The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-09-07
FORD IS FACING
Z CHO|CESON
SHOALS
Opportunity to Be Manufac-
turer and Politician Seen.
Results of Conference.
BY WILLIAM HARD.

Steam Plant" on the Warrior river
in Alabama may be a thing on
which a Presidential candidacy
will be based.
Henry Ford today is flat UP
against a final choice between the
two following propositions: -
He may accept the Muscle
Shoals properties from the Federal
Government without the Gorgas
steam plant, which is many miles
away. Or,
2-He must at last come straight
out and make good on his threat
of May 81 Of last year when in a
communication to the Military At
fairs Committee of the House of
Representatives he demanded that
the Gorgas steam plant be included
in the Muscle Shoals deal and said:
IF Congress rejects my offer, it
will be but the beginning of a more
determined effort on my part to
of the public"
In the same communication Mr..
Ford said further:
THE Gorgas plant is necessary
to the economical operation OF the
Muscle Shoals properties"
Attempted Compromise Seen.
Today it is assumed that the Pres
ident would not have sent for Mr..
Ford and the Secretary of War
would not have conferred with him.
if a decision had not been reached
to try to compromise with Mr.. Ford
along the following lines:
Let MIR. Ford withdraw his de-
mand for the Gorgas plant on the
Warrior river, and then let a lot
the Republican regulars withdraw
their opposition to letting Mr.. Ford
have the dams and the turbines and
the nitrogen fixation works ut
Muscle Shoals Oh the Tennessee.
Among the Republican regulars
who most bitterly have opposed the
giving or leasing or selling of any
thing to Mr.. Ford under any plan
heretofore suggested is Nicholas
Longworth, prospective floor leader
of the Republicans in the next
House of Representatives.
Among them also Is James w.
Wadsworth, jr., senior Senator IRON
New York.
Republicans of strongly -conserva-
tive tendencies have numerously re-
Weeks Changes Attitude.
The Secretary Of War has here
tofore Joined them in an attitude OF
general resistance, open or quiet,
toward Ford's endeavors.
Now the Secretary of War comes
forward to negotiate with Mr.. Ford
on the basis of a compromise regard.
ing which the best opinion here is
that 1t will either produce countless
tons of fertilizer. for American farms
or countless tons of dynamite for
American politics.
From the fertilizer standpoint it is
really perfectly manifest that Mr..
Ford does not in fact need the Cor
gas Steam Plant. For fertilizer pur.
poses he can use the power from the
dam at Muscle Shoals, together with
power from steam plants already con-
structed on the Muscle Shoals site,
and together further) with power
from any new steam plants which
he may himself desire to construct
on his own account on that same site.
1t happens, it is true, that the
Gorgas plant Is very close to a
great supply of coal, and 1t hap
pens accordingly that the Gorgas
plant is an economical plant, but
the cold fact is that while this
Gorgas plant would be con-
venience to Mr.. Ford it is not in
any important way a necessity to
him If all that he is after is a
chance to manufacture fertilizers
for farmers. The power for that
job can be found at Muscle Shoals.
Expectations Of Farmers.
Mr.. Ford therefore may now ac-
cept Muscle Shoals and then he
will be out of politics for keeps for
two reasons The first is that the
farmers will expect him to spend
his time being a fertilizer manu-
facturer and not being a Presi-
dent, and the second is that he
will then at Muscle Shoals have a
contract with the Government, and
nobody who has a contract with
the Government can hold office in
the Government and keep within
the spirit of existing Legislation.
That is one choice that Mr.. Ford
today can make. He can choose to
work for the farmer at the price of
abandoning politics to the politi-
clans and at the price of abandon
ing the Gorgas plant to the Ala.
bama Power Company.
His other choice is to go out and
set the prairies on fire with the
following speech:
"FellOW farmers:
II was going to give you cheap
fertilizers, but now | won't; be-
cause the Government is going to
give the Gorgas plant to the Ala
bama Power Company under a con-
tract which from time to time the
legal authorities Of the War De
partment and the legal authorities
Of the Department of Justice have
denounced as Illegal
1t happens to be true that this
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