The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-08-06

fee of j. Pierpont Morgan's successor and
 son. They gathered around the present
 head of the house as seven years ago
 October next they met J. Pierpont Nor
 gan.
 tI was a new group and its personality reflects some of the changes which have taken place in the banking world since the panic of 19o7 Instead of George F. Baker, the late Mir. Morgan's intimate friend and business associate. there came MT. Bakers successor as president Of the First National bank. Francis l.. Hine, also of high authority in the New York Clearing House association. Charles II. Sabn, who is rapidly gaining that kind of distinction which is earned only by the bankers, was one of the group and prop eriy in that association since the institu- tion of which he Is vice president has gained worldwide repute on account of the magnitude of it's transactions with for eign exchange. Last year 1t handled 75 per cent possibly more, of the cotton bills negotiated in the United States and It's aggregate operations in foreign ex- change were in excess of s2,0O0,o00. The president of the Bankers Trust company, which has become a very great institution since 1907, Benjamin Strong. Jr., was among those who met MT. Morgan. with whom there was associated in this confer
 ence one of the great forces in the flnan-
 cial district. Henry P. Davison.
 i The Real Leader
 1 It was commonly said. after there had been publication of the fact that this group of bankers had twice met MT. Nor gan and MT. Davis that at last there had been gained visible demon nstration of the personality which those who are of the financial district regard as the leader l Since the death, year and half ago. of J. Pierpont Morgan there have been
 many conjectures and some rather ven- turesome predictions respecting the re-
 lation which J. Pierpont Morgan. now the head of the house, would bear toward the gfeater financial and financing movements of his time. Those who were prudent in l expressing their opinion were careful to l say that the present head of the house could not be expected to demonstrate ca pacity for leadership at least along cer- tain of the lines which distinguished his l fathers career and leadership. New con-
 ditons have arisen, public. political and 1 financial and there Is speedily to be a l reorganization of the American national l banking system. J. P. Morgan's capac- l ity for great leadership and demonstrate
 os the worthiness with which the success
 sicn passed from his father to him would come when new and probably sudden and unexpected conditions arose.
 Nobody dreamed that the emergency would be created as the history of the 1 past 10 days shows it was suddenly cre- l ated by the jealousies, the ambitions and the dynastic characteristics of Europe. Nobody thought that the terrific strain | would be placed upon the United States, so unusual strain IS to compel the ap- pearance of a truly great and national | leader. The fact that this group of bank 1 CTS went of one accord and spontan- eously to meet with MT. Morgan tells as 1 well as though it were written in words l what the estimate of the financial dis trict respecting Mir. Morgan now Is and, l in fact, has been for more than a year.
 His course has been regarded as singu- larly wise, courageousy cautious and with the keenest understanding of intel- ligent and authoritative public opinion. | He and his partners recognized the call of the law upon those who in the past
 held so-called "interlocking directorates. ? 1 Without in any way intimating a belief 1 that this demand may not have been wholly wise, Mir. Morgan and his house recognized instantly the demand made upon them
 In his relation with the New Haven
 Railroad company, of which he was for a
 short time director, MT. Morgan is thought to have revealed some of the
 bes tqualities of leadership. He was the one director who ventured to intimate to
 Charles s. Mellen that 1t might be well for the New Haven property if MT, Mellen II were to retire Some of Mr. Mellen s friends ventured to say that Mr Morgan H had shipped his pilot but subsequent de- II velopments made it clear that NH Mor- | gan's Judgment was accurate. Not until MT. Melen so stated was there public knowledge that he retired from the New Haven companys mana cement after the courteous intimation from Mr Morgan that it might be well if he did so. Yet when this company was in dire financial emergency MT. Morgan was able to pro- tect it scredit, doing that without hav- | ing an eye to bankers profit, but to the welfare of the road.
 After the second meeting of bankers
 in Mr. Morgans office, there appeared a
 brief statement which was prepared by
 MT. Mro2an himself It served to offset some of the depression which was occa.
 stoned by the announcement that the ; stock exchange had closed it's doors. Its
 moderation, the underlying tone of hope 7 and the counsel which were embodied ir : it were spoken of as characteristic oi real leadership.
 MT. Morgan and the bankers who met