DOCUMENTARY HISTORY OF THE FLORIDA CANAL


DOCUMENT NO. 21 (FILES OF THE RECONSTRUCTION FINANCE
 CORPORATION), DECEMBER 19, 1932

COMMUNICATION FROM GEN. CHARLES P. SUMMERALL, PRESIDENT,
 NATIONAL GULF-ATLANTIC SHIP CANAL ASSOCIATION TO RECON-
 STRUCTION FINANCE CORPORATION UNDER DATE OF DECEMBER
 19, 1932

 On December 19, 1932, the National Gulf-Atlantic Ship Canal
Association appeared before the Engineers' Advisory Board of the
Reconstruction Finance Corporation for a formal hearing upon its
application. Gen. Charles P. Summerall, president of the applicant
corporation, presented the following communication:
 WASHINGTON, D. C., December 19, 1932.
Application for loan to construct a Gulf-Atlantic ship canal across the peninsula
 of Florida. (Communication no. 2).
 To the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, Washington, D. C.:
 1. Reference is here made to the above application filed by the undersigned
 under date of August 1, 1932, together with accompanying exhibits.
 2. The tentative amount of $160,000,000 sought in the above-named applica-
 tion, upon the basis of data since collected and here presented, is now fixed at
 approximately $118,000,000.
 3. In furtherance of the above-mentioned application, the undersigned National
 Gulf-Atlantic Ship Canal Association, by permission of the Engineers' Advisory
 Board of Reconstruction Finance Corporation, appears before this Board for the
 purpose of presenting its case. It proposes to show:
 a. That the project is legally qualified for financing under the Emergency
 Relief and Construction Act of 1932, and that adequate legislative authority
 exists for the construction and operation of the project under the laws of Florida,
 within which State it will be located.
 b. That is is economically justifiable.
 c. That it is based upon sound engineering principle.
 d. That it will be self-liquidating.
 e. That it will give prompt employment to so large an amount and to such a
 diversification of labor as to serve to an unusual degree the objects and intentions
 of the act above referred to.
 4. Subject to the pleasure of the Board, the order and method of the presenta-
 tion at this appearance insofar as is practicable, will be:
 I. Gen. Charles P. Summerall, president of the applicant corporation, will
 outline the objects sought, and will present to the Engineers' Advisory Board
 for such testimony and examination as may be deemed necessary or advisable
 at this hearing, executive officers, legal counsel, and engineering counsel of the
 applicant corporation; officers and civilian engineer employees of the Corps of
 Engineers of the United States Army in charge of the survey of this project;
 representatives of shipping interests; and experts in the field of equipment and
 construction represented by the work proposed.
 II. An outline of the case and the evidence to be presented will be set forth by
 Mr. Henry H. Buckman, of engineering counsel for the applicant.
 III. The legal foundation for the project will be presented by Hon. Raymond
 D. Knight, of legal counsel for the applicant.
 IV. The economic justification of the project and its relation to shipping and
 commerce of the Nation will be developed by Col. Gilbert A. Youngberg, United
 States Army, retired (formerly of the U. S. Corps of Engineers), of engineering
 counsel for the applicant.
 V. The proposed canal viewed as a self-liquidating project and its relation to
 unemployment relief will be discussed by Mr. Buckman.
 VI. Examination of any of the gentlemen present and discussion of the
 exhibits and documentary evidence as it may please the Board.
 As an appendix to this communication, there is filed a catalog of the exhibits
 and documents tendered by the applicant in support of its case.
 Respectfully submitted.
 NATIONAL GULF-ATLANTIC SHIP CANAL ASSOCIATION,
 By C. PI SUMMERALL, President.