Bisbee daily review., 1922-02-28
FORD OFFER FUR
 NITRATE PLANT .|S SIDE HACKED
Committee Hopes to Dispose of Offers for Muscle Shoals
 Project This Week UPHOLD DS CONTRACT Power Company Will Resist Any Government Attempt
 to Violate Contract

WASHINGTON, Feb. 27.-(Ey the Associated Press)-The Ford offer for purchase and lease of the govern ment war projected properties at Muscle Shoals, Ala, was temporarily sidetracked today by the house mili- tary committee, and the way was cleared to begin consideration tomor- row of the rival Dronosal for the same properties submitted by the Alabama Power Company.
 At the same time. Chairman Kahn sold the committee honed to disnose. by the end of the week. of all hear ines on offers before it. including those from Ford. the Alabama Power Comnanv, and Frederick Engstrum, and begin work next week on DreDar- ing a renort for the house. reciting the committees opinions on the vari- ous proposals it will have studied.
 While the mower companv omitted ir it's nronOsal to make any provision for the manufacture Of fertili7nr or the onnration of oit~ates rlarte No and No 9 # was understood that it's officials had received infor- nation from independent interests in dicating that thev would ask the gov erpment for lease of the plants for rse in commercial fertilizer produc- tion.
 Ita was nointed ont that this enter prise would be established by new canital from American sources and be entirely independent Of the power comnany or existing fertilizer pro ducers. in the event the Alabama
 l.. eress and power would be made avail able for operation Of the plants under the terms of the bid
 In defending the contract which the company executed with war de- partment officials for the building of an addition to the Warrior plant and transmitting power to Muscle Shoals nitrate factories during the war. Dent declared the contract was flair and just" and was drafted in the same standardized way" that hundreds of other contracts were framed in war times.
 Senate hearings on war contracts neeotiated by the war department and Investigated bv congress were read into the record by Dent to show that in agreeing to purchase the War rior plant at a flair value" or com polling the government to remove the plant from the privately owned grounds of the Alabama Power Com pany, that concern had done nothing more than Henry Ford had in con- tracting to make Eagle boats for the government during the war.
 Dent explained that the plants used for boat construction in Michigan were built by the government on Ford's property with the understand ing stipulated in contract form that the buildings would be removed un- less they were purchased by the De- troit manufacturer.
 Both Martin and Dent insisted that the government should discharge it's obligations with respect to the War rior plant and repeatedly declared the company's willingness to pur- chase it at a fair price or whatever price a board of arbitrators might agree upon. They were equally as in sistent, however, that the govern ment should not violate the contract condemn the property in question and deliver it to MT. Ford" and intimated that the company would oppose any such effort through every known pro cedure under the laws.