Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1919-07-03
JUDGE HALTS AN
ATTACK ON FORD
WITNESS WHO CALLS MANUFAc-
TURER "ROTTEN AMERICAN"
DRAWS COURTS WRATH.
PR0PAGANDIsT TAKES STAND
Says Ford Told Him World War Was
Started BY Bankers and That
He Knew Who They Were.

Mt. Clemens, Mich-The Chicago
Tribune is now in the third week If
its attempt to prove Henry Ford an
anarchist and to demonstrate, to the
satisfaction of the jury which is hear
ing the testimony in the $1,000,000
libel suit, that there was no libel in
the now famous editorial which pro-
voked the present court action
Wood Becomes Caustic.
From the testimony of Mexican
border residents who told of the
bandit raids in Texas, New Mexico
and Arizona, The Tribune has turned
to witnesses who talked with Mr..
Ford both before and after the United
States entered the war. Henry A.
Wise Wood, preparedness propa-
gandist from New York. was called
to the stand to testify to Mr. Ford's
attitude previous to 1917. He said he
found the manufacturer q rotten
American On the other hand Willis
J. Abbott, a New York journalist,
testified that after the United States
entered the war he visited Mr. Ford
and went through the great Ford fac
tories which were turning out enOr-
nous quantities of war material with
out profit to their principal owner.
81 thought him one of the most
militant Americans I had ever met
said the witness
| Claim Ford Was "Converted".
The evident intention of The Tr1
bune is to contrast these apparently
conflicting attitudes and to claim that
Mr.. Ford was brought to sense Of
his duty by the criticism Of The
Tribune. The remark of Tribune
counsel that Henry Ford is not the
only man who has changed his course
as a result of criticism is significant
in this connection.
A definite ruling from the court on
the extent to which evidence Of the
unpreparedness Of the United States
for war is material, has cleared away
the doubts of past weeks and has
made the path for the remainder Of
the trial fairly clear.
ri am Of the opinion the court
ruled, that the amount of prepared
ness Henry Ford believed is not ma
terial Whether Henry Ford sought
to interfere with or nullify the efforts
of the government to prepare to the
extent it conceived necessary, whether
that preparedness was much or little,
adequate or inadequate, is / think,
relevant
Must Prove Ford Un-American.
In other words, the defense must
show that Mr.. Ford attempted to EN-.
barass the government in what it con-
ceived to be necessary steps for the
protection of this country. The mere
fact that he opposed militarism and
fought it to the limit of his strength,
before the adoption Of armed force
for the purpose of national defense
became the settled policy Of the gov
eminent, will not be material.
The testimony Of Mr.. Wise Wood,
| WIFI DIS q SIIQll6 6uVOCdCO VI III OpolCu-
ness was naturally bitterly opposed
to Mr.. Ford's policies, contained so
much animus that Judge Tucker call
ed a halt in the recital to warn the
witness that his line of comments
were out Of place and must be dis
continued.
Mr.. Wood, 1t developed, had visited
Mr.. Ford while on a speaking tour.
1t evidently was his intention to at
tempt to convert the manufacturer to
a belief in a great army and navy. He
informed Mr.. Ford, so the testimony
ran, that Germany was likely to IL
wade the United States and that japan
menaced us from the west.
Mr.. Ford's comment, said Mr.. Wood,
was ooh, you're full Of Eastern scare
gas"
Bankers Blamed For War.
Mr.. Ford declared also, the witness
testified, that the world war was
started by two great bankers, that he
knew who they were and that he In
tended to draw their teeth before he
finished with them. Speaking along
the same line, Mr.. Ford was said to
have made the declaration that the
revolution in Mexico, which resulted
in raids into the United States, was
staged by financial interests who
hoped to bring about intervention.
IT know who they are too" Mr.. Ford
| is said to have stated.
Mr.. Wood, it appears, pleaded earn
estly with Mr.. Ford in an endeavor to
persuade him that the United States
was exceedingly vulnerable and that
there was immediate danger that
some nation would step In and con-
quer us. But the only satisfaction he
/ got was Mr.. Ford's laughing retort,
| ooh, you're full Of scare gas"
Under cross.examination Mr.. Wood
| oH,offfo that ho WAS not aware that