The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-10-31
HARTMAN UNDER FERRERO'S ANALYSIS Historian Struck by Lack of
 Admiration FOR THE GREAT FINANCIER By the People In the United States. Europeans Think More of Him Than His Own countrymen.
 Three Opinions.
FOR THE GREAT FINANCIE9

Americans which Gugilelmo Ferrero, the celebrated Italian historian, has been contributing for some months past to the Paris Figaro. he has dealt with groups of men rather than with individuals.
 But in still another of his Souvenirs d'Amerique" series, just published in Le Figaro. Ferrero makes deductions from an individual case. It is with the late F. H. Hartman that the new essay of the Italian deals. Ferrero has sought to ar rive at some understanding of Harri- mans character, and, with that es starting point, to show the causes of it's being and its effect on the time wherein Hartman lived and on the men with | whom he came in contact
 ''In the course of my recent journey to the United States,'' says Ferrero T did not become acquainted with Hartman. I was invited to take luncheon with him two or three days before the time set for my departure to Europe. But, at the very last moment. was obliged to excuse my self
 "One morning at my hotel I received visit from a young man, thin. clean | shaven, with gold-rimmed spectacles, a | sweet smile, kindly eyes. a gentle voice, | and face of an ascetic. Both physically and morally he impressed me as a sort of combination of mystical Puritan and | newspaper man. The young man, learned, was one Of those writers who had been carrying on with most ardor the 1 great campaign against high finance In a style having at once the flavor of sermon and a newspaper article, he de- | scribed to me the progress of corruption in his native land. the social dissolution l that menaced the republic, the danger | for American civilization that was per sonifled in the new satraps of capital
 "Apropos of these satraps, the conver- 1 sation turned to MT. Hartman. The l young man inquired whether I knew him. I answered that I did not.
 "'Too bad,' he rejoined, in him you l might see the ultimate incarnation of this evil force. He is a man of a superior sort-there Is no denying that. But 1t is 1 no less certain that he has made the most 1 detestable use of his brilliant qualities. l He balks at nothing in satisfying his di- abolical ambition. Great men like Harri- man will eventually destroy America un- less we succeed in overthrowing their l fatal power
 Some days after that I was dining at the home of wealthy family. The mis- l tress of the house, a very pfous Catho- lie, asked me, In her turn. whether I was acquainted with MT. Hartman.
 Try to meet him. she said to me, | he will interest you very deeply. E such vivid impression of strength and greatness
 ''Then, discreetly. I spoke of the very severe criticism which had heard lev eled at Hartman.
 And finally, to cap this rather re- served piece of praise, heard but few nights ago an enthusiastic defense of the great railroad man. The most curious thing about 1t was that his defender was not an American but a European.
 Three Opinions.
 "Often, since my return to Europe, have thought of these three opinions ex- pressed about the same man by three persons who were equally sincere. In these three judgments is concentrated all the leaven of discord now troubling the | United States, as 1t has troubled, more or less seriously, all other civilizations.
 "For all three of these people were right, each according to his or her point of view.
 "If one admits that 1t is much better for a man to vanquish himself and his evil instincts rather than extend his pow CT over the forces and riches of nature, then we must call the Puritan right To accept the opposite view is to side with | the European banker. If one Is unable to decide upon either of the two points of view there is nothing left but to follow the example of the pious lady; in other words. to admire powerful personalities on account of the good that they do, and, | in so far as their defects are concerned, to leave them to divine justice.
 '"To reconcile the two antagonistic views in theory and practice is an ex- tremely difficult task. Old civilizations alone seem to succeed in doing this, and | they only after long and painful strug- | giles. For the time being the Americans are not thinking In the least about such reconciliation, which fact explains. per haps. why the fight against the financial | oligarchy Is so strong in America; why in this fight both sides avail themselves 1 of extreme arguments like that used by my European banker. Had he not, in truth, sought to defend MT. Hartman by invoking the doctrine of the Super | man?
 Warship Strength.
 Ancient though it may be, I doubt if this doctrine has much chance of becom- ing popular in future in the United States. In Europe people like to tell each other that the Americans, like all young nations. worship strength. energy. and extraordinary indivdualities. Per l haps But all that saw leads me rath- CT to believe that the American democ- racy has no more love than have other democracies for forces in their midst individual or collective-that may upset, more or less badly, the political and eco- l homie equilibrium.
 'It is certain, for instance, that Amer ican multi-millonaires are much more ad- mired in Europe than in their own coun- try. Little by little Europe is building up about these men a sort of heroic le- gend. If this sort of thing keeps up one may prophecy that in the end we shall have the great American bankers and ironmasters playing the same roles in the education of our children that fell form erly to the heroes of Plutarch. Models will be sought-but too modern, alas.- of energy and of course among those men | who have ainassed colossal fortunes on the other side of the Atlantic.
 | "The Americans, on the other hand, treat their giants of industry and of the Stock Exchange with much greater faml- iarty. They respect them sometimes, when they do not hate them or when they do not make fun of them. But they do not consent so easily as do the l Europeans to recognize in these men tho representatives of American genius and energy.
 Hence nobody should be surprised to learn some day that the admirers of the great Hartman did not constitute the majority of the American people; that his the Old World than in the New. The | whom found in America was a Euro see in his mere coincidence. In spite l of the progress made by the democratic spirit Europe seems much better pre- pared than America, owing to the tradi- | tons of it's long history, to admire 'Su- | l. -yI -yA -fIL