The Washington herald., 1914-01-03
SATURDAY. JANUARY 3, 1914.
A Fine Thing Finely Done.

! The great private banking firm
of J. P. Morgan & Co. has just made
an announcement of extraordinary
significance. 1t says in part: I'VE
have long wished to withdraw from
the directorates of many corpora
tions. Most of these directorships
we have accepted with reluctance,
and only because we felt constrained
to keep in touch with properties
which we had reorganized or whose
securities we have recommended to
the public, both here and abroad
An apparent change in public senti-
ment in regard to directorships
seems now to warrant US in seeking
to resign from some of these con-
nections." And then are announced
the names of thirty corporations
from whose boards members of the
firm have already resigned. These
include some of the most prominent
in the country, and it is manifest
from Mr.. Morgan's statement that
other designations are likely to fol-
low.
This unexpected action and the
simple announcement: which is
coupled with it, have aroused the
deepest interest, not only in fnan-
eial centers throughout the country,
but especially in administration
circles right here in Washington.
We are betraying no secret when
we say that President Wilson and
his Cabinet are pleased at this fresh
evidence that the Presidents desire,
as recently expressed, to cooper
ate with business men" is being met
more than half way by the leading
Banking firm in the country. On
the subject of so-called interlocking
direetcrates there has been a fright
full amount of sheer poppy-cock both
read and spoken in recent months. |
Just as in a small town, it is impos-
sible to avoid having the leading
merchant, as director in the local
bank, pass in some degree on the
matter of loans to himself; or to
avoid having the president of the
local street railway, who (because of
his general wisdom and integrity |
also is on the board of the local
electric plant, treat somewhat with
himself in the question of electrical
supplies for his railway, just so is it
impossible, in big business" alto
gether to avoid the overlapping re-
lationships.
And we have never held with
those who have thought that these
matters were of vital import to our
commercial freedom. Nevertheless
with such a hullabaloo created on
the subject of ''interlocking diree-
torates," there is now a manifest
sentiment against having any one
man or set of men occupy a, great
many directorships. And all our
antitrust Legislators in the present
Congress are said to be as busy as
bees in drawing up bills legislating
against interlocking directorates.
Their labors will be much simplifed
by this action of the Morgan firm,
who say in effect: I'VE haven't
wanted these directorships; we only
took them because we felt obligated
to do so; they have been a great
burden, and, now, inasmuch as the
public apparently doesn't want us
on these boards, we will gladly re-
tire"
Nothing could be simpler, or, forI
that matter, done in a more i'm
pressive manner, or in a way more inl
keeping with the simple, straight
forward testimony of the late ].
pierpont Morgan before the Pujo ,
committee, and with the thrillingl
phrases of the last will and testa- c
nent Of that self-same patriotic
american gentleman. Il