Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-03

Secretary of the United States
Treasury. In connection with
this important change comes
this thought: Suppose that one of the
great Industrial institutions of the country
were in need of a financial head. Take. as
an example, the United States Steel Cor
poration. popularity known as the steel
trust, which is the largest incorporated
body in the world. Would not the head OF
this concern be selected because of his
known ability and his unquesdoned judg-
ment in affairs of business? AS an evil
dence of the appreciation of this known
ability and this unquestioned Judgment. he
is paid annual salary of 100000. Now
the United States Steel Corporation has
81 800 stockholders. 1t has an authorized
capital stock of $3.50 COO GOO common and
S40O.OOO.0OO preferred. Its gross receipts
last year were $119. 1877 900, it's total expend-
itures S102 721 600. and it's undivided profits
.S17, 965 600. You will admit that it is big
concern.
But how about the United States?
Here is a mighty corporation with 10000
coo stockholders. Its capital stocK-whch
in dollars and cents should be estimated as
the wealth of the nation-is S11O, O0O, 00O, 600.
Its revenues last year-eXclusive of the
Post Office Department-were 1854, 454 600
S2567O.O0O. This wonderful corporation, in
which you and your neighbor, in which all
of us are stockholders has nearly twice the
capital stock of the next greatest nation in
the world. 1t has more than one-third more
than the combined capital stock of those
big national corporations Germany and
France. 1t has more capital by twenty
billion dollars than the combined capital of
all the remaining countries on the earth.
What kind of a man. then, should be
placed at the financial head of this great
corporation of ours?
His Future Policy.
In his private room in the Post Office De-
partment at Washington. the other day,
George B. Cortelyou sat with his hands
before him on his desk and said to me,
quietly:
There will be no Wall street in the
United States treasury when 1 take hold"
For a moment there was a pause. Then
he added:
There will be no east no west, no north
no SOUTH
This was the epitome by the retiring
Postmaster General of the policy of the in
coming Secretary of the Treasury. It was
characteristic Of the man. 1t represented
his summing up of the duties and the obli-
cations of the new position. With the re-
mark he took his own measure. But there
are details of the measurement still to be
worked out-detailS that no man can work
out in advance. All Of us are apt to judge
a man first by outward appearances. In
this test are included the physical and the
mental attributes Few of US, perhaps 60
so far as to test the psychic possibilities of
our subject. If a man desires to purchase
goods on credit. or If he be seeking a money
loan. he must go through a certain process
to. establish his credit, II that credit has
not been already established.
A trained credit man in examining what
the commercial world terms risk" when
practical, personally interviews the one
seeking credit. In this interview he "sizes
up" his man. First, he notes general physi-
cal conditions and the behavior of the man.
his manners and all those little peculiari-
ties and personalities by means of which,
If one be trained to that sort of thing-one
can estimate character from the outside
viewpoint. Next he studies the inner man.
He gets at the psychic He learns the mo-
tiyes. the scope. the ambition of the man.
go through ledger. He sums up
his mentality, his eapability, his re-
sourcefulness. his thriftiness. his eau
ton. his industry. his honesty. To
these qualities he adds the mans past
record and the mans actual financial worth.
and altogether the attributes make up the
SUM total Of the mans credit But the two
largest assets in this list are the mans
the greater Of these II his honesty OF pur-
pose.
Should not the head OF the greatest
financial system Of the greatest financial
manner?
Impression Of the Man.
There sat Cortelyou at his desk the other
day. apparently in the finest condition
physically and mentally. He has reached
the point OF life when a man should be at
his very best Physically he has the ap-
pearance Of an athlete His shoulders are
broad and his muscles are well developed.
He has a strong face-a face filled with lines
that denote ixedness OF purpose consider
able stubbOrnness-but q StubbOrnness that
will yield to the demands Of logic-deep
concentration, almost to the extent OF alb
sorption, and extreme seriousness His
eyes. which always hook straight into your
eyes, Indicate the quickness with which he
grasps yopr meaning. In his manner he Is
inclined to be dignihed, but at times there
will arise within him spirit Of enthusiasm
that he cannot always entirely suppress.
Any one would say that Cortelyou il an
earnest man. But some men have a knack
Of assuming an earnestness that they do
not possess. II you look into Cortelyous
record. however-especially hts record Of the
last two years In the Post ONCE Depart
ment-you will learn that his earnestness
has not been assumed IN that line of en-.
deavor, at least.
Few people," said he, realize what we
have been doing here. The reorganization
OF great department like this 10 an enor-
nous task. The whipping into line Of this