Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1901-12-17

|
ties Company Was Born-Part Act
ed by Morgan-Little Sleep For the
workers-Masnitud of the Opera
ton.
I 1t is regarded as within bounds to
say that the successful formation of q
company to take over the control Of the
Northern Pacific, the Great Northern
and the Burlington railways sur
mounts the most difficult problem ever
presented to American financial inter.
ests, writes a correspondent Of the New
York Post. This Is not because Of the
extent Of the capital involved. great as
this is, but rather because Of the Pc
culiarly delicate character q The prob
lens presented and the necessity of
conciliating powerful and aggressive
and seemingly irreconcilable interests.
| Personality has counted for much at
every stage Of the long drawn out
quarrel. 1t was question OF the per-
sonallty of Mr.. ELL which was largely
responsible for the opening Of the quar-
rel. 1t was the aggressive personality
of F.. II. Hartman Of the Union Pa
cific which brought the quarrel to a
head. although 1t does not appear that
he originated the plan of buying con-
troll OF Northern Pacific in reprisal
for the Burlington purchase. Mr. ia
cob II. Schiff's conservatism and peace
full characteristics were chiefly respon-
slble for forcing the truce upon the
younger participants in the contest and
in holding the quarreling elements In
check when passions ran high. Final
~ the tombstone Of success, which
might otherwise have been wanting.
was found in the character and reputa-
ton for "Reminiscences of J. Pier
pont Morgan. These four men were
the principals in the organization. the
men whose agreement was essential to
the successful formation Of the COM
pany. But probably no other corpora
ton. not even the United States Steel
corporation. required so much consulta-
ton, the agreement of so many men,
such numerous conferences or SO much
activity among all the principals.
The organization of the United States
Steel corporation was virtually accom-
plished in the Office Of ]. p. Morgan &
Co. Everybody in interest came to Mr..
Morgan. All deferred in the end to his
word He carried the trust through by
the force of his own character. He
was ahead of everybody else-pushing
clerks, steel men. lawyers and bankers
in the work. The greatest lawyers OF
New York then spent days in his office.
Ee would tell them that he wanted
such and such matter put into legal
shape. In a few hours he would ask
for the result Of their work or bring
new ideas to them to work over. They
were always begging him for time. In
the Northern Securities
Mr.. Morgan has been less
positive factor. Instead of being the
actuating force he has In much of the
been a sort Of umpire. ap-
pealed to when the factions could not
agree. This Is his position as actually
fixed under certain Of the agreements
finally reached.
If Mr.. Hill had not once opposed the
formation Of proprietary company to
hold Great Northern and the Northern
Pacific. he might possibly have con-
trolled the latter from its last reorgani-
cation. When Brayton Ives, then pres
ident of the Northern Pacific and
chairman of the stockholders commit
tee. opposed Mr.. Hills Berlin agree
ment with the Deutsche bank for the
Great Northern railway to guarantee
Northern Pacific certain fixed
of net earnings. Mr.. Hill re-
fused to agree to the plan Of a pro-
prietary company. 1t did not require
an adverse court decree on the Great
Northern guarantee to kill that plan
after the newspapers Of the day an
nounced that "Mr. Hill informed
Messrs. Adams, Morgan and others in
terested with them that the third COM
pany plan did not appeal to him and
that he had decided to stand upon his
original proposition" He Is now presi-
dent and the dominant interest In such
q third company and after six years
has secured the result he then sought
by the means he then rejected. This
shows Mr. HIPS noted pertlnaclty and
his readiness to shift his ground to
gain his ends.
Mr.. Hill remained in New York fully
a month working out the settlement of
the problem. Scarcely day in that
time passed without several confer
ences. and in almost all Of these Mr.
Hill was the central figure. The gene
sis Of the Northern Securities company,
unlike that of most large corporations,
was not in any fixed committee room,
Office or definite location Most Of the
meetings were in the Office Of j. p.
Morgan & Co., but Mr.. Hill in the past
month has been hurrying from one
office to another. There was no time in
many instances for Office conferences.
The usual spectacle was frequently
seen Of MIR. Hill and Mr.. Bacon of j. F
Morgan & Co. and later Mr.. Perkins of
the same firm comforting in a corner
Of fine p:ltr1 MOO to some office huildino