The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-08-14

De called up on the lelepnOn0, say by
Kuhn, Loeb & Co., say. by Mr. Morgan's
| office. and in term asked if 1 wanted
| to come in syndicate, and a certain
| allotment of shares would be given to
| me- but 1 was told also that 1 would
/ have to make immediate ans wer If my
| reply was that / needed several days
/ FOR consideration, the telephone receiver
would be hung UP in all likelihood.
i When called several days later and
/ said 1 would go in the syndicate |
| would be CURLY informed that had lost
| my opportunlty-that the syndicate had
| been completed.
| What is the situation now? 1 am
| called and asked to participate in many
1 Syndicates, but III none of them is the
/ time for decision fixed on the. instant.
| they are content to await my decision
and 1 know there is no danger that 1
will be too late.
ORered Big Interest.
81 can judge in another way Requests
are coming to me today for money from
quarters it was least expected would
| be asking for money some time ago.
Today was offered the unprecedented
| interest of per cent Tor l million dol
| lars or million dollars or million
dollars. The security was beyond all
criticism That would be impossible in
| this country if there was confidence
enough to unlock the money vault of
| the country.
ted States today are unable to borrow
money for any length of time. Former
| ly they could obtain it for eight or
ten years in great amounts. They are
very well satisfied to take anything they
can get now for short term. Recent
| ly 1 was offered car trusts, one of the
safest possible investments, at the rate
of 63z to per cent, and they were very
glad to give that rate: aItnougn there Is
a margin on the safety side of these
loans.
country by these things have told you
and by others that come directly un.
der my notice or under the notice of
nv personal representatives, my son
and others. It is really of no great
moment to me-. I am through with
business. Loss or gain no longer al
fects me. am content as I am today.
I am in better health than I have been
for many years. 1 am happier than 1
have been for IL years or more.
'sWhy are men making these offers to
me now? 1t is because of a lack of
confidence. Not a lack of confidence In
the resources of the country, not be-
cause there is any danger or foreign
entanglements, not because of crop rail-
ures, nor of the monetary policy, nor OF
any social condition. but Of lack OF
confidence in this administration.
His Story OF the Standard.
'They speak of the organization of
the Standard Oil company. They refer
to it as being founded on browbeating
and crushing it's competitors. There
has not been a magazine or newspaper
in the country that has not been ready
to take a fling at the company. Crush
ing, browbeatfng! How absurd. Peo-
pie say that because they do not know
how the great business was founded
and how it was fostered. There has
been great injustice done to the people
who founded the company. For all
these years no one has known and no
to find
out how it came into existence.
"Let me tell you how the Standard
Oil company came to be organized. L
had been in the commission business
for some time here in Cleveland. l
passed through the panic of the sos. l
received a splendid business training
then and when went into the oil bust
ness L found that it stood me in good
stead. I knew sthee value of confidence.
L knew what money could be borrowed
on confidence and what this meant. I
knew, too; where waste could be stop
ped, where the middle man could be
dispensed with; where the rough pro-
duct could be bought cheaply. That
commission business was grand train
ing to me and even now I have not
said enough in appreciation Of it.
He Joined EN-.
after the war I was in business in
Cleveland with NJ. B. Clark. Conditions
in the oil business in Cleveland and
est ebb. Hundreds of people had gone
into it foolishly. The demand was
greatly oversupplied. Cleveland was
getting out of it geographically. We
were being showed off the map, some
thing had to be done.
There were no transportation facil-
tiles and those that existed were badly
and poorly handled. The
slipshod in the extreme. The price of
oil was higher than it would have been
under better conditions. Nine out of
ten business men were losing money.
Our greatest competitor was H. B.
Payne. 1 knew Mr.. Payne very we'll.
I had gone to school with him. In our
early days we had been close friends.
In later days We had drifted apart, as
competitors do in these days. We
spoke as we passed in the street but
that was all. I knew that Mr.. Payne
was not making money on account of
general conditions, and as we were
rapidly approaching that same stage
l determined to do something. 1 de-
cided there must be mutual arrange
ment for handling the business.
called UP Mr.. Payne's banker and ask
ed him If it would be possible to get
Mr.. Payne to meet me at the bank
er answered: He will be there
met him. and after going over the
I suggested we Join our bust
nesses.
IF we can agree upon values. will
you come in?' asked him. He said:
Yes Then we had our plants ap-
praised by we'll known men in Cleve- |
land and entered upon an agreement |
When we had come to this agreement
we asked the others to come in with |
us and we adopted the same policy to- |
ward them that we had used toward |
each other,
Doesn't Mention Rebates
"This was the foundation of the |
Standard Oil company. Did I crush |
Mr. Payne? Did browbeat him? 1t |
is absurd to say that we used toward |
The others different methods than we |
used among ourselves.
How has the Standard Oil prosper |
ad9 What has baaO the Sarrot of fba L