The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-02-10
FORD IS READY
 TO OFFER HIS FORTUNE TO U. s.

VI - uN ~ v VI
 New York, Feb. 10.-Henry Ford's lot of it-'too much" he has some times remarked, flor any one man to try to keep all to himself be at the disposal of the United States government, as well as the 46, 900 en- p1oyes and the wonderful Detroit fac tory he has already offered in the event of the United States being drawn into the European war.
 And the Ford fortune, if lent to tho government, will be lent on the same principle that he has already enun- ciated as to his factory, his employees and his own time.
 No profit.
 Whatever part the government needs of what I've got,' MT. Ford said, ''the government may have when it requires it. And the loan will be without any interest. There will be no percentage. No profit. I don't want to make anything, I wouldn't take a cent of profit from the govern ment under any circumstances.
 Pacifists Make Good Fighters.
 The slender, gray-haired manufac- turer at whom the world smiled in 1915 when he took the peace ship to Europe in an effort to end the war, and who is one of the best known "pacifsts' in existence, was taking things easy in a private apart ment where he has been staying in this city for the last few days, when he talked last night to the World man. The interviewers accompanied him on the peace trip and has since enjoyed his confidence.
 "You can't tell about us pacific ists,'' MT. Ford laughed. Sometimes I think pacifsts is like a cat. It may seem gentle creature that you can fondle-an inoffensive, harmless sort. of thing. But back a cat up in a corner-or pacifist-and you've got the worst kind of a fighter you've ever seen.
 Nov, I don't believe in offensive fighting, either for an individual or a nation, but if anybody attacks me or attacks the United States, believe me, Pm going to fight and fight hard. And sometimes the best thing pacifist can do is to help get a fight over as quickly as possible"
 MT. Ford didn't dwell upon his idea of lending his fortune to the govern ment. He simply stated it in a quiet, matter -of-fact way. Indeed, his men, ton of it came out casually.
 'The other day I was on my way across New York to take a train for Washington" he said, "and I noticed a lot of flags flying. A good many of them seemed to be from bank build ings. They all seemed patriotic-for
 
 (except our own United States) to fight wars.
 "But I didn't see any sign of picks or shovels, or khaki, about those bank buildings, indicating that they were offering any practical help to| the na- tion except what they could profit from"
 Available Assets, $1OO,O0O,OOO.
 The talk turned to MT. Ford's offer to the President and Secretary Dan iefs to turn over his factory, his men and his own time, without gain, to make motor boats or "baby subma rines'' for the government, and then he casually remarked:
 "And the government can have my money, too.'' Y
 The extent of MT. Fords fortune is uOC kHOWH. u IS d lOW OSllIIldlG, however, for the interviewer who talked to him last night and has talk ed to him many times before, to place his immediately available assets, cash, bonds and the like, $100,000,000, and times that sum.
 He did not continue on the topic of lending his money. He simply stated that he would, and then turned his attention to what he could do in a manufacturing way for the Presi- dent and the country.
 For instance, he could manufac- ture 5000 motor cars a day, each equipped with bodies that would carry perhaps ten men and could travel 24 hours a day if necessary at a fairly high speed.
 Think what they could transport in the way of troops" he said. His Baby Submarine Project. He could also make tremendous number of ''baby submarines''-little undersea craft to be manned by a single individual, which would carry at their noses "pills on poles," the pills to be high explosives, and the poles" to be long, protruding ar engagements which would guarantee safety to the operator.
 These, MT. Ford says, could des- troy the most powerful battleship an enemy might send here and, natural ly, could wipe out any troop ships by which an enemy might endeavor to land invaders. They could be turned out very easily and simply and at lit tie more cost than an automobile. ''I'll stake my reputation as a man. ufacturer on those little submarines, D MT. Ford said. And he admitted that considerable Experimentation had been done with them in the last few years-altogether successfully. MT. Ford, of course, hopes that there will be no war. Nevertheless, he says: ""The President did the right thing exactly and I'll back him up as far as I can go." But if there is war, the manufacturer is highly confident of American success.
 We've got the greatest nation in the world,'' he said. we get the cream of all nations. Every n7sn who comes here comes because he has grit enough and confidence enough in himself to break away from the old ties and come where he has oppor- tunfty. And in manufacturing or fighting or anything else you can't beat that kind of man-that kind If an Ay,ooricop'' A