Milford chronicle., 1924-04-11
DELAWARE GETS SHARE
OF U. S. ARMY TRUCKS
State Also To Receive Other Road
Building Equipment, Highway
Chief Learns.

c. Douglas Buck, chief engineer O.
the State Highway Department was
notified last week that Delaware
would receive its share of the motor
tractors and vehicles manufactured
during the war and unused and rust.
ing away, when the bills introduced
by Senator Capper and Representa-
tive Reece are passed by the two
houses of Congress. The equipment
consists of 5000 motor vehicles, 1000
five-tOn tractors and 500 mobile ma
chine shop units.
Farmers of Delaware are interested
in these bills, as is every motorist,
for their use in helping build high
ways. might prove a saving to the
EState The five and ten ton caterpillar
tractors. have been in storage since
prior to the signing of the Armistice
55a years ago. They are becoming OBJ
solete and because they are public
property paid for by public funds,
should be made use of. In few more
years they will become absolutely
useless on account of being out of
date and in addition in some cases
from being inadequate storage and ex-
posed to the elements.
The 1000 tractors mentioned in the
bill represent an expenditure Of the
peoples money of over $10,O00,OOO.
Nobody has received any appreciable
benefit from this expenditure. The
most of these tractors have never
been used. The bill proposes to pro-
vide a public use for them. The ord
nance and quartermaster departments
of the army have in their possession
a very large quantity of motor trucks
A great many of these are in storage
at Halabird, Nd; LaCarne, Ohio; Fort
Benjamin Harrison, Indiana; Raritan
Arsenal, n. J.; JeffersOnville, Indiana;
Atlanta, Ga; Columbus, o.; New
Cumberland, Pa; Fort Sill, Oklaho-
ma and in San Antonio and Ell Paso, |
Texas and points on the west coast. |
In some of these stOrages the trucks |
are out in the open or have very
poor protection.
At Camp Halabird the trucks have |
been out in the open all winter. At /
New Cumberland they are in open
sheds with practically no protection.
They have been in the latter storage
for more than four years. The design
Of these motor vehicles has been ma
-erially changed and in a year or so
more they probably will be considered
obsolete. These 5000 motor vehicles
an expenditure of approx
nately $15,O00,000. The transfer of !
.hese motor vehicles to the Depart ]
nent of Agriculture for transfer to
he states for road building purposes
will not inconvenience the War De- S
present plans of maintain '
ng a peace time army. 1t is the only l
way the public will get some measure
f return for the money expended in N
war time period. The 500 machine g
hop units covered in the bill have c
ever been used by the War Depart Il
lent and represent but fraction of
ne total quantity of machine shops p
nits in the War Department camps. o.
hese machine shop units at least u
epresent an expenditure OF over ST. U
10000. In the proposed transfer of
Iese tractors, trucks and machine A
Top units to the states for road al
Hiding purposes there is a saving OF tr
$32,50O,O0G in public aC
penditures as the states in most
stances will be required to procure WI
is material in the open market if it ID
not transferred to them from war Gi
'plCs. CT