Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-01-23
Great Corporation, Long Sc
cretive, Has Found That Old
Methods Were Mistaken
From the New York Worldl

From the New York World
The new president Of the Standard
Oil Company of New Jersey-parent
organization of the richest corpora
ton group in the wOrld-SwunG
briskly out Of his office, strobe snap
PLY across the floor Of the anterooT
and, with a hearty handgrip and the
most cordial sort Of a smile, said
Hello, Glad to see you! Come right
in"
Come-right-in
The Interview from the World
as he walked teside Alfred Coffin
if ever in the long line of newspaper
visitors to No. 20 Broadway a single
one had heard those words or thai
tone or had been made to feel that
he was genuinely welcome. He
couldn't recall a case. His memory
could only dwell upon the aloofness
the close-guardedness OF previous
Standard Oil executives and the de-
testation in which the interviewing
tribe have always held Standard Oil
assignments. And he said SO.
We'll, conditions will be somewhat
different now, hope" laughed the
new chief as he and the caller dropped
into easy chairs in the sanCtum sane
forum of Standard Oil, the room from
which radiate orders, instructions
rulings, deals, that touch about every
spot in the world where humanity
clusters in city or village.
81 Don't Believe IN Secrecy"
Il don't intend to be inaccessible
to be shut off from the world" Mr..
Bedford went on with the easy cordi,
atty of a man chin-chinning with a
friend in a club. Il don't believe in
that sort of thing. don't believe in
secrecy. If, hereafter, there is any
thing the newspapers want to know
about Standard Gil, anything the pub
lie wants to know about US or our
business, they may come right here
and find it out.
Il belieVe-and various other bust
nesses have shown this to be true
that an attitude of frankness, of free
and open speech is beneficial to both
corporations and the public they
serve. And, so far as may be possible,
I'm going to have an open house here -
This was another shock for the
interviewer. Open mousse at No. 26
Broadway! Why it used to be
next to impossible to get TO see the
private secretary of the Great Mans
private secretary. What kind of new
executive was this who was doing
away with cordons and barriers and
talking of taking the public. into his
confidence!
A hale, hearty, friendly, democratic
American would perhaps be the first
thing one would say after talking
with Alfred Coffin Bedford for few
minutes. He's 81, but doesn't
look it by half a dozen years, thanks
to his golf and his riding and his love
of outdoors. He is straight and 1.-THE,
a bit over the average height-say,
five feet ten or so-his eyes are bright
blue and always smiling behind his
pince-nez; his hair, which is thinning
a trifIe, has been bright red in its
time This brows still are), and there
is constantly a pleasant little twist
to his mouth, a half-laugh of friendli.
ness.
He sat at plain mahogany desk,
covered with papers arranged in or
Derby little piles. About the walls OF
the Sanctum were few enlarged pho
tcgraphs and some etchings--por-
traits of elderly, rather dour-looking
men who have been figures in Stand
ard Oil; pictures of an oil-well or two;
etchings of Yosemite Falls and a
couple of other nature-marvels. He
wore dark gray checked business
suit, dark gray scarf. ~.
Out For Square Deal -+.@
There should be a better under
between Americas great SER
vice corporations and the people they
serve" the new president went on.
Indeed, a time is coming when such
better relations will be even more ne
cessary than they are now. A friend
from Europe only a short time ago
declared to me that he could not un-
ierstand what he called the foolish
ness of the American people in at
- fro kl,1;, In