The National tribune., 1908-05-28

/
was very much more associated with the
war than ever Dixie" was.
seCfETY'S CONSTANT FERMENT.
The Socialistic shriekers against
"capitar' absolutely forget fundamental
facts. Whatever may be the case in the
| Old World. in this country money which
| is accumulated in one generation is GER
tain to be redistrbuted to the people
at large two or three generations later
by death and the natural changes in
society. There are no primogcniture.
entails or other devices here to keep
property in the hands of one family
for many generations, and thus create
a permanent capitalistic class. In one
generation a family may be the COM
monest of toilers: in the next some
member by his abilities and otherwise
will rise to the very top of the finan-
cial heap. For a generation or two his
family poses among the aristocracy of
the land, and then sinks to the level
from which the ancestor rose.
These remarks are made pertinent b.
the statement in the kilograms that the
Bellonia Hotel in New Brunswick, n. j..
sold last week at auction for SIS. For
many generations the Vanderbilts had
been as common and ordinary as any
of the other thrifty. Woodworking
Dutch families settled around New
York. Then one of their number, Cor
ne,itlS Vanderbilt n ropvsharamap do
veioped a talent for making money. He
was at first an ordinary ferryman. and
married good. thrifty Dutch girl, and
the two went in with a will to make a
fortune. That was in the infancy of
railroading, and the roads were short
lines connecting the steamboat lines
To go from New York to Washington
man had to take a steamboat to New
Brunswick, n. j.. where he got on the
railroad and went to Camden, where
he was ferried across the river to Phil
adelphia, and then resumed his railroad
journey to Washington.
Young Vanderbilt soon came into
possession of a steamboat, which he
ran from New York to New Brunswick.
and his thrifty wife took a hotel in
which she kept a railroad eating house
and also lodged travellers who failed to
catch the boats and the railroad or
were otherwise belated Both enter
prises made money. and Mrs Wander
bilt made more than her husband, sup
plying him with money to buy morc
steamboats,. He became the biggest
steamboat owner around the city, but
had foresight enough to see that the
day of steamboats, was passing and
that of railroads beginning.
In little while he transferred his
steamboat Investments to railroads.
managed them with-the thrift and
business ability that had distinguished
his other operations and made repu-
tation in this. The most of the rail
roads were built by spectators, politi-
clans and adventurers of various kinds.
who did not know hog to run them
and cared more for the speculative and
Interior features of railroading than
they did for the business itself. Van
derbilt became a railroad man precise
~ stS ht idu DeeH STEAMBOAT man,
and ran his roads to make money out
of them. This reputation brought him
into possession of a great many roads
The real owners of the roads were
anxious for some one to take hold of
them who would give them a profit on
their investment, and in the war period
and the years Immediately following
Vanderbilt loomed up as the biggest
railroad man in the country. Every
body who had any stock in raiiros 1s
wanted the lines taken in by him, so
as to make them profitable. His sue
cess was wonderful, and he became
enormously wealthy Then he desired
to build up family, and at his death
passed his great holdings over to his
elder son, William. William had inner
tied much of his fathers Dutch thrift
and continued his policies. but his chill
dren have become infected with the
socety idea: they have few or no chill
dren, and the Vanderbilts will undoubt-
edly sink down in the next generation
or two to the level from which the
rugged force and ability of old Corne-
liuS raised it,