Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1906-07-14
MANY ARE
BUT DUMMY
DIRECTORS
David Ferguson in success.)

genuinely serve as a director without
being a igurehcad in any one Of them
is complex question. Some capital
lists make it fixed rule not to enter
the directorate of any corporation unr
less they ara certain of their ability
to actually assist in the direction of its
affairs. Others seem to 60 on the prin-
ciple of getting memberships in as
many directontes as they possibly can,
seemingly without regard to their fit
ness or ability to be of legitimate serv-
ice. Until recently, Chauncey M. De.
pew was a director in 10 corporations,
most of them railroads controlled by
the yanderbilts. Though it is a mental
impossibility for one man to keep in
close touch with the affairs of 10 cor
porations, it would not be fair to class
M. Depew among the dummy direct
ors. He was put into the corporations
chiefly to represent the Vanderbilt
family stockholders and carry out the
Vanderbilt policy of management
William H. Newman, Mr.. Depew g
successor as president Of the New
York Central railroad, is director in
6S corporations, most of them rail
roads. M. Newman probably holds
the record as president of corpora-
tions OF the 6s companies he serves
as director he is president of A. This
might expose him to the charge of
being a dummy president were it not
for the fact that most of the "A COM
panies are small railroads-compone
parts, or feeders, of the main lines of
the Vanderbilt system. Mr.. Newman
is not the only man employed by the
Vande~bilts to represent the family in
terests in corporations. John Carsten-
sen, one of the confidential men of the
Vanderbilts, is a director in 42 corpo-
rations; Cha-les +. Cox, another conf
Dental representative, is in 20 corpora
tions as a director, and Edward V. w.
Rossiter represents the Vanderbilt
family as director in So corporations.
James Stillmap is a director in a
larger number of corporations than
any other member of the Standard Oil
group of capitalists. He serves as di-
recto, in 5S companies. William
Rockefeller is in Al, Henry H. Rogers
is in % Daniel O'Day is in 20, and
Charles Ne Pratt is in IA. John d.
Rockefeller, as has been stated, con-
fines his energies to one corporation,
the Standard Oil company, of which
he is president as we'll as director. ].
Pie-pont Morgan, though director
in AZ corporations, is not an officer in
single one August Belmont, head of
the transportation system of New
York City, and American representa-
tive of the Rothschilds, is in 81 corpo'
rations as a director; Anthony N. Bra
dy serves so companies; George F.
Baker, president of the First National
bank, is in 43; George ]. Gould, head
of the Gould family, is in SO; Henry
C.. Huntington serves in directorates Of
81 corporations, most of them the ere
ations of the late Coils p. Huntington,
and the veteran financier Russell
Sage. though well on the way to mona
genariar age, still clings to director
ships in % corporations.
Thomas +. Ryan, who, next to John
d. Rockefeller, is regarded in the Wal
street district as the most determined
money-mal0er in America, is director
in 80 corporations, but these do not
represent his total interests by any
means. He has placed his personal
counsel Paul ID. Cnavath, in the direct
crates of a dozen companies, and he
has other confidential men whom he
employs in a similar capacity. Nor
man n Ream, the right-hand man OF
the late Marshall Field, is director
in 81 corporations; Alexander +. or,
recently elected president Of the New
York Life Insurance company, is in 99'
and William A. Clark. United States
senasor, is a director in 80, of which
he is president of 20.
All of these men would probably bit
terly resent being called dummy direct
crs. but. if the real facts of their ae-
tivities, or inactivities, in corporations
they supposedly serve could be learned
some basis for the charge would an
doubtally be found.