Evening star., 1951-09-30

wheels in its head. and not just
from the automobiles. 1t has
been spending a roisterous year
celebrating the 250th anniversary
of its founding by one Antoine de
la Mothe Cadillac. a Frenchman
who padded up in a canoe in
1701.
Cadillac's dauntless deed has
been commemorated by pinning
his name on a long and shiny
automobile, an honor also be-
slowed on a number of other citi-I
zens, including Pontiac, De Soto
and Henry Ford.
There is no telling who did more
for Detroit-Cadillac or Henry
Ford. Old Antoine certainly gets
la nod for having had the foresight
to found the place. Anybody who
questions Henry's stake in the
city should have a look-as any
tourist may do-at Ford's horse
less carriage works out in Dear
born.
There on the smoky banks of
the River Rouge, some 1000 en-
ployes are assembling 500 cars
every 8 hours. It takes them col
minutes to build an automobile onI
"a bare frame. Raw products de-
posted on the grounds-iron ore,
limestone and coal-become a fin
ished car in % to 30 hours.
Like Missing Grand Canyon.
Free tours are conducted over
the 1,200-acre plant every dayl
beginning at 9 am. A bus and al
guide go out every half hour until
$3.50. The last two trips of the
day. however, do not include a look
at the assembly line and this is a
sight I would not miss. AS $4,000
different parts became an auto
mobile before our eyes, I heard a |
visitor say, That's every bit as
much a spectacle as Grand
Canyon" ''@''
Ford not only makes automo-
biles. 1t also manufactures many
of the basic automotive mate
rials. In one factory. you can
watch furnace give forth q sheet
of glass that measures So inches
wide and Az miles long. The
ribbon runs "a hours a day at a
speed of 235 feet a minute, but,
it produces only enough glass for
Ford windshieldS. Glass for Mer-
curry and Lincoln windshields and
windows and for Ford windows
come from other sources.
Last year, Ford showed the
plant to 1877 900 visitors.
Dearborn Inn for Guests.
For anything less than an on
Islaught by the entire city of To-
ledo, there is a handy and pleas
ant hotel nearby called Dearborn
Inn. 1t has 100 rooms, augmented
by handful of cottages. They
are copies of the homes of such
Americans as Patrick Henry, Walt
Whitman and Barbara Fritchie.
All rooms are air-conditioned, each
has bath, and the rates run
from SIS to SO single, and from
$3.50 to $12 for two in double
rooms, no meals.
The only thing that interested
Henry Ford more than machinery
was the heritage of it. For Ameri-
cans who would follow he built two
tremendous expositions, the Edi-
son Institute Museum and Green
field Village. The museum is
largely a collection of locomotive
devices, whereas Greenfield Village
is a vast assemblage of the actual
homes of famous Americans and
the shops of early craftsmen. Ad-
mission to each costs 81,
On September 27, 1928, Thomas
A.. Edison walked across slab of
wet cement placed in d field at
Dearborn, planted the spade of
Luther Burbank in the hardening
mass. and signed his name. The
slab, "a memorial for all time" Is
in the hallway of the Edison Mu-
scum.
81a Acres of Museum.
The museums main hall meas
ures 812 acres. The entire floor is
lteakwood, laid herringbone fashion.
Ford said he wanted the floor to
last 1000 years, and he spent over
81 million for the wood and the
cost of laying it. Among the ar
ray of exhibits that cover this
flooring is the Ford trimotor plane
used by the Byrd Antarctic expe-
RESORTS.
n