Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1924-10-14
FORD WITHDRAWS
MUSCLE SHOALS BID
''No Longer a Live Issue With
U.s." Says Flivver
King

NEW YORK, Oct. 14.-(By The
Associated Press) Henry Ford has
withdrawn his bid for Muscle Shoals
and, according to an interview with
him in the current issue Of Golfers
Weekly, has assumed a waiting at
titude by putting it up to the gov
eminent to make the next move II
he is to take any future action in
the matter.
The transactioS, characterized by
Mr. Ford as "a simple affair ot
business which should have been de-
cided by anyone within week, ne
declares, "has become a complicated
polictical affair" and the bid was
withdrawn because productive busl-
ness cannot wait on politics.
Muscle ShoasS?" Mr.. Ford is
quoted, "That is not a live issue with
us any longer. More than two years
ago we made the best bid we knew
how to make. No definite action
has been taken on it. A simple af-
fair of business which should have
been decided by anyone within a
week has become a complicated poll
teal affair. We are not in politics
and we are in business. We do not
intend to be drawn into politics.
eve have been and still are deep
" interested in Muscle Shoals as a
national asset. There is small pro-
mise now that it ever will be ma
tional asset-more than likely it vii
be only an expense. That concerns
every one of us as citizens. In The
Ford business, once we make up our
minds to do anything, we go right
ahead, do it with the leastposslble
waste of time, energy or money, If
we cannot do what we want in one
way, then we find another.
eve are moving so fast and the
settlement of Muscle Shoals future
seemed so far away that we had 70
find other means to do the things
we could have accomplished at Mus
Gle Shoals. In fact, we have pass
ed Muscle Shoals. Productive bus.-
ness cannot wait on politics. There
fore, we are withdrawing our bid.
Asked it that meant Withdrawing
absolutely from Mucle Shoals and
everything that pertains to it, Mr..
Ford replied:
eyes, we have made our bid; now
let them make us a bid. And they
will not have to wait three years for
their answer. We can tell them in
five minutes"
After discussing the government
investment in Muscle Shoals which
he said was much larger than it
ought to be, but which could not be
helped because it was rush work
done in war time for war purposes,
Mr.. Ford said:
"Our bid was intended to develop
a method by which the public's mo-
ney could be made productive AMI
eventually returned to the public
treasury at profit, while at the
same time we should produce nitrate
at a sufficiently low cost to sell them
to the farmers at a fraction of what
they now have to pay. Also, we in
tended to create a plant which
would not only make us Independent
Of Chile for nitrates for explosives
but would give US an independent
supply possibly equal to that of all
the rest of the world put together. F"
Mr.. Ford said his company had
completed the purchase of 100, 600
acres of coal lands in Kentucky and
after relating some of the exreri-
ments conducted at the River Rouge
plant said:
I'VE find from our experience at
River Rouge that we evan generate
electrical power in these coal lands
to any extent that we may need
and at cheaper rate than we could
under our bid at Muscle Shoals.
And also we can generate in our
own way entirely outside of all
political influence or political meGal-
ing. That is why we Rave lost our
interest in Muscle Shoals"
Asked what he thought ought to
be done with Muscle Shoals, Mr..
Ford replied:
'In any event, the public must
not permit it to be broken up, for
through its nitrate production II can
be our greatest guarantee for peace
on the one-hand and for the farmers
on the other. believe the army
engineers could carry it through if