Twenty years ago, the financiers
wanted me to come to Milwaukee.
Today, they want me to stay away
from Milwaukee.
There is a reason.
Twenty years ago, I worked for the financiers. Today, I work for the people. You cannot work for both; it must be for one or the other.
Twenty years ago, the United States was at war, and Congress had appropriated more than half a billion dollars for airplanes. The financiers wanted to get their teeth into that big slice of money. But to do it they had to build airplanes.
Now, at that time there were only a few men in the world who knew how to build
The Original Benefactor
airplanes
that could fly, and I was one of
them. So they invited me to come
to Milwaukee to build them.
There was one thing about it that these financiers didn’t like, however, and that was that I said, “As long as America is at war. we are not going to make any profit from Lawson Airplanes.” They didn’t like that, but that was the only way that I would agree to work for them.
At that time, during the world war, I was working for the Green Bay Company without pay, and they sent their committee to negotiate with me. I had refused to accept any salary at Green Bay for my services, but took thirty-five dollars a week for living expenses.
The financiers said that I ought to have fifty thousand dollars a year, but I told them that I would rather have thirty-five dollars a week in expenses than to have fifty thousand dollars a year in promises.
There is a reason.
Twenty years ago, I worked for the financiers. Today, I work for the people. You cannot work for both; it must be for one or the other.
Twenty years ago, the United States was at war, and Congress had appropriated more than half a billion dollars for airplanes. The financiers wanted to get their teeth into that big slice of money. But to do it they had to build airplanes.
Now, at that time there were only a few men in the world who knew how to build
The Original Benefactor
airplanes
that could fly, and I was one of
them. So they invited me to come
to Milwaukee to build them.There was one thing about it that these financiers didn’t like, however, and that was that I said, “As long as America is at war. we are not going to make any profit from Lawson Airplanes.” They didn’t like that, but that was the only way that I would agree to work for them.
At that time, during the world war, I was working for the Green Bay Company without pay, and they sent their committee to negotiate with me. I had refused to accept any salary at Green Bay for my services, but took thirty-five dollars a week for living expenses.
The financiers said that I ought to have fifty thousand dollars a year, but I told them that I would rather have thirty-five dollars a week in expenses than to have fifty thousand dollars a year in promises.