Jasper County Democrat, Volume 21, Number 104, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 March 1919 — IS LIBERTY FUEL A BIG FAKE? [ARTICLE]

IS LIBERTY FUEL A BIG FAKE?

Government So Alleges; Inventor Being Tried by Court-Martial. We note that deposed "Boss’’ Charles J. Murphy, at one time Democratic chairman of this district and who later gained some notoriety as a member of the Indiana public, service commission, is now secretary-treastirer of the Liberty Fuel Co. of Indianapolis, a corporation with an authorized capital of $10,000,000, according to literature of the company, which proposes to make a substitute for gasoline at about one-fourth the cost of John D’s. product. At ent the dear people are being<fjivited to buy stock in the concern, none of the fuel having been put on the market to any extent as yet, it is .understood. L. This so-called “liberty fuel" is an invention or discovery of Captain EJdwin C. Weisgerber, "captain of engineers U. S. army, division of research and development," and >?ho is one of the directors of this company, who, by the way, is now being tried by government courtmartial in New York, charged with criminal offenses involving alleged disloyalty to the United States and sympathy with Germany. It is alleged that his so-called "liberty fuel” is deterious to motors and consists of a solution of gasoline and picric acid, and that the acid is dangerous and destructive; that the mixture would ultimately destroy any "internal combustion engine or motor” and seriously impair the operation of submarines, motor trucks and other military and naval equipment. It is contended by the government that analysis of the mixture submitted by the defendant to the British war mission as a substitute

ter gasoline and purporting by him to consist of 95 per cent water and five per cent chemicals, was in reality "a saturated solution of picric acid and gasoline.” . Prof. Adams, who is,, on the faculty of the University of Illinois, and war. recently discharged as a major in the chemical warfare service, testified that his analysis showed the mixture to contain 6-10 of one per cent picric acid and ordinary commercial gasoline. Dan W. Sims of Lafayette, and a particular friends of ’Charles J. Murphy, is one of the attorneys defending Weisgerber in this courtmartial. v While, of course, “liberty fuel” may be all that the beautiful prospectus of the company claims for it and the defendant —the Inventor may be innocent of the charges on which he is being tried, the fact that the government 'has taken the action that it‘has in the matter is prima facia evidence that the fuel is NOT what is claimed for it, and The Democrat advises its readers to hang onto “their money and not invest it in stock in this company, at least until some evidence has been adduced that the fuel is practical. Stock salesmen have been traveling about over the state —and one was in Rensselaer last week —pushing the sale of stock in thjs company. The Benton Review states

that a salesman was there last week and that “Mr. Murphy had instructed the salesman to especially call upon bls personal friends who had aasieted him in his campaigns in this county, and it is said that they have been heavy buyers of the stock, which, according to the news in the daily papers, is said to have been a fake, and Captain Weisgerber, whose portrait was featured in the beautiful prospectus sent out by t'he organizers of the company, is being tried by court-martial for giving aid to Germany by furniehing a fuel which would in the end destroy any motor using it. The company was to commence active operations as soon as the captain was ‘discharged from the service’ which may be some time.” It is understood that some of this stock has been sold in Rensselaer and Jasper county, but The Democrat is unable to state to what extent.