The Flivver King: A Story of Ford-America

Abner forgets to write an address on the envelope but sends his letter. He spends the next day waiting anxiously for a response until Milly and Daisy scold him and he goes out looking for work again. Meanwhile, the letter reaches Mrs. Ford’s secretary, who follows protocol and has an employee investigate Abner Shutt. When the investigation shows that Abner’s claim to have worked for Ford for 30 years is true, the company sends a field worker to the Shutt home.

The field worker, finding only Milly at home, confirms the truth of Abner’s story: Abner was truly hired by Ford himself and is struggling to support his sick wife. The Shutt family is overjoyed when a letter arrives instructing Abner to report for work at the Highland Park plant. Abner’s new task is inserting screws on the assembly line two days a week, and the $8 he earns sounds “like heaven to people who had been so near to starving” (184). Abner writes Mrs. Ford a thank-you letter “of touching gratitude” and she carries the letter in her purse to show people “what a good and kind institution the Ford Motor Company was” (184).