Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-03
ANTIPATHY FOR STREET SEEN.
Rejection of Billion-DOIIar Offer j aid
TO Hatred for Financiers.

NEW YORK. February 3 O4).-Henry
Ford's refusal of 81 900 900 900 for his
automobile business was regarded i'm
financial circles today as further evil
dence OF his antipathy to Wall street
Testimony of Ford's refusal of the
billion-dollar offer was given by John
NJ. Prentiss at a hearing in Washing
ton yesterday in the Government
$50, 000, 000-tax suit against former mi
nority stockholders of the Ford Co
The offer was refused three times, the
last refusal a month ago.
Wall Street circles recalled that
even in the 'defiation" of 1921. when
Mr.. Ford was pinched for cash he
declined assistance from New York
bankers. At that time there was a
veritable procession of bankers TO
him. One of them was handed his
hat, the story goes.
Has Been Big Lender.
Henry Ford has been a big lender
of call money in Wall Street through
banks in which he deposits, but there
is no record of purchases or sales by
him through the Stock Exchange.
Edsel Ford at times has been credited
with being a large buyer of Hudson
Motors.
MY company will never go to Wall
Street" Henry Ford has said.
Stock of the Ford Motor Co. is not
available in any markets, but Ford
Motor Co. of Canada is quoted on the
New York Curb against Henry Ford's
wishes.
Except for the one instance of hand
ing a financier his hat, Ford has been
a good host to callers from Wall
Aro
rious times have been his guests in
Detroit with the stipulation that talk
OF buying his company was barred.
Speculation Scheme Scented.
"Oh, you are one OF those Wall
Street guys" was F'ord's greeting to
Mr.. Prentiss, now senior member of
the Wall Street firm of Hornblower &
Weeks, when he went to him with
the first of his sensational offers which
finally touched the 10-fgure sum.
Learning Of the Prentiss offers, men
in the financial district expressed their
opinion of his acumen in the state
ment that "if Jack PrentisS offered
81, 900 ,000, 900 for the Ford Motor Co.
he probably already knew where he
could sell it at comfortable profit"
Mr.. Prentiss came to New York %
years ago with little more than anbi-
ton. nope ana SelL-COI11QenCG. NOW
he is rated q multi-millionaire.
The Boston firm of Hornblower &
Weeks, of which the late John w.
Weeks, formerly Secretary of War.
was a member, sent PrentisS here 10
dig up business. A vigorous house
toulouse" campaign along Wall Street
soon made him known.
Specialized i'm Motors.
Specializing in automotive finance.
Mr.. Prentiss has handled the securi-
ties of Dodge, Chevrolet. General Mo
tors, Hudson Motors and more recent
ly the Thinker Roller Bearing Co. The
ST 900 900 900 Ford deal, if successful,
would have been unprecedented in the
history Of finance.
Experts here say that the offer
places the Ford Co. in q class contain
ing only one or two other corpora
tions, such as the United States Steel
Corporation and the American Tele-
phone and Telegraph Co.
If the deal had gone through, Wall
Street leaders believe. the Ford Co.
would have been entirely recapital-
lied and the securities distributed TO
investors in all parts of the country.
Because of the wide interest in Ford
securities, they feel that the brokers
would have made a goodly profit, even
at a capitalization of $1,00O,O00,O00.