New Britain herald., 1922-08-04
MINORITY REPORT ADVISES ACCEPTANCE
 OF HENRY FORD'S MUSCLE SHOALS OFFER

ment and the fuel and transportation Emergencies. the report said u.
 "1 No electrified railway and no industry served by water power can suffer suspension on account of a fuel supply. because hydroelectric power, both in It's production and dstribu- tion, Is practically free of all labor troubles. Fuel and transportation are the big national problems which now distress our people, Muscle Shoals, with the Ford offer accepted may fur nish an opportunity for the senate to discover how such fuel and trans- portation emergencies can be. at least in part, avoided in the future"
 Government Bond Issue.
 The report compared in detail the Ladd and Norris bills pending in the senate. The Ford offer as represent ed by the Ladd bill. the report said, takes the government out of the fer tilizer and power business" while the Nebraska members bill "set the gov crnment up in the fertilizer and power business.
 The Norris proposal requires direct appropriation by congress of ss4.o0o,- oo0, without including any estimate for the proposed dams in the upper Tennessee river. with no guaranteed return of either the principal or in- terest on same" 1t was said. On the other hand, the report argued. Muscle Shoals could be developed by Mir. Ford under the Ladd bill, by government bond issue. if desired, "as the interest and sinking fund payments made by Mir. Ford will meet interest on such bonds and retire them at the end of lease period. except during the short construction and power loading pe- riod."
 Costly Experiment for Government.
 Even those of us who are in favor of government ownership and opera tion," said the report must concede that the Muscle Shoals case Is one fraught with the gravest danger of| heavy losses If the government under takes to work out the fertilizer prob lem there No advocate of govern ment ownership and operation can discount the fact that the Muscle Shoals case is not a good one to se- lect in testing out the policy of gov ernment ownership and operation The dangers and the difficulties many of them specialized and technical, in- volving problems in the field of com mercial chemistry, warn us to be con- servative and prudent with the peoples money at Muscle Shoals"
 An agricultural benefit to the coun- try by development of the Shoals properties by Mir. Ford. the report as- serted. will include large scale pro- duction of fertilizers produced under the most favorable manufacturing conditions, maintained abreast of pro- gress in an art that is developing rapidly. and which will reduce the cost of fertilizer
 After reviewing conflicting testi- mony taken by the committee on the question of how much present fertiliz CT costs could be reduced at Muscle Shoals. the report asserted:
 U. s. Should Stay Out
 ITO our minds the evidence is con vincing that there are modern cleo tro-chemical processes which, applied at Muscle Shoals, will reduce the cost of fertilizers, but If there is any doubt on that score the United States should l stay out of the business
 "Mr. Ford has agreed to pursue plan of research and to adopt the re- suits from his investigations which will compel him to introduce the best available methods. and he has the necessary capital to do so.
 We therefore, believe that among the costly problems which Mir. Ford will have to solve at Muscle Shoals will be the selection of the most economical nitrogen making progress, md therefore 1t is conceivable that MT. Ford will be obliged to either 'edesign Nitrate Plant No. and pos ibly scrap and rebuild the entire nj rogen process equipment. Now. since Henry Ford has the cash ind has offered to spend it to meet hese contingencies and dangerous fl- lancial risks as we here describe, hen, speaking for ourselves. we are villiag to let him have a chance to To it. but we are not willing for the
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