The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-09-24
ROBERT BACON Is CALLED GREEK GOD New Assistant Secretary ot
 State an Athlete OLD FRIEND OF ROOSEVELT Two Met When Students at Harvard. MT. Bacon Successful In Finan-
 claI World, But Is Not
 Brilliant.
OLD FRIEND OF ROOSEVELT
From the New York Times.

From the New York Times
 Oyster Bay has been the scene of many and diverse surprises since 1t became the American summer capital but few recent announcements of President Roosevelt have awakened such general interroga- tory interest over the country as the ap- pointment of Robert Bacon to succeed Francis B. Loomis as first assistant sce- retary of state at Washington.
 Robert Bacon? Pennsylvania Is some what familiar with the name. and it Is fairly, one might say, distinctly prominent in the domain of dollars which radiates around the offices of J. P. Morgan & Co.,, at Wall and Broad streets. Boston also knows the name by heart, and there are Harvard alumni class of 1880 who re- member Robert Bacon as bright partic- ular star in the athletic Armament of those days. Indeed, his prowess on the gridlron. as one of the best half backs that Harvard ever had, was destined to play an important part In his subsequent career, since it was a means of bringing together Robert Bacon and a certain young student named Theodore Roosevelt -an acquaintance ripened by intervening years into a warm mutual relationship.
 As recounted by classmate of the two young Bacon was not only adept in making touchdowns and bucking centers. but was an all-round athlete of no mean accomplishments combination of quail ties calculated to inspire a degree of hero- worship In an American college. One aft ernoon in the old Harvard gymnasium, as the story goes, several members of the varsity eleven had returned to the gym nasium and Bacon was attracted by a particularly spirited sparring bout, In which one of the participants was getting somewhat the worst of the argument This in itself was not so unusual as to at- tract attention, although one of the par ticipants was taller and much more pow erful than the other. But as the bout grew fast and furious the bigger man landed a vicious solar plexus blow on his adversary. flooring him. A cry of foul went up from the handful of spectators, but 1t was silenced when the victim arose plucldly to his feet and decfa-rd 1t was not a foul Quickly facing his antag- onist, he earned the plaudits of the crowd by saying: "See If you can do it again" The speaker, as Bacon learned on their being introduced, was Theodore Roose- welt, whose pluck in the face of such odds was the basis of a mutual regard. which has ended in the present appointment.
 III the years that followed the patnS or the two young collegians led one of them first to New York and then westward tH ward health and adventure, and SS- other to his home city of Boston, where he be- came identified with the banking and brokerage house of E. Rollins Morse, the latter being for years president of the smart Somerset club of Boston.
 Family Not Wealthy.
 While the Bacon famky Yas not veal thy in the sense of reckoning wealth now adays," pursued the same informant, William Bacon, father of the present as- sistant secretary of state, was Boston ian of influence and in more than com fortable circumstances. As fnancer Robert Bacon, humoring his fondness for athletics, found time for polo and other open-air recreations.
 He remained in Boston until the winter of 1894, when, on the sudden death of the late Charles Kosler partner of J. Pier pont Morgan, the great Wall street bank CT. offered him a partnership In the con- cern. Those who know MT. Morgan are aware that he never goes about such things blindly and his invitation to the young Boston banker was sequentlal to a protracted acquaintance between the two.
 'T would not call Robert Bacon a bril- liant man." volunteered a proS-~.nent flnancier who has known the new assist ant secretary of state since boyhood. but the expression safe and sane fits him like a glove He Is sound conservative and eminently solid. Furthermore he is a man of absolute honesty ard integrity Even during those trying times two or three years ago, when no reputation was considered invulnerable, no breath of scandal or suspicion ever touched him."
 Has he ever accomplished any partic- ularly brilliant stroke as f1nancier?' was asked
 Well, 1t depends on what the terit means but down this way the general opinion is that any man who secures partnership with Morgan & Co. has very emphatically won his spurs in business sense"
 Despite repeated denials-and incident ally offsetting the rumor of differences between J. Pierpont Morgan and his for mer partner-Wall street entertains the opinion that the first assistant to Secre- tary Root owes his appointment not only to his 1ong-standing friendship with the president. but to the strong recommenda- ton of MT. Morgan. Entering the firm of Morgan & Co. in 1894, as well as the banking houses of Drexel & Co.,, in Phila- delphia. and of Morgan, Harjes &s Co.,. in Paris. his ability commanded such con- fidence in 1901 that, in the absence of Mir.
  i've charge of the firm when the Northern Pacific corner cut few cyclonic capers in the Street. Upon him may be said to have devolved the entire responsibility of ordering the battle against Jacob H. Schiff and E. II. Hartman when Morgan & Go. found itself carrying something like 145000 shares of Northern Pacific stock Later when the head of the firm returned from abroad 1t was reported that he was very angry over the whole Northern Pa cific affair Just what foundation there Is from the report may be gathered from the following announcement made by J. Pierpont Morgan when MT. Bacon with drew from the firm on January 1, 1908:
 Ills retirement Is a matter of personal regret to all and Is due solely to the state of his health As evidence of this fact I may point out that Mir. Bacon has not resigned from any of the directorates in which he represents the Morgan inter- ests.
 ''He will continue in those capacities and will attend to all the matters incident thereto so far. as his health permits There is not word of truth fin the ru- mors that any other causes contributed to his retirement from this firm
 Meteorlc Career In Street"
 Reviewing his meteoric career in the Street a well-known banker pointed out that the friendship began between the new assistant secretary of state and Pres ident Roosevelt at Harvard was more strongly cemented when the chief execu- tive intervened in the great anthracite coal strike three years ago. MT. Bacon was recognized at that time as the Baron Kaneko of the Wall street interests. and 1t was through him as an Intermediary