The daily morning oasis., 1919-08-03
TRIBUNE CLOSES
AFTER 7 WEEKS
Henry Ford's Lawyers Open Re-
buttal in $1,000,000
Suit.
TRIAL DRAWING TO A CLOSE
Generally Believed That Case Will
Be in the Hands of Jury Not
Later Than August IS.

Mt. Clemens, Mich, July 29.-The
Chicago Tribune has rested it's defense
in the $1,000,000 libel suit brought
against 1t by Henry Ford, after seven
weeks of legal battles.
The Tribune introduced its first wit
ness June 6 and closed its case with
on Henry Ford on July rs.
Simultaneously, Alfred Lucking,
chief counsel for Mr.. Ford, announced
that the plaintiff would not concern
itself with the Mexican phase of the
testimony offered by the Tribune II
has been the claim of Ford counsel
that affairs in Mexico have nothing to
do with the charge. which is that the
Tribune libelled Mr.. Ford when 1t
called him an anarchist Announce
fore, that unless the Tribune reopened
the Mexican matter in a war which
made 1t vitally important to the case
that no time would be wasted in COM
batting the testimony given on the
stand by the witnesses who were
brought here from the border by the
defendant. This, it is expected, will
materially shorten the case, and the
expectation now is that the whole
matter will be in the hands of the
jury August 18th. Ford counsel
opened their rebuttal testimony by
calling to the stand Frank L. Klingen-
smith, vice-president and treasurer of
the Ford Motor Company.
Mr.. Klingensmith corroborated pre-
yious testimony concerning the war
work of the company, and Mr.. Ford's
long-settled determination to make
no profits out of the manufacture of
war materials.
OF principal interest, however, was
Mr. Klingensmith's unequivocal decla-
ration that he had never talked with
P. w. Williams, the Chicago Tribune's
Detroit correspondent, who sent the
story which led to the editorial on
which the case is based.
Mr.. Williams has testified on the
Mr.. Klingensmith up to ask what
preparations the Ford Motor Company
was making to care for the dependents
of men called to the border and what
it would do about giving the men jobs
when they returned. He said Mr..
Klingensmith told him that the COM
pany had done and would do nothing.
The Chicago Tribune printed this
story and in commenting on it edi-
torially said that Mr.. Ford was an
anarchist. Mr.. Klingensmith fatty
denied ever having said anything of
the kind and said that he could not
have made such an answer because
the company had fixed policy for
such cases, that this policy was to
care for dependents and to hold en-
ployment open for the men. Mr.. King
ensmith then commented on the tes-
timony of John H. Dunnewind, as
sistant managing editor OF the Free
Press, who has stated on the stand
that he called up Mr.. Klingensmith at
his home in Highland Park to verify
Mr.. Williams story and that he got
the same answer Williams testifies
he received. Dunnewind, the witness
said, could not have called him in
Highland Park since he was not liv-
ing there. A deposition from Edward
Marshall, the writer, was read into
the record. Mr.. Marshall stated that
an interview which he wrote with Mr..
Ford was not, in reality, secured from
the manufacturer. Mr.. Marshall said
he talked with Mr.. Ford's associates,
got ideas from them and attributed
them to Mr.. Ford. This was a usual
thing to do. He stated also that it
was usual for interviewers to put
thoughts into the heads Of the
men they went to interview and to get
them to talk along these lines and
that this was what he did with Mr..
Ford.