The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-05-11
ELBERT H. GARY LAUDED
AS GREAT PACIFICATOR'
ert Hubbard Gives Some Facts About Head of Great Con
Germ Which Has Taken Prominent Part In Develop
ment of Birmingham District
by ELBERT HUBBARD
In the Fra Magazine

Gary did for "a whipped. .out manufac-
surer of steel. Gary was county judge
OF DuPage county, Illinois. He lived
at wheaton, common everyday county
seat population 1000, and public
square, and a court house in the center
with row of stores all round. Ther.
were two banks, a bakeshop, three dry.
GOODS stores, two drug stores, a few
more groceries than were needed, MOI
TO mention restaurant and two sa-
looms, not counting the one at the sta.
tion.
Judge Gary was fairly prosperous
nad served two terms as county Judge
and given up the job to more worths
man, because he wanted wider field
The salary OF the county judge was
$4,000 year.
Gary thought he ought to make $500
anyway
Then 1t was that the whipped oui
ironmaster came to him. The iron
master was on the verge of making ar
assignment; but out of the wreck h;
wanted to pull a few thousand dollars
to save his family from starvation.
How to get this money out and lei
the business go to the devil was the
question at issue.
Right there is where the lawyer, say
of the kind that keeps you from get
ting into trouble, sees his chance. Law
yers are always interested in receiver
ships, bankruptcies, dissolutions DID
Gary show the ironmaster how to Law
down and take the legal count? Not
at ALL lie studied the case and he
found that this man had assets, saw
of 100000 His liabilities were over
IS100,0 900 and these were coming due
ard the man had no money to meet
them. From the standpoint of the iron
master, the case looked very dark
6iScnVprpd tbot bAr
other manufacturers of iron in the same
vicinity. and these three manufacturers
were fighting each other fiercelv They
manufactured pig iron, steel ingots. bar
iron and sheet steel, all In hearty com
petition with each other; men on tbr
road cutting prices Offering rebates
and the cost of selling cut seriously
into the profits: overhead and deteriora-
ton took the rest.
Judge Gary decided that If these
three men could be gotten together.
and the three companies combined in
one, the problem would be solved. How
to get enemies together was the oues-
tion. These men did not speak 10 ca ch
other as they passed. They had threat
ened each other in the mails Lawsuits
had been carried on between them.
However, Gary took them one at a
time and showed how the three mills
should and could be owned by one
corporation. Every man should be pai
u proportionate amount of stock. in
payment for his business. Then one
mill should make the pig iron and the
ingots All of its product would be
taken by one of the other mills which
should manufacture all of the rolled
bars. And the mill that made the in
Gots should also supply the third mill,
which rolled the sheet steel This would
cut out two-thirds of the sales force.
Also. 1t would help to maintain prices.
Bonds then could be issued ON the
ertire business, and the creditors paid
in these. This would clean up the
tioa ating Indebtedness of the entire out
fit. and the cash sale of the bonds would
give working capital
Here was the work for a diplomat
and fnancier, and Gary was the man.
He showed these lighting, competina
individuals the Stiffness of economic
warfare.
The whole thing was consummated.
and out of the idea grew the Fedora
steel company, an institution essentially
sound, strong, productive.
A Big Deal
Where did Judge Gary get his fee
out of this getting the three lighting
competitors together? Oh. he simply