Evening star., 1924-09-11
GILBERT, g, HOLDS
GERMANY IN HAND.
Young U. S. Treasury Expert
Yields Greatest Financial.
Power in World.
By Consolidated Press.

BY InnSolidated Press.
NEW YORK, September 11.-Just a
few months less than ten years ago
a young man about to set upon his
career yearned for individuality. He
bore the name of his father. Seymour
+. Gilbert man prominent in New
Jersey politics. with junior at
tached.
To attain his individuality he part
ed his name in the middle and made
it S. Parker Gilbert Since then his
career has been a series of Individual
precocious and original things.
At e6 young Gilbert became counsel
to the Secretary of the Navy in war
loan matters; at % he was made an
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury;
at 30 he was promoted to Undersecre.
tary, one step removed from the cabi-
net position, with all its authority.
and within month of his 32d birth
day ne mas become the financial en-
neror of the German republic, with
more power in financial affairs per-
maps than any other man in the
world.
CIassed With Hamilton.
Mr. Gilbert is hailed as second
Alexander Hamilton. both because of
his age and his genius in financial
affairs. At % Hamilton became Sec
retarE OF the Treasury under Wash
1ngton. Mr.. Gilbert is the next Young
est man ever to have held so impor-
tant place in the big money circles
OF the world. Premiers and chancel-
lorS and presidents of Europe will
hguratively sit in the anteroom of
the office of this ''youngster" in Ber-
IN. as Senators and politicians liter
ally sat in the anteroom of his ma
hogany office in the Treasury Depart
ment.
Like Americas two other cotem-
porary financial wizards the Van
sWerlngenS of Cleveland. who at 3S
and 40 respectively. conceived the
idea that has placed them in control
or ll."eo miles of railway. Mr. Gill
pert IS modest One might question
nun All day about the financial status
OF the country when he was Under
secretary and he would answer with
hgureS down to the pennies but of
himseif he says little. Only once has
ne broken that rule.
"hen his mother. in Bloomfield,
n. j., told newspaper men that she
had had a telephone talw with
Washington and had learned that her
son would not marry Miss AiIsa
Mellon, daughter of Mr.. GiIbert's
cnlel. MI Gilbert replied that Mrs
I'll lioert Is in no position to make
statements as to my Intentions"
Still Close Friends.
That ended the incident, but did
not put down conjecture as to the
possible union. Mr.. Gilbert is still
a bachelor. but he is said to make
frequent calls at the Mellon home.
1he new reparationS dictator is a
slender, pale young man who lunches
forward when he walks. He has the
features of a scholar. which indeed
he is. He was graduated at the
head of his class from grammer
school. from high school and at
Rutgers. from which he was grad
uated in 1912, he is considered the
best mind that ever passed the COL
lege courses. He took so special
prizes in scholarship at Rutgers. At
Harvard he was graduated in 1915, in
law, an eighth of a point behind the
man .M-ho led the class
Upon his graduation from Harvard
MI Gilbert entered the law firm of
CraVath. Henderson, Leffingwell &
DeSersdorff headed by Paul Cravath,
specialist in international law
When the war broke out he tried to
join all branches of the service, but
fate had given him an appendicitis
wound that refused to heal. When
Mr.. Leffingwell went to Washington
as Assistant Secretary of Treasury
under William G. McAdoo he took
along Mr., Gilbert