The daily morning oasis., 1919-07-20
ACCEPT LEAGUE
OR DRAW SWORD
HENRY FORD ON WITNESS
STAND SAYS NATION MUST
MAKE ITS CHOICE NOW.
HITS NATIONAL BURGLARY"
"There Is Better Way Than War"
Says Fighting Pacifist-"Educate
the People and Teach Them
to Think for Themselves"

Mount Clemens, Mich, July ia
League of Nations or preparedness
| up to the hilt. That is the situation
which faces the United States as
Henry Ford sees it, and as he ex.
| pressed himself on the witness stand
in his $1,0O0,OOO libel suit against the
Chicago Tribune.
He hammered that fact home
throughout his testimony.
Tribune counsel attempted to bring
from Mr.. Ford an admission that he
had adopted new attitude; that he
had once denounced preparedness and
was now advocating it.
II was denouncing overprepared.
ness" said Mr.. Ford.
What do you mean by overpre-
paredness?" asked Tribune counsel
preparedness for aggression and
conquest. Anything that contemplated
more than defense is overprepared-
ness"
"What do you mean by aggression %
"Burglarizing a country" shot back
Mr.. Ford
"Did we ever want an army tO
burglarize anybody?"
"Yes," said the witness dryly,
"some people wanted it to burglarize
Mexico
Repeated efforts were made to show
q division of ideas between Mr.. Ford
and President Wilson. Amidst con.
tinuous objections Tribune counsel
pressed the question of whether Mr..
Ford still thought the president
great man, and while the legal battle
ragged Mr.. Ford cut through the storm
and said: II think President Wilson
is a still greater man now than he
was before. I always thought him q
great man."
Some of the now famous quotations
attributed to Mr. Ford We're brought
into the case again.
"Do you think men who go to war
are murderers?" asked counsel.
mo" replied the witness. "Not
when they are pressed into war OF
fight for defense, but think the pro-
fessional soldier is murderer"
What do you mean by murderer"
II mean killing people"
killing people to protect the inter.
ests of the publicT
"KilIing anybody for anything.
don't know what else war is. War is
murder. There is far better way
what is the better way?"
"Why, to educate people. To teach
'em to think for themselves"
The examination turned to the
science of government. Tribune c0un.
sci attempted to force an admission
from Mr.. Ford that established forms
of government cannot be attacked and
changed overnight without revolution
"How can congress be changed be.
tween elections?" said the examining
attorney.
'Well," the witness laughed, "Mr.
Newberry might be changed"
This reference to the senatorial
scandal in Michigan in which the pres.
ent junior senator from the state is
accused of having spent $176,000 to
procure the nomination over Mr.. Ford
In defiance of the law limiting cam
paign expenditures, brought laughter
from the audience and the attorneys.
"Well you haven't proceeded very
far with that" smiled Tribune counsel
"Well, l haven't quit" said Mr.. Ford
instantly
The famous world flag of which so
much has been said was brought into
the case for brief period during the
session. The flag was very striking, a
white globe banded by red resting OH a
field of blue,
do you like that better than the
Stars and .Stripes?" asked Tribune
counsel.
Mr.. Ford shook his head. ut isn't
the same flag at all" he said.
us il complete as it stands?"
"Never saw it before" said the wit
ness II saw design like it once
Dean Marquis had it in the cathedral
three or four years ago"
And this was the end of the famous
flag to which the Tribune counsel has
referred so often as though it were a
thing of mystery.
There are two kinds of patriots, Mr..
Ford told the jury just before adjourn
ment for the day. The man who will
work for his government during the
war without pay and 'munition pa
triOts.'
did you say" asked Tribune coun
sci, "that ammunition patriots were
for war because they wanted TO enrich
themselvesP
81 probably did," said Mr.. Ford
''that sounds like me-"
Mr.. Ford will continue his testimony
tomorrow.