Evening star., 1931-12-27
WORK SPIRIT ENDS
SLUMP IN VILLAGE
Henry Ford Starts Movement
That Puts Inkster, Mich,
on Its Feet Again.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

DEARBORN, Mich, December Is
(N.ANAD. - No matter how much
longer the great depression keeps its
grip on the rest of the world, there are
$500 souls, living in the town of
1nkster, five miles west of this city, who
will be better off in 1882 than they
were in 1881.
No longer than two months ago these
men, women and children of Inkster
were sitting around in the idleneSS and
hopcleSSneSS which fall like a pail on
those who can find no work, with dis
ease pressing close on hungry, ill-fed
bodies.
But though starting from the scratch
OF abJect poverty, their section of Ink
Ster Is now on the high road to self
help, Cleanliness food, clothing. shell
ter-and hope.
Throughout the land are hundreds of
similar centers of population that might
DO well to consider the inspiration and
the changed life and outlook that have
come to 1nkSter through the commu-
MY organization and self-help Henry
Ford has imbued in these people.
Three principles are cardinal in the
philosophy of Henry Ford-cleanliness,
work, and dirt-the latter in the form
OF good old Mother Earth used by hu-
man beings to provide in superabun-
dance # desired, the things they need
for sustenance.
Down and Out No Longer.
Six weeks ago a portion of Inkster,
occupied by about 300 colored and Is
white families, was literally down and
out, economically. Men, women and
children were suffering from lack of
1ood clothing and fuel. Children. ILL
nourlsheo, were easy prey to rickets,
colds, pneumonia and every disease
germ which could flourish in Inkster's
accumulated rubbish and bitches of
stagnant water lining its muddy streets.
4, oVerourdened with unpaid taxes on
her homes, all of which had been
taken over on the installment plan
months In arrears on payments and on
current light bills-foodless, workless,
yet with several blind pigs and gam
pllng dens Offering some source of en-
Cerlainment and profit to the few who
oareo' the zero hour struck for these
psotle ana they appealed to the Red
loss Henry Ford heard of that and
went to see what WIS happening.
have insisted all along" Mr. Ford
sald that there is plenty of work to be
gone, II you do not wait to be hired to
40 H. Ihere is always something anv
aoIe-bodled man can do to improve his
conQltlon, no matter how far down he
may be. He can at least clean the
mouse and the yard. He can smooth IN
the road. He can clear a stagnant
ditch. He can do anything he sees that
needS DONG. And by doing it, he starts
something. No one ever did any useful
work yet without being paid for it in
some form"
Mr.. Ford went to work on this Inkster
community. He rented a store room.
PANT was suggested, to make the place
presentable.
Forget the paint" said Mr.. Ford.
Use lye and soap and water. Get VOL
unteers to clean it up, and stock the
store with wholesome necessities which
they can buy on their I. O. US if they
Will go to work on general cleanup
campaign"
Trucks Collect Scraps.
So the work began. Ford trucks went
up and down the muddy streets collect
ing scrap-86 loads of rusting tin cans.
old automobile scrap. wire, everything
that belongs to the category of metallic
waste. They acarted away tons of ashes
and collected tons of rubbish and
burned it. The labor was performed
~ cAAS 4AASAA uAA0 VI lIAC
nunity.
Yards were cleaned and put in order
The insides of houses were cleaned and
when the dirt and useless rubbish inside
was put out there was mighty little left
inside some of these homes.
The store was put in order and
stocked, some Of the goods-apple but
ter, apple jam, whole corn meal-being
brought over from Mr.. Ford's Green
Eo1I
In the same store building is room
where a volunteer cobbler was put to
work. He is the busiest cobbler in this
part of the country, for nearly every
bodyS shoes need mending Adjoining
the cobbler's room is tailor shop. A
volunteer tailor was put to work. VOL
unteer carpenters, cooks, chefs, bakers
were called for, and all were found in
the community.
In another room of the building
big kitchen range was set up. A bake
oven will be installed beside the range.
AL work is being done by people who
were sitting in idleness. Men who work
steadily at jobs for the community are
given cash payment of 81 day. But
the spirit of work has seized all the
people
An economic miracle has been per-
formed under their eyes, and they are
part of the miracle, tor surely nothing
is more miraculous than to be clean,
fed, clothed-all as the result of doing
the simple and obvious things in the
line of cleanliness.
Pay With 1. o. US.
Every day, from the community kitch-
en-, we'll cooked meals, prepared by the
volunteer cooks, are distributed to those
who need them-and virtually every
family in the community was in dire
need Of wholesome food Old clothes
worth repairing are brought to the COM
munlty tailor. People in real need OF
new clothing orders on the Highlano
Park store of the Ford Motor Co. For
what they get they give their Il
And Mr.. Ford has plan Tor carrying
through. He puts plowS, with tractors,
to work in the village. About 500 acres
have been cleaned up and ploWed.
Every square foot of soil that can pro-
duce something to feed people has been
turned over Food for next year Is thus
assured. Ford farm experts will super
wise the farming and the men who work
on the land will be paid with Ford i.
o. US" on the crop.
The plowed land goes up to the side
walks and sides of the little cottages
and shacks. Most of it is good soil for
anything, and all of it is good for some
thing. The houses are well enough scat
tered so that many of these ploWed
areas assume the proportions of fields,
and there is no plot that is not large
enough to supply good quantity of
garden truck.
Next Spring these people will 60 to
work on the soil in their spare time,
and every man, though regularly en-
ployed for wages, will then rub elbows
with mother nature and coax her to
lavish gifts-the things people really
need most for living.
Roads-they could hardly be called
streets in this part of Inkster-have
been leveled and crowned, with the help
of volunteer workers Of the village and
a power road scraper. Uncouth and
disease-breeding bitches have been filled
and the work on q street -drainape SYs- |