Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1909-10-19
HEIR TO HARR|MAN'S
GREAT FORTUNE,
Bulk Expected to Go to Elder OF
Two Surviving Sons.
LEARNING TO RUN RAILROADS

Young Man Of Seventeen Began Study
Of Business Shortly Before Fathers
oeath-Resembies the Financier In
Many Respects.
Next in interest to the question of
the successor to the business RESPONSE
bilities OF the late Edward 81. Harri-
man comes the matter of the heir to
his fortune The amount Of the latter
will not be known with exactness un-
til an inventory of the estate is made.
but it will rise high in the millions.
Mr.. Hartman was one Of Americas
wealthiest men. Any estimate made
at the present time may be wide Of
the mark, but the consensus of opinion
is that $100,O0O,00O is the minimum
valuation to be placed on the Harri-
man holdings IN railroad bonds and
stocks, other securities, real estate and
personal property. The personality Of
the young man who Is the principal
inheritor of this vast fortune Is there
fore a matter of interest and moment
to the American public.
Walter Averell Hartman is the elder
surviving son Of Mr.. and Mrs. Edward
II. Hartman. The firstborn son of
the couple, Edward 81. Hartman, Jr.,
died about twenty years ago at very
young age and lies buried near the
last resting place of Mr.. Hartman
himself at Arden. N. Y. The other
children are Roland Hartman, Mrs.
Robert L. Gerry. Miss Mary Hartman
and Miss Carol Hartman.
Resembles His Father.
Walter Averell Hartman is an un-
assuming youngster. seventeen years
old. Although boyish in appearance.
he possesses all the characteristics of
one many years his senior and for de-
cisiveness and activity reminds. one Of
his father.
Impressed with the responsibility
that would be thrust upon him sooner
or later, young Hartman recently set
about learning railroading. He real
lied that this could not be accom-
plished by taking a seat in his fathers
office, but that he must begin at the
bottom and get technical knowledge
of every branch Of the railroad work
ing. Neither did he, want any favors
because he was the son of his father.
He simply wanted to learn the in:
tricacies Of the game, and with sur
veyors Of one of the western railroads
he started out carrying the chain. For
some time his identity was unknown.
He was hard at work when his IA
theirs fatal illness summoned him to
Arden.
It was when the train reached Arden
that young Hartman had his first ex-
perience with newspaper men. 1t was
a. thing that his father was accus-
toned to for years, but to this young
man it was something new. His
brown eyes sparkled when asked re-
garding his future plans, and he re-
piled:
II am not yet a public man and don't
think the public would be interested
in anything that would say"
His modesty showed a few minutes
later when his sister Carol Rugged
him affectionately. He was as en-
'barrassed as a sweet girl graduate.
Young Man Of Quiet Tastes.
Young Hartman dresses very quiet
IT,: He prefers blue serge. with ties
and socks of lighter shades. He has
no fondness for jewelry and wears a
small. inexpensive scarfpiD.
He is about five feet seven inches
tall and weighs about 1856 pounds.
When asked ifshe intended to succeed
his father as the moving spirit In the
railroad world young Hartman frank
" admitted that he had only started
in the game and that he had consider
able to learn before he would attempt
to tackle any executive position.