The Great Pierpont Morgan (36 page)

Chapter X—Pomp and Circumstance

My largest factual source of material in this chapter is Satterlee, but aside from the other sources mentioned below, I have used at many points facts and impressions which came from people who had known Morgan or the circumstances of his life at first hand. The Gambetta quotation is from
The Edwardian Era
, by André Maurois (D. Appleton-Century Co., 1933), pp. 72–73. For the Satterlee quotation on fruit from Dover House, see S 387; for his climbing up the liner's side, S 336–337; for the Zodiac menu, S 406. The steel-mill-purchase anecdote is from Sullivan, II, 356. The “What's the use of bothering” quotation is from Edward Robinson's introduction to the
Guide to the Loan Exhibition of the J. Pierpont Morgan Collection
at the Metropolitan Museum, 1914. The Rigby anecdotes are from
Lock, Stock and Barrel: The Story of Collecting
, by Douglas and Elizabeth Rigby (Lippincott, 1944), pp. 13 and 34; the Rigbys did not use Duveen's name, but the Garland Collection anecdote appears also in
Art Treasures and Intrigue
, by James Henry Duveen (Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1935), p. 133, as a Duveen story. Mitchell's description of Morgan in his Library is from
Memoirs of an Editor
(cited above under Chapter VIII), p. 367. The episode of Morgan's making a baby a life fellow is from an address by Robert W. De Forest, quoted in
Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
, April 1913. For his loan of a million dollars to a friend without security, see S 267–268. The story of the saving of the two uptown banks is told in detail in
Henry P. Davison
, by Thomas W. Lamont (Harper & Brothers, 1933). The story of the loss taken on the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton deal is told in intricate detail in a pamphlet on file at J. P. Morgan & Co., briskly entitled
Before the Interstate Commerce Committee, in the Matter of the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Railway Co.; Its History since June
, 1904;
J. P. Morgan & Co.'s Connection with Its Affairs; Statement by Frederick W. Stevens, Compiled for Presentation to the Interstate Commerce Commission in Advance of Examination by Its Counsel
.

Chapter XI—The Limits of Triumph

There is some variation in the figures for holdings of Northern Pacific stock by the Harriman forces; I have used the same ones that I used previously in L of C, 52–53. Bacon's cable to Morgan about the big Harriman purchases of Northern Pacific stock is not in the cable book at J. P. Morgan & Co.; apparently it was sent (after coding) from Bacon's house, as an extra precaution for secrecy; there was a credit of some thirty or forty dollars to Bacon on the books of J. P. Morgan & Co. a little later for the expense of cabling. That Bacon knew that some purchasing was being done is shown by a cable of April 30 by Bacon, but in that message he says this was apparently being done “with intention at least asking for representation.” The quotation from Morgan about his protective motive is taken as quoted on p. 31 of the Morgan brief in the Northern Securities case. The total of Morgan purchases on May 6 is taken from the actual books at J. P. Morgan & Co.

For Morgan's travels in 1901, my source is. Satterlee. For Morgan's reaction to McKinley's death, see S 363; for Morgan's prior acquaintance with Hanna, S 316–317; for Roosevelt's dinner for Morgan and comment thereon, see
Theodore Roosevelt
, by Henry F. Pringle (Harcourt, Brace &. Co., 1931), p. 227; for the Steel Corporation resolution on union labor, see L of C, 35; for the Mr. Dooley quotation, see Sullivan, II, 411; for the account of Morgan getting the news of the government's action while at dinner, Sullivan, II, 412–414; for the conversation between Morgan and Roosevelt about the Northern Securities action, see
Theodore Roosevelt and His Time
, by Joseph Bucklin Bishop, I, pp. 184–185.

On the formation of International Mercantile Marine and the British reaction thereto, see
Viscount Pirrie of Belfast
, by Herbert Jefferson (William Mullan & Son, Ltd.), pp. 272–277, and also S 381. The George F. Baer letter is reproduced in Sullivan, II, p. 425. The gift by Morgan toward the maintenance of a coal depot in New York comes from S 389. There is a good account of the
Corsair
conference between Root and Morgan in
Elihu Root
, by Philip C. Jessup (Dodd, Mead, 1938); for the rest of the anthracite strike arbitration, I have
leaned heavily on the careful account in Sullivan; but John Mitchell's comment on Morgan and the strike is quoted from S 394.

The data on campaign contributions, and the quotation from Roosevelt, are from the Hearings before the Clapp Committee (Committee on Privileges and Elections, U. S. Senate, 1912, Hearing on Campaign Contributions). The Morgan contribution was there stated to have come from the firm, but I understand that it does not appear on the books of the firm, and therefore assume that it was charged to the partners separately. The Gridiron dinner is described in Sullivan, II, 220–221, quoting the Washington
Post
; and also in S 437–438. For the Morgan testimony on the troubles of U. S. Steel about 1903, see P 1027. On the International Mercantile Marine syndicate operation, I have quoted from the “Navigation Syndicate” notice of February 28, 1906, as it appears in the original Syndicate Book at J. P. Morgan & Co.

As to the New Haven Railroad, I have made considerable use of
The Fall of a Railroad Empire
, by Henry Lee Staples and Alpheus Thomas Mason (Syracuse University Press, 1947), which tells the story in detail. The increase in capitalization is from the
Report of the Interstate Commerce Commission on the Financial Transactions of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad Co
., July 15, 1914, 63rd Congress, 2nd session, Senate Document No. 544; as are the figures on the cost of the New York, Westchester & Boston project. For Mellon's testimony, as quoted, see Staples 182–183; for his comment to Barron (“I took orders …”), see
More They Told Barron
: notes of the late Clarence W. Barron, edited and arranged by Arthur Pound and Samuel Taylor Moore (Harper & Brothers, 1931), p. 168; for his observations on the New York, Westchester & Boston, see Staples 168–169.

Chapter XII—Rock of Defense

On the Episcopal Convention at Richmond, I have consulted contemporary reports in
The Churchman
. The two passages quoted from Bishop Lawrence come from
Memories of a Happy Life
, pp. 251–252. The troubles of Heinze and his friends are recounted in more detail in L of C, 115–122.

In following Morgan's personal activity during the panic,
I have made much use of Satterlee, who was with him much of the time; but for the financial operations he was carrying on, I have relied heavily upon the testimony brought out in the Stanley and Pujo investigations, trying always to bear in mind, when reading this testimony, what I thought the interrogator was trying to establish and what I thought the witnesses might be trying to establish or to hide. One can prove almost anything about the panic by approaching the evidence either as a prosecuting attorney or as defense attorney; I have twice (in 1934–35 and in 1947–48) gone through volumes of testimony as judicially as I could, and have arrived both times at about the same conclusion. For the “sore point” statement and Thorne's testimony generally, see Stanley III, and note the letter from Melville E. Stone in Stanley III, 1687; also see Perkins' testimony in Stanley III, especially at 1472–1473 and 1504. The Satterlee quotation about waking up Morgan on Wednesday morning is from S 467. For the decision to save the Trust Company of America and the “This, then, is the place …” quotation, I have used Strong's account as it appears in Lamont's life of Henry P. Davison, p. 76. For the Wednesday evening meeting I have followed chiefly S 471–473. The account of Morgan's drive downtown on Thursday morning is from S 473. For Thomas' own version of the attempt to prevent the Stock Exchange from closing on Thursday, see P. I, 355–358; for Satterlee's version, S 474–475. For Perkins' visit to Cortelyou on Friday morning, etc., and the “touch and go” quotation from him, see Stanley II, 1474–1476. The Satterlee description of Morgan barging down Nassau Street is from S 479. My Library scene description follows closely a preceding one in L of C, 134–135.

My account of the complex troubles of Moore & Schley and the purchase of Tennessee Coal & Iron is pieced together from testimony given before the Stanley Committee, especially by Schley, Ledyard, Perkins, and Gary; the scene in which the trust-company heads signed up is from Lamont's life of Davison, pp. 82–83; the purchase of New York City bonds is from the same book, pp. 85–87 (there is a reproduction of the longhand contract opposite p. 86). Morgan's reply to the banker who said he was below his legal reserve is from Perkins' testimony, Stanley III, 1612.

Chapter XIII—Envoi

The Cortesi item about driving about Rome is from
My Thirty Years of Friendships
, by Salvatore Cortesi (Harper & Brothers, 1927), p. 96, and the episode of the call on Cardinal Merry del Val from pp. 96–97. “How much for the stack?” is actual: it appears in Duyeen's
Art Treasures and Intrigue
(cited above under Chapter X).

The data on the Morgan-Baker-Stillman influence in the New York banks are adapted from the Pujo Committee report, as quoted in
The Shaping of the American Tradition
, by Louis M. Hacker (Columbia University Press, 1947), II, 951–955, which is also the source of the quotation about “the acts of this inner group”; Morgan's testimony on his purchase of Equitable stock from/Ryan is from P 1068–1070; his testimony on the Southern Railway voting trust, from P 1019; his reaction to the suit against the Steel Corporation is from S 531–532; the account of his last months and death is all from Satterlee. His will is taken from contemporary newspaper reports. As for the final quotation of the book, that, as already noted under Chapter I, where it previously appeared, is from P 1084.

INDEX

Acne rosacea
,
35
,
85

Aetna Fire Insurance Co.,
10

Aix-les-Bains, Fr.,
4
,
122
,
151
,
155
,
167
,
170
,
172

Albany & Susquehanna Railroad,
26–30
,
62

Alexandra, Queen,
214

American Academy, Rome,
4
,
122

American Bridge Company,
134
,
136
,
144

American Line,
178

American Museum of Natural History,
25
,
121

American Sheet Steel Co.,
134
,
136
,
144

American Steel Hoop Co.,
134
,
136
,
144

American Steel & Wire Co.,
132–3
,
134
,
136
,
142
,
144

American Syndicate,
99–100

American Tin Plate Co.,
134
,
144

America's Cup races,
153

Amory, Cleveland,
55

Anthracite coal combination,
46–47

Anthracite coal strike, 1902,
178
,
179–83

Arbitraging,
57

Arlington Hotel, Wash.,
91
,
134
,
181

Art collection,
4
,
110–20
,
147
,
151
,
156
,
159–62
,
179
,
192
,
205
,
215
,
225

Associated Press,
199

Astor, Mrs. William,
55

Astor, William B.,
18

Astor Trust Company,
217

Atlantic Transport Line,
178

Autobiography
(L. Steffens),
102–4
,
129

Azores Islands,
13–15

Bacon, Robert,
85
,
90–2
,
139
,
147
,
170
,
181
,
182

Baer, George F.,
178
,
179–81

Baker, George F.,
9
,
75
,
79
,
120
,
201
,
209
,
217
,
218

Balfour, Arthur James,
179

Ballin, Albert,
179

Baltimore & Ohio R. R.,
49
,
67
,
68
,
69
,
71–2
,
76
,
79

Bank of England,
17

Bankers Trust Company,
196
,
217
,
219

Banking, influence on,
217
,
221

Banking and Currency, House Committee on,
see
Pujo Committee

Baring Brothers,
49
,
179

Barney, Charles T.,
194
,
197

Barron, Clarence W.,
189

Beard, Charles A.,
21

Beebe, James M., & Co.,
10

Beebe, J. M., Morgan & Co.,
10

Belden, James J.,
68
,
77

Belmont, August,
83
,
85–6
,
88
,
89
,
91
,
94
,
98
,
99

Belmont, August, & Co.,
86
,
100

Bethlehem Steel Co.,
139

Blaine, James G.,
62

Boston, Mass.,
10
,
12
,
13
,
20

Boston & Maine Railroad,
73
,
187
,
188

Bowdoin, George S.,
58
,
84

Brandeis, Louis D.,
188
,
190

Brice, Calvin,
75

Bristol, Hotel, Paris,
58–9
,
152
,
155
,
156
,
172