The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-01-06
HARRIMAN'S WORK
SELDOM EQUALED
Can Afford to Answer Guilty to
Indictments
BOOM IN COPPER STOCKS
Fish Does Not Get Much Sympathy in
Predictions of Great Industrial
Crisis-Lawson Again
Active.
BOOM IN COPPER STOCKS
BY w. C. NICHOLAS.

into the Union Pacific Southern Pacific
merger is virtually an attack by the gov
eminent upon Mr.. Hartman. The act In
itself is an Indictment against him, and
Mr.. Hartman appears before the bar of
the country in the attitude of defen-
dant. What has Mr. Hartman done that
he should be singled out for this distinc-
ton? Getting right down to the meat of
the proposition Mr.. Hartman is charged:
l. With having taken hold of the Union
Pacific in 1897 when il had a capitalization
of s61OOO,O00, worth in the open market
less than 50 100000, and a bonded in
debtedness of S95,000.000 and with having
built the property from a state of bank
ruptcy into a condition of splendid sol
vency represented by $195 100000 in COM
mon stock worth $351 OOO 800 100000 in
preferred stock and 1927 100000 in bonds a
total face value of $622, 100000 and a mar
ket value of $76S,000,0O0 He has lifted
this property from a condition of physi-
cal hopelessness into one of the best rail
road systems in the United States earn
ing enormously and paying 10 per cent
dividends on "A common share issue more
than three times as great in volume as
when he took hold of the road, besides
4 per cent dividends on $l000O0000 prefer
red stock. He Is paying. out annually
in dividends to stockholders of the Union
Pacific road about five times as much
as the whole capitalization was worth
when he took hold. And all that within
a period of nine years.
>. He further stands indicted with hav-
ing taken Southern Pacific something like
five
value of it's common stock created Si0,-
600 600 in preferred stock upon which is
paid per cent dividends, and improved
the physical condition of the road until
it ranks as one of the best in the coun-
try.
3. Summarized, he took properties hav-
ing a market value of 1890, 900, and in
less than a decade has given them mar
ket value of SLIPS 100000.
To accomplish this marvellous result he
has done more than any one man in the
United States to develop the vast terri
tory west of the Mississippi
Mr.. Hartman can very well afford to
stand before the bar and plead guilty to
all these indictments. He may be, and
probably is hard, ruthless person. Most
people are who do big things. They have
not the time to give to the softer ameni-
ties of life or call town meetings to Ws-
euss every plan and move they may
make. They are too busy getting there
to devote time to that sort of thing. Con-
sequently they are sometimes accused of
a lack of consideration for the feelings
of Others
Yet who is there in all America who
can point to a greater work actually ac-
complshed than that of Mr.. e. II. Harri-
man?
Condition of AmaIoamated.
diary companies of the Amalgamated
Copper company give hope to optimistic
spectators in Amalgamated that the
present dividend of per cent on the stock
will be increased. The company is GER
tainly earning a great deal more than is
required to pay quarterly dividends of 81
share. II. II. Rogers is the man to say
whether Amalgamated will increase its
distribution to its stockholders. He is
more powerful in Amalgamated than is
Mr.. Hartman in Union Pacific. What
Mr.. Rogers says goes.
For a considerable time Amalgamated
has fuctuated within narrow limits in
the market and spectators not in touch
with Mr.. Rogers have made more or less
costly efforts to bull the stock. When
they have failed in their efforts to bull
it they have tried to bear it, with equally
unsatisfactory results. Anyone who wants
to run campaign in Amagamated with
out Captain Rogers help is doomed to
disappointment. The stock sticks at this
level.
Amalgamated acted the same way a
year or so ago when it was selling some
$40 cheaper. When the stock was in the
90's spectators not i'm close touch with
Captain Rogers complained Of the cheap
mes sof the stock and tried to advance
it. But their experience then was the
same as now. Amalgamated would not
so up until Rogers said the word.
The copper metal market is in very
much stronger position now than 1t was
then, and the best judges of the copper
industry believe that we are In a long
period of high prices for the metal The
Amalgamated is not greatly increasing its
output, but its profits are mounting up to
an extent that the promoters of the COM
pany did not dream of when they 1oated
the company seven years ago
If Mr.. Rogers wants to increase the
dividend rate on Amalgamated 1t will be
increased. But will it be just the thing
for him to do? The copper industry has
its ups and down. Now it has one of its
ups. The great strength of the metal mar
ket today should not blind us to the fact
that the profits of mining copper may not
always be as large as at the present mo-
ment. Amalgamated might pay 10 per
cent or even more this year, but could
year thereafter? Mr.. Rogers wants to
put the AmaTgamated stock in the class
of investment industrials He can not
put it in that class by paying large dvi-
dends during a boom in the copper in
dustry, and paying small dividends in
periods of depression. If Mr.. Rogers
wants Amalgamated to appeal to Ameri-
can investors it may strike him that the
wisest course to pursue will be to dis
tribute profits eonservatively in boom
times so that fair dividends can be re-
turned in hard times. This country has
not vet grown to the point where cor
poration profits can be distributed in the
English fashion. The English investor ex-
poets his dividends to vary according to
the state of trade. The American investor
prefers a fixed rate of dividends
Shaw's Unenviable Situation.
Pity Secretary Shaw, He wants to be
a leader of the people, but unfortunately
he is so placed that he cannot appear be-
low Fulton street, New York without
creating the belief among his countrymen
that he has fallen into the trap of the
money devil Mr.. Shaw is almost willing
to neglect his duty rather than arouse this
terrible suspicion Ever since Mr.. Shaw
was tempted by the money devil to put
to a useful purpose some of the idle mil
lions in the peoples treasury, an outraged
populace has been calling him awful
names. Mr.. Shaw nobly and courageousy
wthstood the outcries of the people, but
a wall from Nashville was too much