MILLIONS OF MONEY.

Taranaki Daily News, 28 March 1917, Page 6

MILLIONS OF MONEY.

lIOW .eiOO BECAME £13,000,000.' BY BUILDING MOTOR-CARS. Some interesting facts were disclosed on affidavit in the recent law case between [f. Ford and Messrs Dodge JJros., two of the biggest automobile makers in America. It appears that when Henry Ford started making cais on his own account in 1 fio3—just 14 Tears ago, it will be noted—he entered into an arrangements with the brothers Dodge, who were engineers and machinists at Detroit, to manufacture certain parts for him. on the basis of accepting a certain portion of the payments Hp to £4OO, being a portion of their profits, in shares in his company in lieu of cash. The arrangement proved satsfactory to both parties, and the Dodge Bros, thus became interested directly in the Ford business to the above amount. The business, then small, prospered, and in inns the Ford Company was incorporated, to extend business, with a capitalisation of £.100,000, the Dodge interest in the capitalisation being 10 per cent., or £4-0,000, 10,4)00 per cent, increase in five years, it will be noted. Then came future prosperity, the Dodge Bros, continuing to make parts for the Ford concern, on which they made their manufacturing profit, as well as participating to the extent of 10 per cent, in the Ford j profits, and it is stated in an affidavit made by the Ford Company in the case referred to that from first to last the Dodge Bros, have rec-eved dividends aggregating no less than £1,114,300 on their original investment out of profits of £2OOO, whilst the value of their present 10 per cent, holding in the Ford Company is stated to be "equal to £lO,000,000 —a further capital increase in the eight years of the present company of 25,000 per cent., or , on their original investment, 2,500,000 per cent. Further than this, it is stated that the value of contracts executed by Dodge Bros, for the Ford firm during the period they were working for it aggregated no less than £3,400,000, on which it is estimated they made a profit of at least £2,00,000. Thus it will be seen how, in the short space of 14 years £4OO became over £ 13,000.000. Surely the wildest dreams of El Dorado, the mythical land of wealth, are eclipsed 'by some of the figures connected with the American motor industry!