15 



Government have been fair and just in the treatment of Mr. Ritchie 

 and his product, battery AD-X2." 



A succession of laboratory tests of the battery additive had been 

 conducted at NBS, and in response to a request by the Senate Select 

 Committee on Small Business, a separate set of tests had been per- 

 formed in 1952 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Because 

 of apparent differences in the findings of these two sets of tests, the 

 Secretary of Commerce requested the President of the National 

 Academy of Sciences, May 3, 1953, to "* * * appoint a committee 

 to objectively appraise the quality of the work performed by the 

 National Bureau of Standards in relation to battery additive AD-X2." 

 Concurrently, a separate committee of senior scientists, organized by 

 the President of the National Academy of Sciences at the request of 

 the Secretary of Commerce, undertook an evaluation of the role and 

 mission of the NBS. 



The latter committee reported first: NBS shoidd divest itself of an 

 accumulated load of military research and concentrate on its primary- 

 function; mth respect to commercial testing, there should be a 

 separation between the purely scientific and technical work, as per- 

 formed by NBS, and the political and economic aspects, which were 

 the responsibility of the Secretary of Commerce. 



The Committee on Batteiy Additives of NAS was chosen by the 

 President of the Academy ^^ith attention to the political as well as 

 the scientific and economic ramifications of the issue. It met, assembled 

 the available data, enlisted highly qualified technical assistance, 

 deliberated, and on October 30, 1953, issued its findings in a report to 

 the Secretary of Commerce. It found the additive to have no merit, 

 and the NBS abundantly qualified and motivated to test battery 

 additives objectively and authoritatively. 



Subsequently, notwithstanding the NAS report, the Post Office 

 rescinded its fraud order, and eventually FTC voided the complaint 

 against Ritchie and his product. 



Relevant historical elements in the background 



The years between 1946 and 1953 afforded an unusual opportunity 

 for small business in the field of materials salvage and brokerage. 

 Disposal of World War II surplus materiel was proceeding at an 

 enormous rate. Shortages of consumer durable goods, together with 

 abundant savings in the hands of the pubhc, combined to produce a 

 large pent-up demand. Materials shortages were sustained by the 

 accumulation of a national stockpile, by foreign aid exports, by 

 domestic industrial consumption, and — after June 1950 — by produc- 

 tion of materiel for the Korean war. Return of World War II scrap 

 and salvage from abroad was neghgible, but vigorous efforts were 

 made by private companies to recycle old domestic scrap inio reuse. 

 Lead was especially short in 1947-49. Needs for new storage batteries 

 to equip the outpouring of U.S. veliicles from Detroit, needs for 

 lead-sheathed cable for catchup capital construction and replacement 

 of corroded lines, production of bearing bronze (10 percent lead), 

 and the new requirement for atomic shielding, all combined to place 

 heavy demands on supphes of lead. Leaded gasohne was a large and 

 expanding use without recovery. 



During the 3 years, 1943-45, automobile production had been 

 suspended, and during and after this period considerable attention 

 was given by car owners to keeping their irreplaceable vehicles 



