The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-13
CHASING THE OCTOPUS
By sAvoYARD

Last week I got good look at John W. Gates. He was the first witness before the Stanley committee of the House of Representatives of the sixty-second Con- sress appointed to chase the United States Steel octopus. The first I ever heard of Gates was some 15 years ago, and the story was that he and some other then obscure capitalist were passengers on a fast train from New York to Chi cago, and when they were approaching Pittsburg one of the two proposed that they leave the train and take whirl in wire nails" a factory for the production of which was to be sold under hammer in Pittsburg the following day After some demur it was agreed to Hip a nicker' to determine the thing and the venture won. They got off, bought the works, made a million in short while. and then closed out to other, certainly more conservative, parties, and doubtless more honest.
 And so for months, perhaps years, one saw the name of this man Gates as an operator in the business world, and we learned that he was one of the most brilliant, daring and successful adventur- CTS in the bread and expansive field of frenzied finance It was said that he or ganized a. syndicate to acquire control of the Louisville and Nashville railroad. not as investment, but to make it what the Eric had been in the hands of Jay Gould and Jim Fisk. Daily the stock of the ''E,llen N" jumped in the market. One morning Gates found himself the holder, onl ofi ha of per cent of it. With stand and de- liver" he went into Wall street and made the street pay his price. The street would have busted him without shame and without remorse' had the boot been on the other foot. Each and every devil of them was a Rob Roy and his game was the plunder we call blackmail. Indeed, it was reported that the Napoleon of the stock exchange subsequently, found Gates at his mercy and wrung from him every cent of the swag that had been got out of Louisville and Nashville. It was a rather profitable way Jay Gould used to amuse himself with-the practice to pun ish Daniel Drew for some trick Drew had played on him.
 I have heard that this man Gates will risk fortune on the turn of a playing card. They say he is the best poker play CT this country has known since Thad- deus Stevens, but far more reckless than was that consummate judge of human nature and human weakness as he saw the lust of gain and the entreaty of de- sire at the odious bar of fortune and the infamous court of skill. have heard that Gates stake Is the biggest in Amer lea and that some of our immaculate statesmen play there and are phenom- enally fortunate. It is a trick of the oc- topus.
 They say Gates Is in Steel, in oil, in Lumber in everything, where gain is to be found. In that elder day when Charles was Emperor of Germany, John w. Gates would have been a prince or duke at the head of men-at-arms and bowmen. He would have gained bloody feuds and made himself master of princi- palities. He would have been greater DuGuesolin marshaling soldiers, but in our age he Is a greater Midas marshaling dollars.
 He told a wonderful story, and it was . tale of millions, tens of millions and nunOreQS or millions, ana WHdt uiu IL dh amount to? Only that in this age of dol lar and not the sword rules. His asser- tion that at one stroke Andrew Carnegie made millions reads like an Oriental tale with great difference-he spoke truth Arabian Nights are fancy. Just think of the dividends on that immense sum that we have to pay and get return for 1t in the hosannas we are allowed to give for one of those libraries we may some day be so fortunate as to see.
 It would be fortunate if everybody could see in Andrew Carnegie what he is the genius of monopoly compared with whom Rockefeller is much less rapacious.
 The softness of Gates voice is wonder full. never heard anything like it in man or woman He never raised it above conn mon conversational speech and oft it was nearly whisper; but the purr of the cat was there Handsomely dressed in suit nearly Confederate gray, with straw hat spotless linen and clean shaven chin. he appeared bored and told his tale with a rapidity that looked like dispatch pre- missing that he wanted to catch a train.