The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1919-01-24
LIGHT CREEPS INTO
MAKING OF EAGLES
Henry Ford. Shipbuilder. a Failure
Attends to Financial End of
Industry.

Millions of dollars-fifty at the
very least-is the price the navy is
going to pay for refusing to confess
publicly the failure of Henry Ford's
Eagle-boat program and abandon it,"
says the Daily Iron Trade and Metal
Market Report in its issue of Decem-
Der 70, 1918, in the first of series of
articles on the Ford Eagles. The trti-
cles are much too long for detailed
reproduction, but few choice cut
tings from them doubtless will prove
interesting, as we'll as enlightening, to
readers of The National Republican.
For the wealth of information they
contain, the articles have been re-
ferred by the United States Senate to
the Committee on Naval Affairs for
its inquisitorial consideration.
with the signing of the armistice
boats in British and Italian harbors."
continues the Iron Trade and Metal
Market Report, "the primary objec-
tive of these $550000, 20O-foot steel
craft being built by Ford has been at
tanned
For patrol and gunboat duty in
peace time they are next to impos-
sible by reason of their excessive
maintenance and operating charges.
In fact, high officials of the Navy de-
partment themselves have admitted
they will not be needed until the
next war;
"But the only concession the navy
has made so far. and the only one it
fatty declares it will make hos been
to pare the program from 60 Eagles
to 40 On the face of it this is
generous reduction of 40 per cent. but
considering that the turbines. boilers,
and auxiliaries for the entire 100 have
been built and practically al! of the
plates rolled and punched the appar-
ent reduction of 40 ger cent shrints
to bare TO- And the $50 non mo
the navv is to pay for submarine
chasers in peace time is only the
start.
Never Had Chance.
Whether the Eagles which Ford
undertook to construct with great
flourish and blare of trumpets as his
chief contribution to the winning of
the war, are good or poor boats from
4 the standpoint of design is still mat
ter of opinion. 1t is fact--not opin-
ion-that the highly touted Ford or
ganization crumpled when it attempt
ed the beats, and never gave them a
chance to show
Had the late candidate for the
senate lived up to his contract, SO
Eagles would have been completed
and in commission by December Is.
AS matter of fact, exactly seven
had been completed by that date
three being in New London, Conn,
and four somewhere between Detroit
and New London-and of these seven
six were rushed to the coast leaking
and generally incomplete to get them
out before the freeze.
Entirely responsible for this as.
founding delay, after giving due con-
sideration to the handicaps under
which a navy contractor works, and
plotting out whatever defects there
may have been in design, is the in
ability of Henry Ford's mechanics to
turn themselves into successful ship
builders On one charge alone-that
of diveting-thev stand condemned.
until she was electrically welded did
| SHC uCSOHle WdtcT-tlSHt. III turbines
and auxiliaries Henry Ford showed
some degree of skill. but in bulls none,
And this at time when the worlds
greatest need was for craft for COM
eating the submarine menace!
Is Winning Every Way.
This failure, an outstanding one
indeed has not been at Henry Ford's
expense. Not one penny has he lost
not one penny will he No matter
what the outcome of thu FagleIhoat
program. even be il wholly aha,dored
tom orrow his profits stnrd 10 ~, i,to
thn millions On everv Fac1e th,t &c
co-~olo.ed -he ,avv ;s horrI ~ INV
him -'i,i'nrm not profit % CO nan
In event any of the boats arc not
comn1rted he is to receive actual cost
plus 10 Der cent For the construc-
ton of the EAGLE plant on the River
Rouge southwrst Of Detroit On to-d
owned nv Ford Tho rovv advanced
everv do,,ar- SalSNn nm IN rou,d
numbers And under this ro,tro~t
Ford u1'i-,a.a'v will take over this
", orif;cort So snn mn works at v;r-
.rsi'v his own fio~-e for thA COW
e.-~~.;o- ~ h>-~os-o-o,,;aoI nc .-,n-
ir-|r~roi-~r ,osSih'v F~~'en~ .rHc-
tors All this in the f,rr of his vol
ur*'-iiv urcru;vocaI declaration he
wo"d not accept one dollar in war
Profits,
can 'his combined with the ravv's
Hot-f0otHd rofusal 70 cut short Faole
co~strrrtion looms IN as tho BIGGEST
:~d"e'-;~' SCANDAL Of the war. De-
'ro;''s 'arrnst business AVID i,dustr;al
:~.o-Nets r;r-''v hA';ern Woro tho wa r
et;'' ~-d 'ha Huns Suh,ro rine
e'iil roi'u.i-e tie seas Ford's ronrrr-
formance would be accepted as one
of ~" fortunes Of war But when the
navv insists upon adhering to type
; of boat that is designed primarily for
sweeoing the seas of U-hoats-which
now are no more-and that admit
tedlv is too costly for auxiliary work
tb0, --I .ho-n oh;o~.:~- ~-i~oc -
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