Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1918-10-25
WILLYS-OVERLAND
BUYS MOLINE Pillow

TOLEDO-Presiden John N. WHY'S
announces the acquisition of control by
the Willys-Overland Company of the
Moline plow Company, manufacturers
; of the Moline Universal tractor, with
plants at Moline, Chicago, RO c k
Island and Freeport, Illinois; Slough
ton, Wisconsin; Minneapolis, Mime
sofa; and Poughkeepsie New York.
The transaction is the most import
ant in years in the agricultural ma
chinery industry, the Moline Company.
founded in 1865, being one of the old
est farm implement concerns in the
United States. Through the purchase
in 1916 and subsequent development of
the Universal Tractor Company it is
ducers in the world.
The imperative wartime need of
tractors for farm development, the
willingness of the government to assist
production through the grant of priori-
ties for the shipment of steel, and the
desire of John N. WHY'S to further CO.
ordinate the immense factory and dis
tributing facilities Of the Willys-Oyer-
land organization in the winning of
the war have brought about the new
union of automobile and tractor in
terestS.
The Moline product itself is unique
in that the tractor and the farm i'm
plement are 50 connected as to form a
complete unit, which one man can
operate. 1t is the only tractor which
will do all farm work without horses.
At no time in it's history has the Mo
line Company been able to supply the
demand for it's tractor. although ship
ments are now running fifty tractors
per day.
The Moline Plow Company has %
branch houses and 10000 dealers.
Willys-Overland Company has over
100 distributors and 5000 dealers. As
a result of the probable cessation of
passenger car production by WHY'S
Overland early next year the entire
selling forces of both companies, as
well as their combined manufacturing
facilities, will be available for cOncen-
tration on the development of the trac-
tor as far as may be compatible with
the desire of the Food Administration
to stimulate food production.
In announcing the closing of negotia-
lions for the purchase of the Moline,
Company, President John n. WHY'S
said:
with the present shortage of man
power and horses on the farm and the
acute war necessity, abroad and at
home, of increased food production, the
farmer is confronted with the problem
of increasing his crops with less help.
The tractor with pOwer-drawn farming
implements solves the need of enabling
one man, boy or cripple to do the work
formerly required of two or more men
and six to eight horses.
with it one man can pillow an acre
an hour at fuel cost of only two gal
Ions of gasoline
''In the purchase of the Moline Pillow
Company find not only an opportunity
for the Willys-Overland Company to
lend it's maximum manufacturing
strength to legitimate war work, but
the best and quickest way for it to at
tain a lead in field which offers the
greatest possibilities with the return OF
peace and into which motor companies
in this age of power farming, it seems
to me. must sooner or later enter.
'The Moline organization will re-
main intact and the company will be
operated under the same management
as heretofore f. G. Allen, vice-presi-
dent and general manager will become
president and general manager.
The Willys-Overland Co. has simply
bought control of the Moline Pillow
common stock-there is no thought OF
a merger and no change in the latter's
financial status is contemplated.