Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495050a51525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534536537538539540541542 of 542

he wants and it's thair duty to find a way to get it done. He just tells him what he's going to do and they give him no legal advice. That's been his rule always. His manufacturers don't give him any advice at all. He tells them what's to be made and they make it. The reason that he cherished Knudsen so was that Knudsen could make anything.

I think it was during this conference, or perhaps another one that we had, that Knudsen got off those famous words, “I've got to go back to Detroit and make automobiles. I can make automobiles under any labor policy, I don't care what it is. Just let the other people make the labor policy. I'll make the automobiles.” It was a very interesting statement and completely revealing of the kind of man Knudsen was. He didn't fuss with these highly philosophical things, but he could make automobiles. Just tell him what the material is and fix the labor policy, and he'll make the automobiles and get them out on time, with the right price, and everything else.

Whereas all the others - De Bruile, Sloan, and all of them - were always discussing these intricate relationships between cost and production, over-all cost and labor cost. I kept stressing that the labor costs in an automobile in those days was only fourteen per cent of