The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-08-27
FORD TOCLOSE
DOWN HIS AUTO
FACTORIESSOON
Says Money Barons'' Are Ma
nipulating the Labor Unions
and Public Officials.
SAYS CONDITION DUE TO
GREED OF WALL STREET
Deadlock Indicates Existence of
Plot to Sell Roads to Govern
ment and to Beat People.
Csy The Assoclarsa Prsss>


DETROIT, Aug. 2s.-Industry
the country over "must throw up
its hands in surrender within q
few weeks, If the rail and coal
strikes continue, Henry Ford de-
clared today in announcing the de-
cision of the Ford Motor Company
to close it's plants here and In many
other cities on September 16 be-
cause of the fuel situation.
Mr.. Ford held financial interests re-
sponsible for the industrial tie up, de-
claring the money barons" were man
ipulating the labor unions and that
public officials, state and national,
were impotent in the crisis.
The strike would end, he continued,
when the majority of the people are
cold and hungry enough TO resort to
drastic action"
Greed and Avarice
Continuance OF these disturbances
due simply to the greed ana avarice of
Wall street." Mr.. Ford asserted, add
ing that these interests dominated
the railroads, coal mines and public
utilities of the country"
The deadlock in strike negotiations
indicated, he declared. the existence of
a plot to unload the demoralized and
run down railroads on to the govern
ment at their own price and to mulct
the people through excessive coal
prices.
His Statement
Mr. Ford's statement in part follows:
"The coal situation has become i'm
possible. For the last several weeks we
have seen a situation approaching that
we feared would force us to close. We
greatly regret having TO take that step.
I'VE wish to keep enough coal on
hand to keep our furnaces and coke
ovens warm; 10 let them get cold would
cause US loss of hundreds of thous
ands of dollars. At the rate we are gel
ting coal now, September 16 will mark
the time when we will have only
enough coal left to keep our furnaces
and ovens warm.
our reserve stock by that time will
have been comnletolv exhausted. We
therefore, will close down the entir
plant on September 16
Last night We wired 900 houses that
supply us with material TO stop ship
kilograms were sent out TO about 1000
more.
Tremendous Loss
1--WE appreciate the great loss 1T viii
mean to these hundreds Of supply
houses. but it also will mean a tre-
mendous loss to us. At present we are
producing $500 cars a day and we can
sell $500 a day. We have to close down
at time when we are doing a greater
business than ever before in our hiS-
tory"
The effect of the Ford shutdown
will be felt in every part OF the
country according TO officials OF the
company. The number Of workers EN-
Moved by firms supplying the Ford
company with various parts and raw
materials including iron and steel was
,,orio,,slv estimated at from several
hrndred thousand TO three million"
Announcement was made recently lhat
nv Ford had installed oil burning fur
races at one of his plants as an ex-
nerinent and the hope was held Dy
many worknen that the Ford company
could weather the coal shortage. t
deveIoned today. however, that only
the furnaces In the machine shops hao
been converted into oil burners.
The Ford plants. in the aggresaIe'
constitute Michigan's greatest INDUSTRY
from the standpoint Of employment
and az such are among the largest IN
the country Business men and manu-
facturers here were unanimous thAS
the closing OF these plants might nave
far reaching effects on the national
economic situation.