The Washington times., 1933-06-01
CONTINUED from Page y

ture-a SideShow midget, statisti.
cally described as 80 inches tall
and 81 years old. With that in
stinctive intuition that reporters
have the scribbiers we're on their
feet at once. Standing, with pop
ping eyes, they watched the fat
press agent continue across the
room and pause directly in front
Of j. P. Morgan.
The ballyhoo man pushed for
ward his midget and held out her
tiny hand toward the imperial
Morgan, the very man in the
world, most likely, who knew less
about midgetS than any other
human being and who certainly
had no desire to include any in
his list of acquaintanceS. For the
moment, of course, he did not
realize that the thing was
plant" press agent frame
up" and being a gentleman in the
presence of woman, even freak
and side show woman, the great
man of Wall Street pleasantly
grasped the tiny fingers OF the
dimunitive creature.
Instantly the cameras began to
click and the electric flares to
glare, as the excited picture men
snapped shot after shot of j.
Pierpont Morgan, greatest banker
In the world, shaking hands with
a side show freak.
Tom Lamont gazed at the spec
tacle in horror. John w. Davis,
Morgan attorney, looked as if the
world was coming to an end.
George Whitney, white with sup
pressed anger at an epiSode-at
an utterly undefensible intrusion
upon the privacy of a witness
entitled to the protection of the
Senate, half rose from his seat.
And then the fat press agent, red
face exultant, suddenly lifted his
midget and flopped her down
upon Morgan's knee.
Morgan Freezes
Suddenly j. P. seemed to COM
prehend what it was all about
that, in effect, he was being made
to appear ridiculous for the bene-
fit of a circus and a sideshow.
His pleasant face frightened. His
eyes turned blank. He took his
hand from the midget's shoulder
as if she were burning his fingers.
He looked helplessly around the
room.
The banker who had financed
an empire through the greatest
war the world ever knew-who
built up power trusts and rail-
road systems as clever child
raises houses of blocks-who is
the master of the greatest pri-
vate bank in the world-was
helpless-defeated-by a 32-inch
midget perched upon his knee.
And while he suffered, the
press agent, smirking like a
camel, coolly lifted the midget
from Morgans right knee and
sat her down in his left while
the crowd gaped.
Finally the incredibly absurd
episode ended and the press
agent withdrew win his midget
and Mr.. Morgan sat with strained
features, wondering, one must
suppose. what kind of a lunatic
asylum he had been drawn into.
Now to get back to the hearing
itself.
Cloudy and devious are the ways
of high finance and high finan-
Ciers.
The thing that may seem to one
set of minds a worthy and benevo-
lent action may appear to another
set of minds as a raw deal.
Take, for example, the gigantic
purchase of Mohawk and Hudson
power securities bv ]. P. Morgan
& Co. from the General Electric
Company and the General Elec-
trio Company and the General
Electric Security Company, most
interesting and entertaining trans,
action arranged by the Morgan
partners with Messrs. Owen D.
Young and Gerard Swope.
It highly benefited the stock
holders of the Morgan-owned
United Corporation, but it cost the
stockholders and employees of the
General Electric Company little
matter of $12,00O.OOO, 1t all de-
pends on the point of view.
Raw Deal. Says PecOra
George Whitney. capable spokes.
man and defender of the house Of
Morgan, speaks of the transaction
as an instance Of the unselfish-
ness and square dealing of his
house.
Ferdinand Pecora, who has
burrs under his tongue, and who
cares not tinker's damn for all
the subtleties of language, says
outright that it was a raw deal.
And here's the story-a glitter
ing chapter of the working of the
money machine of Wall Street in
those high, wide, and handsome
days when the House of Morgan
was building up a power trust
and getting virtual control of a
great railroad system, and sugar
ing hundreds of close friends, and
generally spreading itself.
In June, 1928, the General Elec-
trio Company, of which Owen D.
Young, who, for some reason was
not invited to become Secretary