purchase
those properties before they were dis
posed of to otheN private interests. !
Lawyers contend there is no legal
obligation he said. "but there is a
moral obligation to give the company
such privileges, 1t came to the as
sistance of the government in time
of emergency, placed its facilities at
our disposal when there was a real
need of power. and by a contract
with the government, was given a
right to purchase the properties at a
price to be determined by a board OF
arbitrators, in the event they were
to be sold after the war"
Respecting the offer by Mr.. Ford
of $4,000 900 fer the nitrate plants,
sthe general said the sum was very
Inadequate. s. w 49, 4 !.
"The estimated scrap value Of
the plants. based on our experience
of other large properties we have
salvaged," he added, sis $8,S12i000.
If a portion is made operative and
the remainder salvaged. they would
be worth S16,272. 000."
Representative Mckenzie. of I'LL
nois, pointed out that the, Alapama
Power company had constructed the
Warrior plant and transmission line
on a cost plus basis and on money
supplied Exclusively by the United
States.
"rUnder those circumstances. he
said, ''do you think there is a moral
obligation to give the company an
option?"
"I. do" was the reply.
General Williams was asked by
Representative Kearns, of Ohio, II 1t
was not a fact that the Air Nitrates
Corporation was controlled by ten
rAen whose total capital interest was
81 900 or $100 for each man, who had
already made s2,000,000 and had
claims still pending against the gov
eminent.
"I know nothing about their
profits" General Williams replied
He was of the opinion that the
Warrior power plant could be salvag.
ed without affecting the operation OF
nitrate plant No. @, and that the
salvage value would be about 3d.
00o, 900, or three-fifths of what Mr.
Ford offered for all the plants.
Replying to questions RepreSen
tative Parker, of New Jersey, the
ordnance chief said his bureau had
not been able to show that fertilizer
could be produced cheaper at Muscle
Shoals than by commercial inter.
ests.
The policy of the war department.
General Williams said later, opposed
scrapping the Muscle Shoals project.
He agreed that the properties would
become valueless in twenty years If
permitted to stand in idleness.
Representative Quinn, of Missis.
sippi, declared he favored acceptance
of MIR. Fords offer.
''You don't, do youY' he, asked
the witness.
General Williams declined to an
swer.
Mr.. Quinn then said Mr.. Ford
would Keep the nitrate plants ready
in case war clouds came and all we
will have to do is blow the whistle
and everybody will go to work"
This man, Mr.. Ford" persisted
Mr.. Quinn, ''has made success of
his business. He even has made a
success of running railroad and in
creasing wages Don't you think.
with the brains he could buy, he
could reduce the, cost of fertilizer to
meet the farmers needs?"
ST see no relation between one and
the other" General Williams an
swered.
The differences between army esti-
mates for completing construction
work on the dams and those pre-
pared by Mr.. Ford's engineers, the
general explained, was due to allow
anceS Tor unknown dlff1cult1eS that
might be encountered in bringing
the projects to completion. ''If
unusually good luck prevails" he
said, 1--WE might do the work within
Mr. Ford's estimates
1.-THE Wilson dam ought to be
completed in two and one-half or
three years, unless the work is in
terrupted by floods" General Beach
said. answering Representative Hull
of Iowa. He explained the govern
ment was compelled to comply with
the eight hours day laws and give
a half day on Saturday Tor three
months a year and these obligations
imposed a very appreciate, item
which Mr.. Ford probably would
escape.
There is one feature of the case, -
General Beach said, connected with
a cYsI - L., 80.