Evening star., 1922-02-08
HAS OTHER OFFERS
ON SHOALS PLANT
Mr.. Weeks Tells Committee
One Is verbaI-"Ford Crop
ing in Dark" He Says.

as the first witness in the hearing
before the House committee on mill
tary affairs into the offer OF Henry
Muscle Shoals, Ala, nitrate project.
announced that he expected to for
ward two other offers for Muscle
Shoals" to Congress before the end
of the week.
The Secretary did not identify the
additional offers to which he referred
and gave no details as to their scope.
Chairman Kahn, who presided at the
hearing. said that until the proposals
were presented the committee would
confine it's inquiry to that OF Mr..
Ford. who has been invited to appear.
VIII Rush Hearing,
The military committee will expe-
dite it's consideration of the Alabama
power and nitrate project. Mr.. Kahn
said. expressing the opinion that the
hearings would be concluded within
week
Secretary Weeks then proceeded.
He described fully the negotiations
from their inception, covering q
period of more than six months. Mr..
Ford's agreement to pay 4 per cent
on the total cost Of construction on
the dams, he said. was 3 distinct In
crease In the value of his proposition.
One ORer Only Verbal.
One Of the offers to be sent to
Congress- Secretary Weeks said.
was verbal statement from an
other responsible company which
offered to complete the Wilson dam
at its own expense. mo written
offer had been made. he added, but
belief was that one probably would
be-
Referring to the manufacture Of
fertilizers by the Muscle Shoals plant.
Mr. Weeks said he believed Mr.. Ford
was very largely cropping in the
dark"
THE interest in this matter" he
continued. lis due to the large num-
ber of people who believe they will
get cheap fertilizers"
Weeks Would Impose Forfeit.
The Secretary said Mr.. Ford had
told him in conversations that he
would not continue over given
period of years to manufacture fer
tilizer or do so at all at loss.
Il think there should be a forfeit
imposed" Mr.. Weeks declared, ito
apply in the event the manufacture
Of this commodity is stopped. II
that happens. a great many people
would be disappointed"
In replying to Chairman Kahn. Mr..
Weeks said Mr.. Ford had made the
81, Hr. ~ >, L. "a
fertilizer at loss during an inter-
view with him on October IL.
The Secretary said 1t was his opin-
lon that 1t was as important to have
interest paid the government for
money it would expend to obtain land
and flowage rights under the contract
as it was to have interest paid on
money required to complete the dams.
1T is estimated by Army engineers"
he explained. that 100000 will be
required to acquire the land and rights
involved"
&s7.O0O.OO0 Already Spent.
Answering questions from Mr.. Kahn,
Secretary Weeks said the government
had spent $s7,oOO.oo0 on the nitrate
plants, for which "Mr. Ford offers $5,-
600, 600"
The Secretary said a fifty-year lease
would be "a much wiser policy than
one for 100 years, as offered by Mr..
Ford, because "all kinds of things can
happen in a hundred years"
Representative Mckenzie OF Illinois
asked If the 100 years were reduced
to SO whether it would necessitate
negotiating new offer.
at would unless Mr.. Ford agreed to
it, Mr.. Weeks answered. 1T would
change the figuring on the amortisa.
ton plan, but l do not believe II
would mean a redrafting Of the whole
offer"
In reply to another question, the
Secretary asserted Mr.. Ford mad IN
sisted on the $5,000.000 figure as his
Some opposition was expressed by
the war Secretary against any at.
tempt on the part of the government
"to enter into the manufacture OF
fertilizer"
III the property was mine" he con.
tinued. II would, however. insist upon
a guarantee for fertilizer manufac-
ture for the life of the contract
House I'm Clash Over Shoals.
A fight developed in the House to-
day between the agriculture and mill
tary committees for jurisdiction over
negotiations looking to the sale and
lease of the Muscle Shoals project.
With hearings in progress before the
military committee on Secretary
Weeks report on the offer OF Henry
Ford for the property. the agriculture
committee unanimously voted to seek
possession of the report by obtaining
preference on the floor OF the House.