The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-03-03
THAW AND LAWSON
ARE OVERSHADOWED
New Figure Looms Up in Wall
Street Lime Light
THE MINING STOCK BOOM
This Class of Speculation Is Just Now
Overlapping All Other Items of
Trade-Savings Bank
Summary.
BY w. G. NICHOLAS.

of Boston or Evelyn Nesbit Thaw, and
this is saying a good deal. Before Mr..
Hartman was put on the rack by the
government inquisltors Lawson and the
Thaw girl divided the attention of brok-
ers. Every evening the crowd of brokers
going to their homes seized the evening
editions of the newspapers and proceeded
To wade through the columns of verbatim
testimony of the celebrated murder trial
On their way back to Wall street from
their homes in the morning they devoured
the prophetic sayings OF the gentleman
from Boston spread over the advertising
pages of the morning newspapers. But
this week Mr.. Hartman alone has been
in the limelight.
What Mr.. Hartman has had to say,
more or less against his will, in response
to the diligent probing of the attorneys
of the interstate commerce commission is
an old story to Wall street. The street
has not been SO much interested in the
facts brought outs by the investigation
as the manner in which Mr.. Hartman
and his banking friends have related
these facts. The story of the enormous
injection of water into the Chicago and
Alton company was old enough almost
TO have been forgotten in the street
Likewise the purchase of the Huntington
holdings of the Southern Pacific by the
Union Pacific, the investment of the
enormous profits in the sale of the Union
Pactics Great Northern and Northern
Pacific stock in the stocks of other rail-
ways, the old Northern Pacific fight-all
u+ora Of
history.
But the interstate commerce commits
sion hearing has thrown all this old story
up into a condensed, concrete and read
able form, and the entire financial district
has been deVouring the story word for
word The only really brand new thing
that was brought out in the quizzlng
of Mr.. Hartman was his reason for de-
posing StuyVesant Fish from the presi-
dency of the Illinois Central The gov
eminent inquisitors did not care to know
about this and they tried to prevent Mr..
Hartman from telling it, but he insisted
on taking the opportunity to tell what
he thought of his former friend. Mr.
Fish, 1t appears, was not backward in
his adaptation of the rules of high finance
in his own affairs. Mr.. Fish, by Mr.
Harriman's statement, was only doing
in the Illinois Central in a small way
what Mr.. Hartman had been doing in
a big way in the Union Pacific. Mr.. Har-
riman's assumed indignation at Mr. Fish S
conduct rather amused Wall street.
A friend of President Roosevelt, and
man who is not a friend of Mr. Har-
riman, passes this Judgment on Mr.. Har-
riman as witness: Mr.. Hartman
was at his best in his praise OF the Union
Pacific and of it's development under his
regime. He talked of the millions upon
millions which have been expended for
improvements how he bought the stock
in 1893 when it was selling at %, bought
it even then in expectation of the divi-
dend which was declared last fall, how
he had been buying it ever since and ad
vised people to buy it now. In fact Mr..
Hartman, warming into eloquence prac-
ideally said, with pardonable exaggera-
ton which becomes the father in telling
the virtues of his child that the Union
Pacific had more money expended upon
it. for improvements in recent years than
had been expended upon any other rail-
road in the country. and in a word he
clearly gave the impression that he at
least thought the Union Pacific the great
est railroad property in the land. Dis
cussing broad matters of railroad policy,
Mr.. Hartman showed a freedom from
bigotry on the subject which must have
surprised all except those who knew him
we'll. He frankly declared that the rail-
roads were to blame much for the an
tagonism which exists today towards
railway capital on the part of the public
and said that by perennial squabbling
amongst themselves they had precipltated
squabbling between themselves and the
public
Wall street is not shocked at the dis
clousures which have been made in the
investigation by the interstate commerce
commission. 1t is not likely to be shocked
by any to be made. The shock it pro-
fesses to feel is over what it fears the
effect may be on the outside world. There
is nothing new in what has come out
nor is it at all likely there will be any
thing new In what Is still to be revealed
that is, nothing new to Wall street
The trouble is that the Wall street con
science is hardened and that 1t has be-
come accustomed TO methods and to do,
ings which are rot in strict harmony
with high ideals OF honsty and honor
as entertained by a great majority OF
civilized mankind.
Those who have been In the thick Of
Wall street action do not appreciate the
recently quickened perception of the out
side world and do not realize the force
of reflex sentiment on Wall street as al
70 oil