Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1924-04-04
Richardson Recommends Re-
questing Governor to Call
Legislative Session
NEW LAWS ARE NEEDED
To Restrict the Storage and
the Use of High Explo-
sives in This State
NEW BRUNSWICK. April ~

NEW BRUNSWICK. April -
An investigation of the pIcric acid
storage at Nixon by Representative
OF the State Department of lal
last Monday discloses the fact tha
great deal of this material does NO.
contain the require ten per cent Of
moisture as required by law and in
a number of cases the material was
found to be without moisture. rem
dering it highly explosive, according
to a report submitted to the Board
of F'reeholders by County Solicitor
Frederick f. Richardson yesterday.
This fact and the deteriorated
containers and magazines will be
the basis of grand jury investigators
declared Mr.. Richardson, who in
formed the freeholders that the pros
ecutor had consented to lay the facty
before the grand jury at the compile
tion of the investigation of the Afn*
monte plant explosion.
Recommendations were also cub
mitted by the solicitor. that the
freeholders petition Gnrerpps~7 ~7i1Te1
to call an extra session Of the Ies-
islature for the passage of the ''nec-
essary additional legislation" to pro-
tect the residents of the community
from the danger of further catastrp-
p1ies. No action was taken at the
time, but members of the board in
dicated that the suggestion wou1f
be followed at the next meeting
which will be held next Thursday
An inspection of the storage Of ex
plosives at the Du Pont and Her
cules plants at Parlin, Raritan ar
senal at Germantown, the UneS
celled Fireworks Company on tbs
outskirts of New Brunswick and tho
Monmouth Junction will be under.
taken by the board in company with
experts on explosives next week, for
the purpose of determining whether
or not those plants are menace
to the health and safety of residents
Of the county.
Howard A. Callan. a New York
attorney. appeared before the board
and attempted to gain the consent
of the county to permit W. j. Brad-
ford of New York, stockholder in
the Butterworth Judson Company,
to continue the storage of his a
10000 pounds of picric acid on the
Nixon meadows in concrete pits TO
be erected. The permission was re-
fused.
A second plan advocated by coun-
sci for the owner would provide for
the payment to Bradford by the
county of $500 to assist him in
having the acid removed within
three months. This plan was silg-
gested in lieu of the county going
to an expense of employing legal
means to force the removal but lt
received the same amount of consid :
Grafton as the first plan suggested.
Start Damage Suit
TRENTON, April 4.-Suit for
s4o0. OOo damages was instituted in
the United States district court here
today against the Nixon Nitration
works of Nixon, N. j.. by the AM
monte Company, Inc. OF SO East
41st street, New York city as the re-
suit of the explosion at the former
company's plant March ! last. The
bill of complaint against the Mira ,
ton company sets forth two separate
counts alleging carelessness by the
defendant which resulted In the
killing of nine of the Anmonite
company workmen. injury to so
other employees and the destruction
of large quantity of machinei
stock and other material.
The Ammonite company rented i
section of the Nixon plant for the
| manufacture of its wares, the COM
plant stated, and its equipment
I there was totally destroyed in the
explosion. The Ammonite concern
charges that the Nixon company
maintained a common nuisance on
its premises by permitting lands.
buildings grounds railway tracks 4
and roadways to be saturated with
gun-cotton. which is described in
the document as a high explosive
and dangerous to human life.
Continued on page 50