The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser., 1922-11-17
Rockefeller, Ford and Mellon
Each Picked by as Many
Authoritative Spokesman.
FORD HAS GREATEST INCOME
Financial Experts Say There Is Basis
for Claim That Each of These Men
Has Largest Fortune-John
DIS Easiest to Cash.

New York.-Within the last few
weeks each of three Americans has
been proclaimed "the richest man in
the world by as many authoritative
spokesmen.
The Wall Street Journal gave Henry
Ford that distinction James A. Davis,
accounted a reliable financial expert
In the Middle West, retorted with John
D. Rockefeller; Roger w. Babson, a
famous statistician, came forward with
Andrew W. Mellon, secretary OF the
treasury in President Harding's cabi-
net, and went so far as to say that
Mellon could probably match, dollar
for dollar, the joint income of Ford
and Rockefeller.
= Financial experts say there are
bases for all three claims, that these
tremendous fortunes have so many
aspects and traits that they cannot be
compared in toto. no more than one
may compare five inches to five apples.
Ford Has Greatest Income.
Ford, for instance, has the biggest
of all incomes, the most profitable busi-
ness, but it is of such a character that
its actual value, the value for which
1t actually could be sold, is no more
than half its accurate paper value.
The Ford business may return Ford
the profits of a $2,OOO,OOO 900 business,
and in such event it would be, by all
financial rules, worth $2,0O0,0 100000;
yet it is not probable that if he at
tempted to liquidate it he could get
much more than half Of that amount
for it.
though greater than Rockefeller's,
would not be worth as much to one
who wanted to cash in and get out
of it as Rockefeller's, which Is much
more negotiable.
MELONS fortune is of third stripe;
his is a potential wealth, power over
money, opportunity, if not inclination,
to hold possession of more money than
any other living man. He is said to
WELD the greatest power over money,
more even than the elder Morgan
welded in his heyday.
These experts also say that it Is
anybody's guess which of these for
tunes is the greatest on paper. Any
body's guess is as good as anybody
else'S.
Office Handicaps Mellon.
Those who are in the lower strata
Of financial standing, particularly
those who are accounted no more than
well-to-do at the outside, would prob
ably prefer Rockefeller's wealth first,
Ford's second, and Melons third. The
only probable change might be that
Fcrd's should supersede Rockefellers
Regardless of the truth of Babsons
statement that Secretary Mellon
wields more power and would be able
to get more money more quickly than
either Ford or Rockefeller, his posi-
ton is third in attractiveness.
81 do not refer to Mr. Mellon in his
official capacity" Babson says, "but
as private banker and capitalist. His
public Office is actually a handicap to
him. 1t prevents his doing many
things he could do as a private citi
zen. He is the greatest financial
power in the world today in spite of
the fact that he is secretary of the
treasury. He controls more wealth
in his private capacity-banks, mines,
Oil companies, and a multitude of in
terests-than both Mr.. Ford and Mr..
Rockefeller together.
''Who is The richest man in actual