The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-09-04
SEL|GMAN PLAYED
IMPORTANT PART IN
AMERICAN FINANCE
Similarity Between His
Firm and That of Brown
Brothers
ESTABLISHED BRANCH
BANKS IN e u ROP E
Seligman Began Business at Time
When Gold Was at a Premium
and Was Member of the
Gold Exchange
By HOLLAND


New York, September 3.-(Specia1.)
INFLATED by James Seligman-and it has
been presumed to be many millions-it
will be said of it that not 81 of it is
tainted money represents any other
than an honorable conduct Of business
Mr. Seligman died on August 20 at the
age of 49, and although he had retired
from active business for IL years never
banking house he and his brothers
founded, and at the time of his death
had reached an age not hitherto attained
by any other American banker
Whatever Mr.. Seligman's wealth may
be found to be, the story of it's accu-
mutation, IL it should be told in full,
would serve as an object lesson, teaching
the truth that integrity, the wise Gull
tivation of good business qualities, ca
pacity for democratic association with
everybody and kindly nature will, when
acting in combination, achieve not only
character, but wealth.
Some of those who have since Mr. Sc
ligman's death spoken of his career say
that there was remarkable similarity
between 1t and the. career of the founder
of another great international banking
house known the world over as Brown
Brothers. Mr.. Seligman and his broth
ers came from Germany to the United
States just after the nation wide bust
ness panic of 1887. They had at that
time no idea of careers as bankers. They
We're trained as merchants and were
n ~ rT.U on lott ir,cr hl1ci
nesqs. 1t was not until the opportunities
created by the civil war opened to them
that they abandoned their first vocation
and founded an International banking
house which ranked with the best
So, too, Alexander Brown came from
Belfast, Ire, to the United States hav-
ing no other purpose than the carrying
on of the linen business. In the manu-
featuring and marketing of linen he was
as expert as the Seigman brothers were
in the manufacturing and marketing of
clothing. Mr.. Brown chose Baltimore as
his home chiefly because at the time
he began life in the United States, in
the first administration of President
Washington, Baltimore seemed likely to
be the leading commercial city of the
United States
For some years Mr.. Brown carried on
with success his linen business, but he
perceived that an opportunity awaited
anyone who was wise enough to grasp
1t. and this was an opportunity to make
the foreign commerce of Baltimore the
basis for establishing a system of for
elgn exchange Out of that opportunity
and Mr.. Browns accepting of it came
the international banking house which
he established. Like the Seligmans, he
established branch banks both in the
United States and in Europe. Like me
Seligmans, his house at the time of the
civil war became the convenient and ac-
ceptable medium by which certain finan-
cial transactions Of the government were
satisfactorily carried on. Through tn.
New York house. the government pur-
chased millions of exchange which was
utilized in paying interest to foreign in
vestors in American bonds
The Seligmans also established close
relations with the government of a fiscal
character. James Seligman possessed
qualifications sure to appeal to General
Grant and these were recognized after
Grant became President by the appoint
ment of the Seigman house as a fiscal
agent of the state department
In London, in Germany and in Paris.
the house of Brown Brothers, begun by
a merchant, and the house of J. and W.
Seligman. which was founded also by
were regarded for many years
as exemplifying all that was best in
American banking methods.
THE SECURITY EXCHANGES
At the time Of his death Mr.. Seligman
was the sole survivor of all those who
were associated with the New York stock
exchange at the time he became a MEM
Der Of it, His house began business at
a time when gold was at a premium
Probably that was one of the reasons
why it was deemed expedient to es.
tablish branch house in San Francisco
AS long as the gold exchange was ac-
tive, Mr.. Seligman was a member of it.
and his influence in that important vo-
cation has become traditional. So, also,
his influence in the New York stock ex-
change has long been recognized as hay
Ing been potential In establishing rules
which have made the stock exchange per-
haps the best governed voluntary asso-
citation doing business in securities to be
found anywhere in the world
There was another point of resemblance
between James Seligman and Alexander
Brown and the successors of the founder
of the house. Both were strongly de-
voted to their religious association. One
of the successors of Alexander Brown,
the late John Crosby Brown, was identi-
fled with educational work in the field
of theology. Alexander Brown was a