The Columbus dispatch. (Columbus, Miss.) 19??-1922, 1921-11-20

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to pieces and make useful things out
of them
Mr.. Ford's announcement came as
suddenly as did the world famed an
: nouncement of Secretary of State
Hughes on the limitation of sea pow
er. We were at his tractor plant at
Dearborn, talking of many things. In
the course of the conversation / asked
him what he thought Of the Hughes
proposal He said it was alright, ex-
cept that it did not go far enough.
He expressed the opinion that there
4 should be complete disarmament on
the sea. Then he authorized the an
n nounccment to buy all the warships
afloat.
Raw Material.
"To buy these ships" he continued,
"would be only to get some Of the
raw materials for while from new
source. am spending great sums
all the while to get ore out of the
ground and make it into steel and
might just as we'll buy the metal in
those warships as to buy metal any
where else.
81 wish you would make it plain
that ! stand ready to buy at junk
prices, any and every warship that
the United States and other powers
may think of sinking. Please ask
them not to sink a ship. understand
that some of the captured German
ships were sent to the bottom. 1t is
crime to sink metal like that. The
world has need Of it. So please state
that even though the powers should
be willing only partly to disarm on
THE sea that | will buy whatever ships
they may agree to withdraw from
their navies.
But they ought to scrap the whole
lot. There is no reason why war;
ship should be left upon all the short,
Yale looked down from a lofty mean
4 business they will accept my pro-
position and disam. These diplo-
! mats say they want naval force only
as protection. Each one denies that
lit WsilAS llltlli lOl pun BO0N VI Ak
sion, even the remnant that the
l Hughes plan leaves each nation. Well,
if that is the case, why should not all
the governments sell their ships to
me? I'll promise not to use them to
\ fight anybody with. I'll melt up and
make them into things that will make
them into things that will make life
better instead of worse. Put the
American fleet into my hands and
Japan never need be afraid of it
again. Put the japanese fleet into
my hands and America need not be
afraid of it. Put the British fleet
/ in, my hands and neither America or
any other nation need fear it. With
4 these fleets in my hands no people
will be taxed to maintain them. No
body would be harmed and everybody
would be benefited.
Would Solve Unemployment.
If the powers will sell me their
navies. will help them solve their
unemployment problem. The unem-
ployment problem is going to be
worse, even by the disarmament plan
that Mr. Hughes proposes. If war
ship building is going to be stopped
for ten years, thousands of men who
are now working in steel mills and
ship yards will be deprived Of en-
ployment
Something should be done for these
men. ! will do something for them,
if the powers will sell me their war
ships. ! will not only give employ
mcnt to thousands more men i'm my
tractor and automobile works, but
indirectly. I will give employment to
many more thousands When | en-
.ploy men TO make tractors. for in
stance. ] cause employment to be
given TO the railway men who take
them 10 market, the wheat that trac-
tors helps to grow. the millers who
grind il, the bakers who make il into
bread, the clerks who sell it and to
the drivers Of delivery wagons who
take il to the homes.
1t is a very dangerous thing to .
leave in existence any fraction, how /
ever small. Of existing navics, Each
Of the parts. II left. will ultimately 4
be expanded into a big navy again .
and we shall have the present sit
uation all over again. The world
does not need any Of these ships. ]
need all Of them. II ] can buy them,
] will manufacture things that will
make people happy instead Of sad