HENRY FORD TO PUSH WORLD-WIDE CAMPAIGN FOR UNIVERSAL PEACE
Will Devote Life and Fortune to Combat Spirit of Militarism Now Rampant.
LAUGHS AT THOSE WHO PREDICT SUCCESSFUL INVASION OF U. S.
Scores Hypocrites Who Pretend to Be Religious, Yet Foster War For Sordid Gain.
"I will do everything in my power to prevent murderous, wasteful war in America and in the whole world; I will devote my life to fight this spirit which is now felt in the free and peaceful air of the United States, the spirit of militarism, mother to the cry of 'preparedness' preparedness, the root of all war."
These words, uttered Saturday by Henry Ford, hater of war and visualizer of vast foresight, marked the beginning of what will henceforth be the life-work of the man to strike with everything he commands at what he declares to be the direct cause of all wars and all national antipathies that breed war "preparedness."
"I would teach the child at its mother's knee," said Mr. Ford, "what a horrible, wasteful and unavailing thing war is. In the home and in the schools of the world I would see the child taught to feel the uselessness of war; that war is a thing unnecessary; that preparation for war can only end in war.
Will Give Much to End Wasteful "Preparation"
"I have prospered much, and I am ready to give much to end this constant, wasteful 'preparation.' Not by building palaces of peace, not by inspiring fearful peace by powerful armament, but by teaching the men, women and children of America that war does not threaten us, that war will not reach us, that the fullness of peace is their inheritance, not the burden of militarism with its heavy hand that curbs liberty and its foul sustenance upon the blood, the labor and the toil-earned happiness and goods of the worker.
Entire World United in Demand for Peace
"This I would make a world work, for all the world cries for
peace, and there can be no peace while there remains one set of
these militaristic parasites who encourage war and who damn all
whose ideas of patriotism and love of their fellowmen does not
call for arming brother against brother.
"I confess I do not know how it is best to undertake this work
in an organized manner. I realize it is a vast undertaking. Yet
I want to see this nation and all the nations of the earth nourishing
that feeling, already deeply implanted in the minds and hearts of
millions, that is expressed in the words: 'We do not want war. We will not have war. We will not have amongst us the breeders of war, be they men who cry out that the enemy seeks us, and we must prepare for him, or be they only those who would dazzle with the false glory that has been the cloak of murder for centuries.'
"The seed of this project is right here in the Ford organization, in hundreds of organizations throughout the country. We have to develop it and nourish its growth. The workshops, the farms, fair and just conditions, equitable prices and commercial unselfishness are the things we wish to improve.
People of All Lands Cry Out Against War
"By some remote and providential scheme a little good might result through the use of guns, warships, shrapnel and torpedo. To my mind this is the last and most remote means that could possibly be suggested to gain the national or world-wide end that most sober-minded men wish to obtain.
"When men think and work, they do right, and the voice of
the people, I do believe, in every land under the sun, cries out against war. The trouble is that they do not make enough noise, and the yell of the few who, for monetary gain, want war just at this particular time, seems to prevail.
"We who can, ought to help in the right direction. It's a
pathetic sight and positive fact that most men who pose as standing for the best things in life and who pray to God in churches on Sundays for peace (the very pillars of the church, they are called) are busiest nowadays in obtaining the orders that will enable them to convert their factories into workshops for making shot and shell for destroying mankind and defeating the finest and loftiest things in the world homes, happiness, prosperity.
Public Must Control Actions of "Rulers"
"Nowadays men are prone to think they have nothing to do with and cannot control their own destinies. It is everybody's business to know how the moneys of the country are spent and how the wisdom and judgment of the chief executives is directed, and the sooner we come to understand this the sooner will be stopped the wanton waste of money for murderous and destructive agencies, such as warships, guns and arms.