The evening times., 1900-03-05
Henry HAR4'S CAREER
The Former Third AYenne Presi-
dent Saved From Poverty.
James II. keene, the Wall Street
Bear, Wards or Bankruptcy for
the Aged Financier - Formerly
Worth $IO.OOO,OOO. He Has
Seen His Fortune Ebb AwRy.

Henry Hart, the magnate OF the Third
Avenue Railroad Company. was worth SlO.-
OOO. 600. Within the last week he has seen
this wealth-the savings Of sixty years OF
hard toil-disappear. A Judgment of
s.. SOC, 900 might have been hanging over
his head today but for the deal made with
the active bear OF Wall Street. James r.
Keene. Some friends Of Magnate Hart
claimed that Keene's support Of the prin-
cipal owner Of Third Avenue Railroad
stock in the hour Of adversely was a char
liable act. Finaneier Keene has made a
fortune for himself and has saved Hart
from absolute bankruptcy. Henry Hart
is now eighty-eight years old.
This sudden change from afiuence to
comparative poverty makes one Of the most
romantic stories OF New York's rich busI-
ness men. Henry Hart started early IN
life TO become rich. He was born in RuJ-
gers Street Of poor parents. He worked
in a clothing store on Chatham Square and
was thrifty He was watching at all times
tor profitable Investments. and before ne
WAS tNenJy-One years Of age started 10
buy railroad stocks.
He fOrCsaNv the rapid growth OF the city
and also the enormous value OF a franchise
a
streets OF New York. Every dollar Of his
earnings be placed in the stock Oi jh-
Third Avenue Railroad Company. In 1913.
after years OF hard work. Henry Hart be-
came the controlling factor in this com
pany.
For nearly fifty years this railroad has
been his mania. He has spent night and
day working TO male the road success.
IN the early sixties Henry Hart became
Il .
was personally sUpe rvised By him. lie
rode ia the cars hour after hour watching
the conductors and the horse car drivers
10 see how they were doing their duty II
a conductor acted inso3ently TO a pascal
ger OF 4 driver whipped the car horses 100
hard. pr, sident Hart would dismiss him
from The service.
This was long before the period Of pat
ert bell punches and fare registers. The
company had 10 depend on the honesty c.
their conductors and President Hart saved
hundreds OF thousands OF dollars By watch
ing his men himself and discharging th--n
for the least violation OF the company s
rules
Every share Of Third Avenue Railroad
stock placed on the market which Presi-
dent Hart could buy was put in his surOng-
box.
His faith IN the road was absolute. He
would never sell share OF stock. This
I constant accumulation Of stock FOR twenty
five years was making President Hart a
very wealthy man. lie w2s ranked with
( the great nnanCieTs Of Wall Street. lie
would borrow large sums Of money by
I putting 10 Third Avenue stock as security
ard then 20 into the open market and pUr-
/ chase some more thousands Ct shares. thus
3 boosting the value Of the stock on the CN-
! change
The top price Of Third Avenue stock was
/ 2iO. reached about three years ago. Then
/ Henry Hart owned over 10000 OF the i6e,-
I coo shares Of the stock Of the company
[ Nr. Hart was one o. the first railroad men
1 TO see the advantage OF the cable system
f and equipped the road with that motive
l agency at cost OF S4.00O. coo. As soon as
/ il was demonstrated that the underground
/ electric system was superior 10 the cable
/ he set about undolng the costly work Of
/ seven years before.
President Hart watched the formation
/ OF the Whitney syndicate and their efforts
/ to get a monopoly OF the street surface
/ traffic or the city. To block this plan Hart
I advised the Third Avenue directors TO puT-
/ chase the Grand Street and Forty second
/ Street line and also the Union Railway
/ Company. in the district above the Har-
/ lem.
! The Whitney syndicate offered large in
ducements to the Third Avenue system TO
I consolidate. Henry Hart refused all offers
and said he was convinced that the Third
! Avenue system would in time to come be
I as powerful as the Metropolitan company.
Henry Hart was forced by old age to re-
. tire from the presidency of the Third Ave
/ nue. company six years agO. He. however,
| looked after affairs as vice president.
/ He kept alOof from politics, but was al
ways thought to be a Republican. His
| friend ard conhdant is Edward Lauter-
| bach who has for years acted as counsel
| for the company.
| Henry Hart has been for half a century
a picturesque figure in the financial cen
I tre He is undersized-abOut 1 feet
/ inches in height. Slight Ct figure. but
| with quick. nervous ways His eyes large
/ and bulging. make him lock like one Of the
] little marionettes used by ventriloquists
/ on the stage. He would drive down from
/ his home on Madison Avenue in riCkety
l old coach drawn by cid grey car horses
| veterans OF the car line. At first the old
/ coach was drawn by a single horse. but
/ in later years two were TiSEea % the odd
vehicle. It seemed for years as IL this
/ old coach would fail to pieces on the street
It was mended with hay wire. was scratch
| ed and battered so that even an old night
| hawk cabman would hesitate before look
ing for people TO ride in such a vehicle
| Henry Hart was :, friend of Horace Gree
lev. He had a suite of Offices in the I'll
bune Building for many years
| He is a bachelor and lives with niece
in the large house. 739 Madison Avenue
| II is furnished very simply There arr
! no costly pictures or bric-a-brac about th'
parlors. The furniture is OF the old
fashioned kind worn and ragged On tn
second floor of his home Mr. Hart has
library and sleeping rooms
| He has been very economical all hi
life. He belongs to no clubs. does not car
for society, has few friends, and takes nj
interest in politics.
During the last fifteen years Mr.. Har
has developed peculiar habit. With to
going down Of the sun he retires to hi
sleeping apartments and goes to bed
Winter and summer this routine has beel
kept up. He will receive no visitors no
will he talk about business matters afte
| he Tetires.
The ordeal through which Henry Har
has passed during the last two month
has made no change in his habits or ap
pearance. He has become little NOR
nervous. and that is all. He does no
, lie awake nights thinking about his mis-
fortunes. but sleeps from nightfall 10 sun
rise as II he were still millionaire.
The men associated with Henry HaT
in the affairs OF the Third Avenue COmpan
blame him for forcing it into the hand
Of a receiver They wanted to issue an
sell stock to meet the obligations Of tn
company because Of the change Of motiv
power from cable to electricity. Mr.. HaI
T formed another financial scheme. II
wanted no more stock Of the Third Avenu
sold because he had not the ready none
TO buy it in. He was confident that euoug