The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1921-08-13
CAN REDUCE RATES
BY HALF SAYS FORD

That is the boiled-down answer
Henry Ford gave when asked 10 tell
Americas railroad ills.
:" We cut freight and passenger
rates 20 per cent and we boosted
wages" said Ford, land it won't take
long to reduce the rate so per cent.
"All railroads could cut their rates
one-half. We have shown them how.
But I'm afraid they won't do it.
Under Wall street management the
only way they know to make money
is higher railroad rates-which is the
poorest way in the world to get bust
ness"
Ford said he wasn't magician"
and didn't WELD magic wand" This
is his recipe:
Keep the. railroad busy and the
equipment busy and all the men ON it
busy.
"On the D. T. & l. we are getting
along fine-making money where the
road never made money before, max
ing 1t because the men are busy and
their hearts are in their work.
I'VE eliminated waste and dead
wood All railroads can. and should
do the same thing"
Ford declared he found enough
scrap along the D. T. & l. to pay for
its purchase.
What is the first thing you would
do If you were given all the railroads
to rum" he was asked.
slash rates, boost wages, let a lot
of the men CO." he replied. I'D let
some of the men go back to the farm
temporarily
lot of railroads would be better
off If they adopted policy along that
line" he said. There is too much
tradition in the railroads-doing
things In the old fashioned ways.
What did we ever know about rail- !
roads-except to ride on 'em. Yet
we've got our road organized so that 4
inside of year it is making money
Any railroad could be put on its feet
In that time.
THE old fashioned methods of
running railroads-and in lots of
other businesses-is to do as little as
you can and get the most money as
fast as possible.
Il see a new era dawning, with
this creed: Do as much as you can,
get small returns and serve the most
people-and the money will come in
so fast you won't know where it is
coming 'front.' will inundate you"
Asked what he thought was the
matter with American RAILROADS.
TOO much stakeholder" he replied
promptly. Il mean too much Wall ,
street manipulation-and too much
weight in the rolling stock.
Fundamental principles must be I
changed. Designs must be made for ,
lighter rolling stock. {
II don't believe in government own :
ership, because what is everybody's
business is nobody's business. There
should be private coordination of all
the railroad systems.
Railroads have been managed by
stockholders who only figure how
much they can get out of them for the
moment-not what they can do in the
future.
"No, am not against a great mass
of stockholders-if they are the right
kind. The right kind of stakeholder
in railroad or in any industry is one
who is doing the work-who has his
heart in it.
Forty years ago my father used to
say something that applies to that
very thing
"He who by the pillow would thrive
Must either hold the pillow or drive"
Ford pointed to the great number of
employees who are stockholders in his
motor car and tractor companies.
"In our plant and branches we have
from 10000 to $4,000 men, he said
"Two-thirds of them have between
100000 and s10,OO0,OOO invested in
the companies they work for. This
plan has been in operation two years.
An employee can own an investment
certificate. which is non transferable
only so long as he works for us. When
he leaves he must sell. When he isn't
with us physically and in spirit he
isn't good stakeholder.
THAT applies to railroads. If the
men on the trains and in the shops
had stock and there was common
sense in their management we
wouldn't have railroad problem.
Present railroad laws throttle the