The First Tycoon_ The Epic Life Of Cornelius Vanderbilt Part 10

"Commodore," Deems replied, "if you give me that church for the Lord Jesus Christ, I'll most thankfully accept it."

"Now, doctor, I would not give it to you that way, because that would be professing to you a religious sentiment I do not feel. I want to give you a church; that's all there is."

The two men stood up together. "Commodore, in whatever spirit you give it, I am deeply obliged, but I shall receive it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ."

At the beginning of August, Vanderbilt wired Deems from Saratoga that negotiations for the purchase of the church were complete. He instructed the minister to see Lambert Wardell, who handed him a package containing $50,000 in cash.101 For a man so comfortable with financial abstractions, Vanderbilt was an extremely concrete thinker in other respects. He questioned Deems about his personal history and character, not his theology. As he remarked to the minister one summer evening, as Deems fanned himself in the heat, "Doctor, all you've said has had no more weight with me than that fan."102 He focused on people, after studying them over a lifetime in business. He liked and trusted Deems, and that was what mattered. When the minister suggested a board of trustees for the church, Vanderbilt refused-he wanted to give the building to Deems, and only Deems. As far as his mission went, it was the outreach to Southerners, rather than the promise of salvation, that appealed to the Commodore. It planted the seed of a vastly larger project to heal the war-torn nation. He focused on people, after studying them over a lifetime in business. He liked and trusted Deems, and that was what mattered. When the minister suggested a board of trustees for the church, Vanderbilt refused-he wanted to give the building to Deems, and only Deems. As far as his mission went, it was the outreach to Southerners, rather than the promise of salvation, that appealed to the Commodore. It planted the seed of a vastly larger project to heal the war-torn nation.

THERE WERE SOME FAMILY AFFAIRS that were in Vanderbilt's control, and some that weren't. The most amenable to control was the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad. As early as 1871, his grandson Henry Allen heard him boast that he had put the Central in such good condition that it could run itself. His sometimes truculent daughters were another matter. Mary La Bau snubbed Frank, and Sophia Torrance sniped at her father's wife behind her back. When Vanderbilt mentioned it to young Allen, a particular friend of Sophia's, Henry made excuses. "I said to him that he knew how impulsive Mrs. Torrance was, and often said things she didn't mean," Henry recalled. "He a.s.sumed a stern expression, as was usual with him when he was in earnest, and said, 'Oh, no! They've all been talking. Billy has told me enough.'" that were in Vanderbilt's control, and some that weren't. The most amenable to control was the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad. As early as 1871, his grandson Henry Allen heard him boast that he had put the Central in such good condition that it could run itself. His sometimes truculent daughters were another matter. Mary La Bau snubbed Frank, and Sophia Torrance sniped at her father's wife behind her back. When Vanderbilt mentioned it to young Allen, a particular friend of Sophia's, Henry made excuses. "I said to him that he knew how impulsive Mrs. Torrance was, and often said things she didn't mean," Henry recalled. "He a.s.sumed a stern expression, as was usual with him when he was in earnest, and said, 'Oh, no! They've all been talking. Billy has told me enough.'"103 Frank did not need her husband's protection. Where he was fierce, she was elegant, dignified, and cultured. She dazzled patrician onlookers at the closing ball of the summer season in Saratoga in 1871. "Mrs. Commodore Vanderbilt," a society columnist wrote, "was dressed in exquisite taste. She had a white satin-striped grenadine; train trimmed with ruffles of the same, bound with white satin; full overskirt, looped, and trimmed with ruffles of the same; corsage high, with point-lace tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs; and very rare diamonds." She promenaded at the clubhouse of the patrician Jerome Park with her husband at the opening of the fall races, and raised money for the Sisters of the Strangers, a volunteer group of aristocratic ladies, to which the Commodore contributed. Frank polished her husband's gold, as it were, until elite society began to forget that it had ever seen tarnish there.104 Ellen Vanderbilt did her best to rescue the reputation of her husband Corneil with the Commodore. The couple struggled, as always. Corneil lost his Treasury job after his supervisor absconded with thousands of dollars. The pair lingered in New York, borrowing money from Greeley Ellen called at 10 Was.h.i.+ngton Place, alone. "I pa.s.sed a very pleasant evening at the Commodore's & like Madame extremely," she wrote to Greeley. "William & his wife took tea with us. I spoke of your calling to see me & I never heard the Commodore speak in such rapturous terms of anyone as he did of you. He said you were the best man in New York, the fairest & squarest, the most honest of anyone he knew." It is striking that Vanderbilt should praise precisely those qualities that Corneil himself lacked.105 The Commodore could never bring himself to turn completely away from his son. When one of Ellen's sisters visited Vanderbilt in May 1871, she reported that, despite his being preoccupied and "miserable" with a flare-up of rheumatism, he questioned her closely about Corneil, showing great concern. Corneil went to visit his father at his office one morning, interrupting a meeting with other railroad executives. Vanderbilt told him to come back for lunch, and they spent much of the afternoon together. "He raised my salary [sic] a hundred dollars & gave me his check for $300," Corneil wrote to a friend, "and he said that he should do better as he became satisfied that I was continuing to improve." Clearly Vanderbilt loved his son, but, to use one of the Commodore's favorite words, he was no sucker.106 Corneil was always in over his head. But a crisis even overwhelmed Jacob Vanderbilt, the relative best equipped to take care of himself. On July 30, 1871, the Staten Island ferryboat Westfield Westfield exploded. Early reports put the death toll at ninety-three, with 113 injured. The Commodore himself had built the exploded. Early reports put the death toll at ninety-three, with 113 injured. The Commodore himself had built the Westfield Westfield, which he had sold with all his ferryboats to the Staten Island Railroad, headed by Jacob, in 1863. To put it mildly, the city was outraged. A coroner's jury found criminal neglect, and a grand jury indicted Jacob for homicide. A long, difficult fight for Jacob's life ensued.107 As one relic of Vanderbilt's career fatally disintegrated, a lasting tribute to his life arose on Forty-second Street. On June 30, the New York World New York World announced, "The great railroad depot erected by Commodore Vanderbilt at Forty-second Street is at last completed and ready for its occupants. This building... is a magnificent ornament to the city and will doubtless prove a lasting monument to its builder. New York can now boast of the largest railroad depot in the country." It was the second largest in the world, a brick bastion with white iron trim, standing three stories high (160 feet to the top of the central tower), 240 feet wide, and 692 feet deep, extending north from Forty-second Street. A huge train shed, or "car house," stretched 650 feet long under an arched gla.s.s roof. The statistics of what went into the depot were staggering: eight million pounds of iron, ten million bricks, twenty thousand barrels of cement, plus eighty thousand feet of gla.s.s in the roof of the car house alone. Newfangled lights illuminated its vast interiors at night, and 75,000 feet of pipe carried steam to heat its expansive offices and waiting rooms. announced, "The great railroad depot erected by Commodore Vanderbilt at Forty-second Street is at last completed and ready for its occupants. This building... is a magnificent ornament to the city and will doubtless prove a lasting monument to its builder. New York can now boast of the largest railroad depot in the country." It was the second largest in the world, a brick bastion with white iron trim, standing three stories high (160 feet to the top of the central tower), 240 feet wide, and 692 feet deep, extending north from Forty-second Street. A huge train shed, or "car house," stretched 650 feet long under an arched gla.s.s roof. The statistics of what went into the depot were staggering: eight million pounds of iron, ten million bricks, twenty thousand barrels of cement, plus eighty thousand feet of gla.s.s in the roof of the car house alone. Newfangled lights illuminated its vast interiors at night, and 75,000 feet of pipe carried steam to heat its expansive offices and waiting rooms.108 Vanderbilt paid for the construction out of his own bank accounts. Grand Central belonged to the Harlem Railroad, in which he, William, and William's sons now owned almost all the stock, and which had not not been consolidated into the New York Central & Hudson River. In May, William presented figures to the board showing that his father had paid $2,027,146.51 in cash, taking about $1.5 million in stock in return and loaning the rest. (The final cost, including real estate, would be $6,419,118.10.) It formally opened on November 1, receiving about fifteen pa.s.senger trains each day and sending another fourteen up the quadruple track that ran over the surface of Fourth Avenue. been consolidated into the New York Central & Hudson River. In May, William presented figures to the board showing that his father had paid $2,027,146.51 in cash, taking about $1.5 million in stock in return and loaning the rest. (The final cost, including real estate, would be $6,419,118.10.) It formally opened on November 1, receiving about fifteen pa.s.senger trains each day and sending another fourteen up the quadruple track that ran over the surface of Fourth Avenue.109 The terminal had critics.*2 "The new 'Grand Central Depot' can only by a stretch of courtesy be called either central or grand," the "The new 'Grand Central Depot' can only by a stretch of courtesy be called either central or grand," the New York Times New York Times groused-unfairly. For one thing, city and state law dictated how far downtown it could be placed; for another, it sat on the inner edge of the East Side, where the city grew fastest-growth that Grand Central would accelerate. The comprehensive street and sewage construction that Tweed had started provided the infrastructure for rapid development up to the Harlem River. The Commodore had seen the city expand from a mere town to a global metropolis during his lifetime; he had every reason to expect it to swell past his new depot, as the population increased from 942,292 in 1870 to 1,206,299 in 1880. groused-unfairly. For one thing, city and state law dictated how far downtown it could be placed; for another, it sat on the inner edge of the East Side, where the city grew fastest-growth that Grand Central would accelerate. The comprehensive street and sewage construction that Tweed had started provided the infrastructure for rapid development up to the Harlem River. The Commodore had seen the city expand from a mere town to a global metropolis during his lifetime; he had every reason to expect it to swell past his new depot, as the population increased from 942,292 in 1870 to 1,206,299 in 1880.110 But the building was far from perfect. Though the car house was relatively free of engine smoke (locomotives unhooked from the cars before entering the shed and rolled off onto sidings, letting momentum carry the trains in), the lobby arrangements were peculiar. The New York Central, the Harlem, and the New York & New Haven each had separate waiting rooms; a pa.s.senger transferring from one railroad to another had to exit the building. In part, this was a design issue that the architects simply had not considered. But it also reflected the decentralized nature of Vanderbilt's empire. Rather like Spain under the Hapsburg kings, the Commodore's realm consisted of various railroad princ.i.p.alities united only by his own private estate. This reflected his often-overlooked sensitivity to public opinion, but the Harlem was also a property of great personal meaning to him. After rescuing the long-scorned company and raising it up to glory, he may well have resisted its consolidation into the Central out of purely sentimental motives.

Vanderbilt, that student of human nature, did not lend sentimentality to people as easily as he did to property. He had entrusted the Lake Sh.o.r.e to intelligent, independent men-Clark, Sch.e.l.l, and Banker-and they ran it in an independent but not always intelligent way. Though they supported the Commodore's fight with the Erie in 1870, they began to engage in their own stock market operations. After their experience with the Central stock dividend, they loudly hinted at a similar dividend on the Lake Sh.o.r.e. When they finally announced it in the summer of 1871, it turned out to be smaller than expected: $15 million at par value, one-third to be paid by shareholders to fund the double-tracking of the line. "The Lake Sh.o.r.e tactics have a more bungled look than the strategy adopted in New York Central," the New York Herald New York Herald wrote. "Perhaps, after all, the venerable Commodore has been only letting his pupils try their hands at the game which he made so famous. In any view, the Lake Sh.o.r.e movement has lacked the brilliancy and Napoleonic skill displayed in the New York Central case." wrote. "Perhaps, after all, the venerable Commodore has been only letting his pupils try their hands at the game which he made so famous. In any view, the Lake Sh.o.r.e movement has lacked the brilliancy and Napoleonic skill displayed in the New York Central case."111 Then the Lake Sh.o.r.e suffered a staggering blow: the great Chicago fire of 1871. On October 7, according to the Herald Herald, a woman named Scully on De Koven Street went out to tend to a sick calf in the darkness; her candle overturned in the hay. The ensuing conflagration proved so devastating that the Herald Herald simply reported, "Chicago is wiped out." Wiped out with it was the Lake Sh.o.r.e depot, owned jointly with the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific. The company estimated its share of rebuilding at $350,000. simply reported, "Chicago is wiped out." Wiped out with it was the Lake Sh.o.r.e depot, owned jointly with the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific. The company estimated its share of rebuilding at $350,000.112 Still, the railroad declared 8 percent dividends that year, and the trio who ran it showed no lack of confidence. The newspapers identified Banker, still the vice president of the Bank of New York, as "the prime mover in all the current cliques and contrivances to move the Street, and the biggest man known around the brokers' offices." Wielding skills acquired in Vanderbilt's service, he managed the pooled funds of his allies. He affected an aristocratic lifestyle, and ordered a custom-built yacht.113 Augustus Sch.e.l.l and Horace Clark remained the senior partners. And, in 1871, they began to attain political power that they had not seen since 1860, as long-bubbling complaints over the flagrant corruption of Tweed-run Tammany boiled over into crisis. Tweed had softened opposition to his power by limiting taxes, which caused the city's indebtedness to rise from $30 million in 1866 to $90 million in 1871. In the latter year, the Times Times published evidence of Tweed's corruption in a series of spectacular articles. On September 4, a ma.s.s meeting a.s.sembled at Cooper Union and appointed a Committee of Seventy to return city government to the hands of safe, respectable men. The committee's attack was led by two Democratic allies of Clark and Sch.e.l.l, Samuel J. Tilden and Charles O'Conor, the latter appointed special prosecutor by the governor. They had Tweed arrested on October 26. The ring fell. published evidence of Tweed's corruption in a series of spectacular articles. On September 4, a ma.s.s meeting a.s.sembled at Cooper Union and appointed a Committee of Seventy to return city government to the hands of safe, respectable men. The committee's attack was led by two Democratic allies of Clark and Sch.e.l.l, Samuel J. Tilden and Charles O'Conor, the latter appointed special prosecutor by the governor. They had Tweed arrested on October 26. The ring fell.114 "The first deadly breach made in Tammany was the foundation of the Manhattan Club," the Times Times reported. It identified Sch.e.l.l and Clark as leaders of the "silk-stocking sachems" of Tammany who "loved and revered its old traditions and its dignity, began to regard it as degenerate and degrading, and they seceded in a body." With Tweed gone, the old stalwarts took the Hall back. On December 30, the reformed Tammany elected Augustus Sch.e.l.l the new Grand Sachem by acclamation. reported. It identified Sch.e.l.l and Clark as leaders of the "silk-stocking sachems" of Tammany who "loved and revered its old traditions and its dignity, began to regard it as degenerate and degrading, and they seceded in a body." With Tweed gone, the old stalwarts took the Hall back. On December 30, the reformed Tammany elected Augustus Sch.e.l.l the new Grand Sachem by acclamation.115 If Banker led the trio on Wall Street and Sch.e.l.l in politics, Clark reigned as the railroad executive and chief strategist among Vanderbilt's "pupils." Talkative, nervous, and soft-fleshed, the Lake Sh.o.r.e's president finally achieved the wealth and power he had dreamed of since George Templeton Strong dismissed him as a vulgar climber twenty years earlier. Success only whetted his ambition. And his ambition would lead him into an alliance with the enemy whom Vanderbilt disliked more than any other.

*1 As mentioned previously, Edward Renehan Jr. claims in As mentioned previously, Edward Renehan Jr. claims in Commodore: The Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt Commodore: The Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt (New York: Basic Books, 2007) to have discovered the privately held diary of Dr. Jared Linsly and that of sleeping-car manufacturer Webster Wagner, a.s.serting that they show that Vanderbilt contracted syphilis in 1839 and began to show signs of dementia in 1868 (manifested in his backing of Woodhull and Claflin). Renehan claims that Vanderbilt descended into madness thereafter, and was used as a puppet by William for the rest of his life. In light of much contradictory evidence and subsequent developments, I must discount the validity of these sources and find Renehan's claims to be untenable. See the bibliographical essay, pages 5814, for a full discussion. (New York: Basic Books, 2007) to have discovered the privately held diary of Dr. Jared Linsly and that of sleeping-car manufacturer Webster Wagner, a.s.serting that they show that Vanderbilt contracted syphilis in 1839 and began to show signs of dementia in 1868 (manifested in his backing of Woodhull and Claflin). Renehan claims that Vanderbilt descended into madness thereafter, and was used as a puppet by William for the rest of his life. In light of much contradictory evidence and subsequent developments, I must discount the validity of these sources and find Renehan's claims to be untenable. See the bibliographical essay, pages 5814, for a full discussion.*2 The old station on Twenty-sixth Street was sold, and became the first Madison Square Garden. The old station on Twenty-sixth Street was sold, and became the first Madison Square Garden.

Chapter Eighteen.

DYNASTY.

First pride, then the fall. More than a proverb, this formula seems to be a natural law. Readers of fiction, political pundits, and students of the business cycle all know that what goes up eventually reverses course-usually soon after a sense of invulnerability has set in. But there are different kinds of pride, and not all lead to destruction.

A circle of extremely proud men sat atop the railroad industry at the start of 1872: J. Edgar Thomson and Thomas A. Scott of the Pennsylvania, John W. Garrett of the Baltimore & Ohio, Jay Gould of the Erie, James F. Joy of the Michigan Central, Horace F. Clark of the Lake Sh.o.r.e, and, proudest of all, Cornelius Vanderbilt. When the time for a fall arrived, Vanderbilt alone would stand unbent and unbroken-though not uninjured. The key to his survival would be the nature of his pride. It never became complacency, and, great as he was, he paid heed to the world around him.

On January 12, 1872, for example, the Commodore received a delegation of the residents of Fourth Avenue, come to complain about the Harlem Railroad's new Grand Central Depot-or, rather, the increase in rail traffic down the surface of the avenue upon Grand Central's completion. More than a dozen trains a day ran in each direction, leading to fatal accidents. The noise, smoke, and danger of the trains had long been a grievance of uptown residents. Now the New York Times New York Times had turned their cause into a crusade. Backed by the had turned their cause into a crusade. Backed by the Times's Times's daily editorials, they wanted the tracks buried in a tunnel and the train shed of the depot itself sunk below the surface of the avenue. daily editorials, they wanted the tracks buried in a tunnel and the train shed of the depot itself sunk below the surface of the avenue.1 A reporter for the New York Herald New York Herald observed that the Commodore listened "attentively," and replied that "the great question was as to the best method of carrying out this proposed object.... It would certainly cost a heap of money." He named $5 million as the likely figure, and stated flatly that the railroad could not afford the entire cost. The owners of the real estate along the avenue shared an economic interest in this matter, he noted; sinking the tracks would increase the value of their lands. "When we get a piece of property, and we want to improve that piece of property, why, let each of us pay our proportion." (The fall of Tweed, he remarked elsewhere, made such a step possible, for the ring had blocked any such plan without a large payoff.) observed that the Commodore listened "attentively," and replied that "the great question was as to the best method of carrying out this proposed object.... It would certainly cost a heap of money." He named $5 million as the likely figure, and stated flatly that the railroad could not afford the entire cost. The owners of the real estate along the avenue shared an economic interest in this matter, he noted; sinking the tracks would increase the value of their lands. "When we get a piece of property, and we want to improve that piece of property, why, let each of us pay our proportion." (The fall of Tweed, he remarked elsewhere, made such a step possible, for the ring had blocked any such plan without a large payoff.)2 Two weeks later, Vanderbilt presided over a conference with the Citizens' Eastside a.s.sociation in the offices of Grand Central and presented a plan that he had ordered from J. C. Buckhout, the railroad's chief engineer. It would leave the expensive car house exactly where it was, but sink the tracks below the surface of the avenue, starting at Forty-eighth Street, in an open cut, with overpa.s.ses at each intersection "so arranged that horses could not see approaching trains." At Ninety-seventh Street, where the terrain dropped into the Harlem Flats, a viaduct would run above the streets. Buckhout put the cost at $4 million (not far from Vanderbilt's original guess). The Harlem's directors, Vanderbilt said, "were not wedded to any particular plan, but were ready to adopt that which would be the most feasible, and best adapted to the interests of the community."

The conferences revealed the Commodore to be as mentally sharp as ever, not to mention politic. Though some on the committee grumbled about not getting everything they wanted, most agreed that the plan he presented was a reasonable compromise.3 Reasonable is a word that historians have rarely linked to the Commodore's name, but it defined his behavior as a railroad leader. He was especially reasonable in his attempts to cooperate with his fellow corporate t.i.tans. There was nothing new about that, of course. Adam Smith himself observed in is a word that historians have rarely linked to the Commodore's name, but it defined his behavior as a railroad leader. He was especially reasonable in his attempts to cooperate with his fellow corporate t.i.tans. There was nothing new about that, of course. Adam Smith himself observed in The Wealth of Nations The Wealth of Nations, "People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public." As we have seen, formal and informal devices to control compet.i.tion arose simultaneously with compet.i.tion itself in American history. Among the railroad trunk lines, these efforts were particularly p.r.o.nounced, leading to repeated attempts to erect highly structured cartels. Once constructed, railroads were there to stay, even if they went bankrupt. The fights between them could only be settled through takeovers or cooperation-and even the Commodore could not buy up every rival line. Nor did he want to. The companies most likely to slash prices were those in the most desperate condition.4 Vanderbilt, then, naturally grasped an opportunity to cooperate with the Pennsylvania in order to control one of the most lucrative kinds of freight. But the scheme that now unfolded spoke to something larger than the tension between compet.i.tion and cooperation; it reflected the increasing concentration of power in the American economy. Four companies came together in this plot: the Central, the Pennsylvania, the Erie, and John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil. Each was a giant in its industry, and Standard Oil was still growing rapidly, gobbling up its rivals. The symbolism of their conspiracy, far more than its actual impact on business, would turn it into one of the most notorious incidents in the rise of corporate capitalism in America.

On December 14, 1871, Vanderbilt was approached by Peter H. Watson, an executive of the Ashtabula & Franklin, a Lake Sh.o.r.e subsidiary that ran to the Pennsylvania oil fields. Watson invited the Commodore into a plan to divide the rail traffic in petroleum. They would do so through a sh.e.l.l corporation, the South Improvement Company (SIC). By far the largest refiner in the SIC would be Standard Oil. The plan had the following components: First, the SIC would provide the cars, pumps, tanks, and other equipment for s.h.i.+pping oil and kerosene. Second, the SIC would receive special rebates (as high as 50 percent) on freight charges. Third, the SIC would receive drawbacks from s.h.i.+pments made by other refiners-that is, a percentage of the money paid by outsiders would go to the SIC. Finally, the SIC's s.h.i.+pments would be split three ways, with 45 percent going to the Pennsylvania and 27.5 percent each to the Erie and the New York Central & Hudson River.5 The Pennsylvania's ingenious vice president, Thomas A. Scott, appears to have concocted the SIC, but it offered Vanderbilt multiple advantages. The provision of tanker cars, for example, would save the Central a great deal of money. Since tanker cars could be used for no other product, they rolled back to Cleveland or the oil region empty, a frustrating expense. The traffic division locked in the Pennsylvania's existing two-to-one advantage, but it also guaranteed the Central's share in the face of Scott's aggressive attempts to control oil s.h.i.+pments. Finally, it would add predictability and stability to the business produced by this rapidly growing and changing industry.

Watson, Rockefeller wrote to his wife on December 15, "saw Com. Vanderbilt last night & succeeded admirably admirably, so that now we count surely on Clark, him, & W. H. Vanderbilt." This letter is telling: the Commodore conducted the talks without his son's involvement. William later testified that he had had nothing to do with the SIC negotiations, saying, "The contract was made and handed to me to sign." William had little affection for Rockefeller, who demanded special treatment by the railroads; in 1872, William would complain of the rising t.i.tan, "These oil men are sharp fellows & would like us to carry the oil for nothing." Seven years later, he would be heard to say that he "was disgusted with oil companies and oil men long ago." Historical caricatures notwithstanding, William struck many businessmen as less diplomatic than his famously imperious father (at this point in the Commodore's career, that is). "He has worked against me in petty ways," one man had complained of William in 1868, and behaved in a "dirty, contemptible manner." The superintendent of the Michigan Central would write in 1874, "He is ambitious, headstrong, and our experience shows to some extent unreliable & unfair." The Central's partners found the Commodore to be much more reasonable.6 The Pennsylvania legislature obediently chartered the SIC, as instructed by Scott. The forty-eight-year-old possessed one of the most brilliant minds of his times. With a head of thick, graying hair and writhing sideburns rather like those of the Commodore, he had a handsome face and large, engaging eyes-and served as mentor to Andrew Carnegie. Contemporaries called this witty, dapper man "Colonel Scott," in tribute to his service as a.s.sistant secretary of war early in the Civil War. The Pennsylvania's president, J. Edgar Thomson, relied heavily on him to craft the railroad's strategy.7 The cooperation between Vanderbilt and Scott was something of a paradox, for they represented contrary models of corporate executive. Vanderbilt exemplified the owner as manager-the amateur, the financier who purchased a majority of the stock and then took charge. By contrast, Scott and Thomson were professional executives who had risen through the ranks on their managerial merits. They owned relatively little stock, and ran the Pennsylvania on behalf of largely pa.s.sive shareholders. As manager, not owner, Scott pioneered the art of operating through sh.e.l.l companies. With his skillful manipulation of the compliant state legislature, he created corporations for special purposes that were financed by the Pennsylvania but controlled by himself and Thomson. The Central's fast-freight lines were cooperative ventures with connecting lines, for instance, nothing more than management devices for efficient handling of through freight. The Pennsylvania's were distinct corporations, created by Scott, controlled by Scott, and paying dividends to Scott, with some left over for the railroad. Blandly dubbed "transportation" or "improvement" companies, Scott's sh.e.l.l corporations sometimes created managerial efficiencies, but always allowed him to personally control (and siphon money from) vast properties beyond the grasp of any individual stockholder.8 Scott and Vanderbilt forged divergent paths toward the future of the large enterprise in the American economy. Scott, along with Thomson, crafted the seemingly more sophisticated model, erecting holding companies to lease or purchase connecting lines far beyond the borders of Pennsylvania. Under his guidance, the Pennsylvania created a ma.s.sive self-contained system that sprawled from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic seaboard, from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast. But the Commodore moved more cautiously. He pursued cooperation with his connections, and refrained from interfering in his son-in-law Clark's management of the Lake Sh.o.r.e. If Vanderbilt's decentralized strategy seems less advanced, it reflected his ever-astute calculations. He did not wish to alienate important partners, such as the Michigan Central. And he did not want to burden himself or the Central with financially unstable properties. As Scott aggressively acquired line after line, he found it more and more difficult to make them all pay; by contrast, Vanderbilt insulated the Central from the weaknesses of its connections-even from the Lake Sh.o.r.e, which he largely owned.9 Scott possessed great powers of mind, but he suffered from overconfidence. More and more, he began to overreach. Acting on his own account, he joined with his protege Carnegie in 1871 to seize the Union Pacific in a complex operation, taking over as president. Already overworked, he gave little attention to his new duties. Carnegie quickly sold their shares at a profit, and the stockholders concluded to overthrow their absentee chief. In 1872, Scott began to promote the Texas & Pacific, a planned transcontinental road that increasingly weighed him down with debt and worry10 As for the SIC, it soon collapsed under the weight of public outrage once the terms of its contracts were revealed. At a closed meeting on March 25 with angry refiners, officers of the partic.i.p.ating railroads (including Scott and William H. Vanderbilt) abandoned it. The railroad men refused even to let Rockefeller into the room. But Rockefeller would go on with his conquest of the oil industry, and would press the railroads for further privileges and rebates, much to William's annoyance. And the Commodore would continue to look for cooperation with his compet.i.tors.

In the ensuing year, observers might wonder how he could harmonize the warring railroads when he could not even control his own house.11 EVERYBODY DIES-just not always in the right order. By all logic, Cornelius Vanderbilt should have gone before any of his many familiars who died in 1872. He turned seventy-eight that year, decades past life expectancy. He had survived fistfights, boiler explosions, a train wreck, heart trouble, Nicaraguan rapids, exposure to tropical diseases, Atlantic storms, and wagon smashes. Yet he endured as those younger than himself pa.s.sed away. On February 24, LeGrand Lockwood fell dead at fifty-two, still in debt to the Lake Sh.o.r.e. Before that, on January 6, the "porcine carca.s.s" of the thirty-eight-year-old Jim Fisk tumbled down the steps of the Grand Central Hotel, shot by Edward S. Stokes, and died soon after. "I cannot sufficiently give expression to the extent I suffer over the catastrophe," Jay Gould told the New York Herald New York Herald. It was, perhaps, more than a coincidence that Gould lost control of the Erie Railway in just two months to an a.s.sault led by financier James McHenry. (Two years later, McHenry would recall that he offered control of the Erie to Commodore Vanderbilt, who declined, suggesting Peter H. Watson instead.) Lock-wood and Fisk probably drew little of Vanderbilt's sympathy. In December, he would coldly testify at Stokes's trial, "I had a very bad opinion of Mr. Fisk since I first knew him."12 But death took friends and family as well as foes. On March 25, Ellen Vanderbilt died of pneumonia in West Hartford.13 The loss of this self-sacrificing young woman struck Vanderbilt to the core. He received the news as he sat in his office at 25 West Fourth Street, talking with J. C. Smith, a railroad contractor. When he first had learned of his son's engagement to Ellen, he told Smith, he had gone to Hartford to meet her. He had taken her out in a carriage and recounted Corneil's many misdeeds. She had replied, "Commodore, isn't some of it your fault? Have you always treated him as you should?" At that, Vanderbilt related, he had looked around and said, "What a beautiful city"-because "he knew the thing was up." The loss of this self-sacrificing young woman struck Vanderbilt to the core. He received the news as he sat in his office at 25 West Fourth Street, talking with J. C. Smith, a railroad contractor. When he first had learned of his son's engagement to Ellen, he told Smith, he had gone to Hartford to meet her. He had taken her out in a carriage and recounted Corneil's many misdeeds. She had replied, "Commodore, isn't some of it your fault? Have you always treated him as you should?" At that, Vanderbilt related, he had looked around and said, "What a beautiful city"-because "he knew the thing was up."

What a rare burst of reflection, even self-criticism, the death of this young woman induced. It speaks to both the tenderness he felt for his daughter-in-law and the conflicting emotions that his tortured and torturing son aroused in him. On an evening soon after Ellen's death, Vanderbilt told Rev. Syndey A. Corey how he had approached her father, Oliver Williams, before the wedding and pestered him about her possessions. Williams naturally (and indignantly) had asked the reason for such questions. The Commodore had replied, "If your girl has silver and jewelry, and silk and satins, and fine shawls, and my son marries her, he will steal them away from her, p.a.w.n them, and gamble away the proceeds." Williams had said that Vanderbilt was giving his son a bad reputation. "I feel that it is due to your daughter," Vanderbilt had said. "It can't be as painful to you to hear as it is for me to say it."14 Corneil had been loosely moored at best since the death of his mother. The loss of his devoted wife set him almost literally adrift. He took up with George Terry, an unmarried hotel keeper whom Corneil considered "my dearest friend." The intensity of their relations.h.i.+p raises the question of precisely how intimate they were. Corneil once addressed a letter to "my darling George." On another occasion, he wrote, "Oh! George I cannot give you up. You must not desert me now, but must be brave & patient, and give me encouragement and hope for the future." In the full context of Corneil's prolific and effusive correspondence, however, such declarations turn out to be less than definitive evidence that their relations.h.i.+p was physical or romantic. It was an era when platonic male friends commonly wrote of their "affection" or "love" for one another-and Corneil was particularly affectionate when he was asking Terry for money. Ellen had known Terry well, and had struggled together with him to save Corneil from his gambling addiction.15 But Terry and Corneil's relations.h.i.+p was certainly intimate. Both men later testified that, after Ellen's death, they became "almost constant companions, sleeping and eating and reading together almost all the time." In the spring, they departed for the West on a journey that would eventually take them to j.a.pan. On June 25, Corneil wrote to Horace Greeley from Denver. "Having constantly employed myself roaming about the Colorado Country, I find myself much improved in health & my nerves more quiet and composed," he wrote. "I have just received quite an affectionate letter from the Commodore. He appears to take a deep interest in me just at present & begs me to do everything to regain my health. I have never known him quite so affectionate."16 This stubborn inconsistency by the Commodore was all too comprehensible. Ever a man who did not suffer fools, Vanderbilt felt impatience and scorn for Corneil's weaknesses; yet he unquestionably loved his son, and never quite gave up hope for him. Better parents than he have suffered contradictory emotions over their children.

It was, perhaps, for his son's sake that he a.s.signed Chauncey M. Depew, the Harlem's attorney, to a.s.sist Corneil's patron that year. In one of history's ironies, Greeley ran for president as the nominee of the Liberal Republican Party a breakaway formation of Republicans led by the "best men" who criticized Vanderbilt so fiercely. Depew, like so many who knew Vanderbilt well, recalled that he "took no interest in politics," but had great fondness for Greeley. "Mr. Greeley has been to see me and is very anxious for you to a.s.sist him," he told Depew. "If you can aid him in any way I wish you would." Depew obeyed. He helped organize the party in New York and ran for lieutenant governor. It was another point of divergence between the Commodore and William, who very publicly supported Grant in his bid for reelection.17 Vanderbilt's detachment from politics may have been a matter of personal taste, or it may have been a deliberate policy. His interests were constantly in play whenever the state legislature met in Albany, and every positive outcome (from Vanderbilt's perspective) was blamed on the Commodore's corruption. In the spring yet another pro-rata bill appeared, threatening to bar the Central from compet.i.tive pricing on through freight (condemned as "discrimination" by those who had to pay local rates). The bill went down to defeat because many believed, probably correctly that it would divert commerce away from New York and into other seaports. Yet accusations of bribery by Vanderbilt as the cause of its demise proliferated.18 Newspapers made the same charges regarding pa.s.sage of the act that authorized the sinking of the Fourth Avenue tracks (a project known as the "Fourth Avenue Improvement"), because it required the city to pay half the cost. In fact, a serious theory stood behind this provision: the munic.i.p.ality would receive increased property taxes as real estate values rose, and the city as a whole would benefit from the new infrastructure. Newspapers made the same charges regarding pa.s.sage of the act that authorized the sinking of the Fourth Avenue tracks (a project known as the "Fourth Avenue Improvement"), because it required the city to pay half the cost. In fact, a serious theory stood behind this provision: the munic.i.p.ality would receive increased property taxes as real estate values rose, and the city as a whole would benefit from the new infrastructure.19 As Vanderbilt had written to Governor E. D. Morgan years before, he wished to avoid entangling his name with anything political, knowing what abuse would ensue. Yet he frequently mingled with political figures who were an integral part of New York's legal and business environment. One of them was Democratic lawyer Samuel J. Tilden, who had played a leading part in Tweed's downfall and would be elected governor in 1874. "I should like to have a little conversation with you," the Commodore wrote to him on May 20, 1872. "If you will do me the favor to stop at my office at your convenience-or at my house in the evening of any day that may suit you." The topic was the lease agreement that the Central and New York & New Haven would sign for the use of Grand Central, but the tone of the letter was light and familiar. He concluded, "I am sure the ladies would be pleased to see the light of your countenance once more" "I am sure the ladies would be pleased to see the light of your countenance once more" (italics in original), revealing that Tilden was a frequent guest at 10 Was.h.i.+ngton Place. (Tilden reviewed the lease, and sent his corrections to Vanderbilt personally) (italics in original), revealing that Tilden was a frequent guest at 10 Was.h.i.+ngton Place. (Tilden reviewed the lease, and sent his corrections to Vanderbilt personally)20 On June 3, Vanderbilt stopped by the Murray Hill home of Horace Clark and encountered Grenville M. Dodge, the former Union general, congressman, and railroad engineer. The Commodore brought up the Central's ongoing dispute with the Internal Revenue Bureau over the tax on the scrip dividend of 1868, discussing it in detail. "He thinks the goverment [sic] has treated him badly" badly" Dodge wrote to President Grant. "He feels the matter keenly." More interesting was Vanderbilt's att.i.tude toward Grant. Dodge called Vanderbilt Dodge wrote to President Grant. "He feels the matter keenly." More interesting was Vanderbilt's att.i.tude toward Grant. Dodge called Vanderbilt a warm friend of yours.... Says if he should go to you about it at this time it would be misconstrued and he prefers to pay pay-that he should not do anythg [sic] that could hurt you in the campaign.... My only reason for saying a word is the kindly feeling exhibited towards you by Vanderbilt Vanderbilt and and Clark Clark and the and the very evident very evident anxiety of former in the case-and his evident disappointment and surprise at the presnt [sic] action of Government. anxiety of former in the case-and his evident disappointment and surprise at the presnt [sic] action of Government.

This warm regard for Grant and Greeley alike reflected Vanderbilt's striking lack of partisans.h.i.+p-his attention to people, not ideology.21 Dodge mentioned one other telling aspect of this meeting: he met the Commodore at Clark's house by accident. Dodge had come to discuss with Clark an affair of their own-Clark's rise to the presidency of the Union Pacific, in which Dodge was a leading figure. It marked the full emergence of a starkly independent course for Clark-one that would push Vanderbilt to the brink of disaster.22 VANDERBILT'S FAMILY FLOURISHED financially under the arms of the patriarch, and as his offspring and sons-in-law gained strength, they struck out on their own. In 1871, Daniel Torrance had a.s.sumed the presidency of the Ohio & Mississippi as a personal project. William involved himself in the management of the Western Union Telegraph Company-perhaps in his father's interest, perhaps in his own. financially under the arms of the patriarch, and as his offspring and sons-in-law gained strength, they struck out on their own. In 1871, Daniel Torrance had a.s.sumed the presidency of the Ohio & Mississippi as a personal project. William involved himself in the management of the Western Union Telegraph Company-perhaps in his father's interest, perhaps in his own.23 In June 1872, grandson Vanderbilt Allen returned from Egypt. He had gone there (in defiance of the Commodore's wishes) to enroll in the army of the Khedive, the Turkish ruler of that princ.i.p.ate. He came back to New York as a Commander of the Order of the Mejidie, a recognition of his valor on the Nile, and soon formed a new Wall Street firm with his cousin Samuel Barton. Vanderbilt agreed to give Barton & Allen some of his business, provided they operated strictly on commission, and did not carry stocks or otherwise expose themselves to financial reverses. They agreed. In June 1872, grandson Vanderbilt Allen returned from Egypt. He had gone there (in defiance of the Commodore's wishes) to enroll in the army of the Khedive, the Turkish ruler of that princ.i.p.ate. He came back to New York as a Commander of the Order of the Mejidie, a recognition of his valor on the Nile, and soon formed a new Wall Street firm with his cousin Samuel Barton. Vanderbilt agreed to give Barton & Allen some of his business, provided they operated strictly on commission, and did not carry stocks or otherwise expose themselves to financial reverses. They agreed.24 Then they reneged. Instead, they followed the call of Augustus Sch.e.l.l, James Banker, and Horace Clark. In 1872, this trio abandoned all caution as they forged ahead with stock market speculations and railroad acquisitions on their own behalf. In February, they launched a bull campaign in Union Pacific stock. On March 6, Clark a.s.sumed the railroad's presidency, and brought Banker and Sch.e.l.l onto the board. Aha! the press collectively exclaimed-the rise of Clark shows that the Commodore now has control of the transcontinental railroad, and will divert its traffic onto the Central.25 But no evidence points to Vanderbilt's involvement in the Union Pacific, as some contemporaries observed. "His friends a.s.sert that he is not engaged in the many plans set on foot by his ambitious son-in-law," remarked the But no evidence points to Vanderbilt's involvement in the Union Pacific, as some contemporaries observed. "His friends a.s.sert that he is not engaged in the many plans set on foot by his ambitious son-in-law," remarked the New York Herald New York Herald on March 7. Clark, Sch.e.l.l, and Banker all loaned money to the Union Pacific, but Vanderbilt did not-an important sign, considering how deeply he enmeshed his personal finances with the railroads he controlled. on March 7. Clark, Sch.e.l.l, and Banker all loaned money to the Union Pacific, but Vanderbilt did not-an important sign, considering how deeply he enmeshed his personal finances with the railroads he controlled. Railroad Gazette Railroad Gazette pointed out that control of the transcontinental line-a deeply troubled company, far from the cla.s.sic target of a Vanderbilt takeover-would bring very little benefit to the Commodore's railroads. "The traffic, not large at best, must be pretty well divided before it reaches Chicago even, and a connection a hundred miles long in a State east of Chicago might easily give a more profitable traffic to the Lake Sh.o.r.e or the New York Central than the entire thousand miles of the Union Pacific." pointed out that control of the transcontinental line-a deeply troubled company, far from the cla.s.sic target of a Vanderbilt takeover-would bring very little benefit to the Commodore's railroads. "The traffic, not large at best, must be pretty well divided before it reaches Chicago even, and a connection a hundred miles long in a State east of Chicago might easily give a more profitable traffic to the Lake Sh.o.r.e or the New York Central than the entire thousand miles of the Union Pacific."26 Vanderbilt, though, did engage in enterprises outside of his core railroad empire. In 1872, amid a general clamor for rapid transit through Manhattan, he proposed an underground railroad to run from city hall to Grand Central. He secured a charter for the New York City Rapid Transit Company, ordered a survey, prepared estimates of the cost, and finally concluded that it would not be profitable. Before letting the matter drop, he tried to sell the company to the Harlem Railroad. He recused himself from the vote, and the board declined. New York would have to wait for its subway27 His role in this project had been entirely open, casting more doubt on any secret part in so big an affair as the Union Pacific. But Clark benefited from rumors that Vanderbilt was a member of the "Vanderbilt party" as the press called Clark, Sch.e.l.l, and Banker. The trio likely took advantage of their inside knowledge of Vanderbilt's moves on the stock market, for the Commodore often sent Banker handwritten instructions regarding his securities. On February 10, 1872, he wrote, "Wardell will hand you 1,000,000 of dollars worth of [New York Central] scrip. I wish you would have it exchanged in to stock in one certificate of 10,000 shairs in your name & sign it & give it [to] Wardell for me. I will tell you when I sea you the purpose. Let this be confidential."28 Vanderbilt increasingly expressed concern, perhaps even distress, as Clark struck out on his own. A banker later reported a discussion with Vanderbilt in 1872, in which he mentioned that he needed to see Clark. "Horace isn't up yet-he never gets up till about noon. But, if you want to see him very much, we'll go to his house and get the boy out of bed," Vanderbilt said. They drove to Murray Hill and, sure enough, Clark had worked late into the night and was still in bed. He hurried downstairs and began to consume an enormous breakfast as the callers watched. Vanderbilt said brusquely, "Horace, you eat too much. You keep bad hours, too. You can't stand it, my boy, strong and healthy as you are. If you don't stop this thing it will certainly kill you. I'd have been dead fifty years ago if I'd lived like you."29 When summer arrived, William set sail for Europe with his family, but Clark and Augustus Sch.e.l.l followed Vanderbilt to Saratoga, where the Commodore was seen each day on the Congress Hall veranda. "He wears light colored breeches, and a black coat, and a standing collar," a reporter observed. "He is tall and straight, and white whiskered." Vanderbilt drove Frank out to watch a medieval tournament, a recent fad. His daughter Ethelinda Allen wrote a warm letter from Newport to Frank, asking about "father's programme for the future." Would it be a trip to Niagara Falls, "or is he too comfortable to move?" Her question points to how deeply he rooted himself in Saratoga. Each evening he played cards for $5 to $25 a hand. One morning he came down from his room chuckling. He had gone to bed late, he explained to Edwin D. Worcester, and had seen the light on in Clark's room; going in, he found Clark, Sch.e.l.l, and two others playing cards. "What are you playing for?" he asked. "For fun," Clark answered. "The idea," Vanderbilt laughed, "of four grown-up men playing cards together at that time of night for fun!"30 Vanderbilt had serious problems that year. While he was at Saratoga, Frank's brother Robert L. Crawford was indicted for attempted murder. On the night of May 24, the police had banged on the door of 10 Was.h.i.+ngton Place, demanding access to Vanderbilt's stables. His coachman, James Ames, described by the New York Times New York Times as a "powerful, stalwart negro," had reportedly taken (or dragged, according to the as a "powerful, stalwart negro," had reportedly taken (or dragged, according to the Times) Times) a drunk seamstress named Carrie Love into his bedroom in the stables. Vanderbilt himself let the police in, and a wild brawl ensued between Ames and the officers, who finally knocked out Ames and dragged him off. Bizarrely Frank's brother Robert appeared at the police station. Crawford, who was on a visit from Alabama, acted as if Ames were the slave of a Southern planter before the war. "You dare not lock up Commodore Vanderbilt's coachman," he bellowed. The police finally tossed Crawford into the street, where he lurked until a detective emerged. Crawford produced a revolver and shouted his intention of killing the man. In a confused scuffle, he shot and severely wounded the detective. The initial press reports of the incident may have been exaggerated, since a jury swiftly acquitted Ames. Still, Crawford faced a long fight for exoneration and an eventual lawsuit by his victim. a drunk seamstress named Carrie Love into his bedroom in the stables. Vanderbilt himself let the police in, and a wild brawl ensued between Ames and the officers, who finally knocked out Ames and dragged him off. Bizarrely Frank's brother Robert appeared at the police station. Crawford, who was on a visit from Alabama, acted as if Ames were the slave of a Southern planter before the war. "You dare not lock up Commodore Vanderbilt's coachman," he bellowed. The police finally tossed Crawford into the street, where he lurked until a detective emerged. Crawford produced a revolver and shouted his intention of killing the man. In a confused scuffle, he shot and severely wounded the detective. The initial press reports of the incident may have been exaggerated, since a jury swiftly acquitted Ames. Still, Crawford faced a long fight for exoneration and an eventual lawsuit by his victim.31 When the Commodore returned from Saratoga, he suffered a terrible loss. In October, an epizootic struck New York's forty thousand horses, afflicting them with disease. The New York Herald New York Herald remarked on "the singular spectacle... of a great city almost at a standstill; of thousands of persons, male and female, young and old, unable to reach their homes after a day of toil except on foot." Omnibuses, streetcars, carts, and drays sat in the streets, or "were dragged slowly around by horses more dead than alive." On November 15, thinking the worst had pa.s.sed, Vanderbilt drove out behind Mountain Boy. Soon afterward the steed fell sick. Worcester came around to the Commodore's stables not much later, and Vanderbilt told him his finest horse was dead. He would rather have given a thousand shares of New York Central, he said sadly, than have that horse die. When Worcester later recounted this remark, William-knowing how much his father valued both money and the Central-could only say, "Whew!" remarked on "the singular spectacle... of a great city almost at a standstill; of thousands of persons, male and female, young and old, unable to reach their homes after a day of toil except on foot." Omnibuses, streetcars, carts, and drays sat in the streets, or "were dragged slowly around by horses more dead than alive." On November 15, thinking the worst had pa.s.sed, Vanderbilt drove out behind Mountain Boy. Soon afterward the steed fell sick. Worcester came around to the Commodore's stables not much later, and Vanderbilt told him his finest horse was dead. He would rather have given a thousand shares of New York Central, he said sadly, than have that horse die. When Worcester later recounted this remark, William-knowing how much his father valued both money and the Central-could only say, "Whew!"32 The Commodore was in a grim frame of mind, then, when his name began to appear in the newspapers in the ensuing week. Horace Clark and Augustus Sch.e.l.l carried out a corner in Chicago & Northwestern Railroad stock, in alliance with none other than Jay Gould. As with the Union Pacific earlier in the year, the newspapers a.s.sumed that Vanderbilt was the mastermind of any operation involving Clark and Sch.e.l.l, and proclaimed a new alliance between Gould and the Commodore. In fact, Vanderbilt had no interest in acquiring the Northwestern, and he would never take part in its management. The linking of his name with the Union Pacific had been bad enough, but to be identified with Gould snapped his temper. On November 26, he dictated a "card" for the newspapers.33 SIR: The recent corner in "Northwestern" has caused some considerable excitement in Wall street, and has called forth much comment from the press. My name has been a.s.sociated with that of Mr. Jay Gould and others in connection with the speculation, and gross injustice has been done me thereby.I beg leave, therefore, to say, once and for all, that I have not had, either directly or indirectly, the slightest connection with or interest in the matter. I have had but one business transaction with Mr. Gould in my life. In July 1868, I sold him a lot of stock, for which he paid me, and the privilege of a call for a further lot, which he also settled. Since then I have had nothing to do with him in any way whatever; nor do I mean ever to have, unless it be to defend myself. I have, besides, always advised all my friends to have nothing to do with him in any business transaction. I came to this conclusion after taking particular notice of his countenance. The almost constant parade, therefore, of my name in a.s.sociation with his seems very much like an attempt to mislead the public, to my injury, and, after the publication of this, ignorance or misinformation can no longer be urged as an excuse for continuing this course.As for Wall Street speculators, I know nothing about them. I do not even see the street three times a year, and no person there has any authority to use my name, or to include me in any speculative operation whatever.C. VANDERBILT No. 25 West Fourth Street, Nov. 26, 187234 The card shows the emotion and haste in which it was written. The claim that he had had only one "business transaction" with Gould was true only if the definition of a transaction was limited to stock trades, and excluded their relations as railroad presidents. Even then, Vanderbilt neglected the technicality he had insisted on in 1868, that his sale of stock at the end of the Erie War be to Drew and no one else. On the other hand, his denial of any role in speculation rings true; as Worcester would later report, since 1870 Vanderbilt had limited himself to strategic purchases of stock for investment or to control other companies.35 As for his personal opinion of Gould-well, a lot of businessmen didn't like the look of him, let alone trust him. As for his personal opinion of Gould-well, a lot of businessmen didn't like the look of him, let alone trust him.

When asked about the card by a reporter, Vanderbilt said, "The constant a.s.sociation of my name with that of Mr. Gould has injured me greatly." It made investors reluctant to buy the securities of his railroads, he claimed. He had seen one telegram from England that read, "What is the meaning of Vanderbilt's name being mixed up with Jay Gould's in this affair?" When pressed about Gould, he added: No man could have such a countenance as his, and still be honest.... I tell you, sir, G.o.d Almighty has stamped every man's character upon his face. I read Mr. Gould like an open book the first time I saw him. I did not like to express too strongly an opinion this morning, but if you wish to have it now I will give it to you. You have my authority for stating that I consider Mr. Jay Gould a d.a.m.ned villain. You can't put it too strongly.

As the reporter walked down the stoop into the rain, the Commodore shouted after him, "He is undoubtedly a d.a.m.ned villain, and you can say I said so."36 Vanderbilt's remarks apparently stung Gould, who proved equally petty. "The poor old Commodore is in his dotage," he told a reporter. "There is a cla.s.s of rising financiers whom the old man hates.... While he in his second childhood is uptown amusing himself with his horses, and listening to the flatteries of sporting men, these young business men are rising into financial power which will far exceed the old Commodore's even in his palmiest days." Gould was wrong, of course. He would never achieve Vanderbilt's power, or even his absolute, unadjusted net worth.37 But this feud drew attention away from what truly made this moment so hurtful, and damaging, for the Commodore. Vanderbilt directed at Gould all the anger and frustration he felt at Clark and Sch.e.l.l's betrayal. The pair went so far as to bail Gould out of jail after he was arrested in a lawsuit at the height of the Northwestern corner. As Railroad Gazette Railroad Gazette observed, Gould "rarely worked with these men or men of their cla.s.s, and... was thought to be hardly acceptable in their company" observed, Gould "rarely worked with these men or men of their cla.s.s, and... was thought to be hardly acceptable in their company"38 Vanderbilt, that student of human nature in the business environment, must have known that this was a very bad sign. Such open defiance of his feelings suggested that Clark, in particular, had begun to think of himself as a great railroad manager and financier in his own right, as he took over the Union Pacific and cornered the Northwestern. As Vanderbilt knew all too well, first pride, then the fall. Vanderbilt, that student of human nature in the business environment, must have known that this was a very bad sign. Such open defiance of his feelings suggested that Clark, in particular, had begun to think of himself as a great railroad manager and financier in his own right, as he took over the Union Pacific and cornered the Northwestern. As Vanderbilt knew all too well, first pride, then the fall.

ONE BY ONE, VANDERBILT'S old friends pa.s.sed on. Erastus Corning had died in April 1872. Horace Greeley's wife died at the end of October, swiftly followed by Greeley's defeat in the presidential election and his own demise on November 29. It was publicly disclosed that Corneil owed nearly $46,000 to the editor, on promissory notes that were listed by the auditors of the estate under "items of doubtful value." old friends pa.s.sed on. Erastus Corning had died in April 1872. Horace Greeley's wife died at the end of October, swiftly followed by Greeley's defeat in the presidential election and his own demise on November 29. It was publicly disclosed that Corneil owed nearly $46,000 to the editor, on promissory notes that were listed by the auditors of the estate under "items of doubtful value."39 More and more, Vanderbilt's legacy lingered in his mind as he rolled inexorably toward the same fate. The topic came up when he received a call from a Southern Methodist bishop named Holland N. McTyeire, who was married to a cousin of Frank's. The bishop had traveled to New York for treatment by Dr. William Bodenhamer. The Commodore liked him, and insisted that he stay at 10 Was.h.i.+ngton Place. McTyeire became a frequent guest. As Frank later wrote, Vanderbilt had high regard for his "n.o.ble Christian character & great executive ability"-the latter more important to him than the former, perhaps. Vanderbilt listened closely when McTyeire discussed how the Southern Methodists had received a charter for the Central University to be erected somewhere in Dixie, where the destruction of the Civil War remained all too visible.

McTyeire returned to New York in March 1873, and called at Vanderbilt's home as usual. The Commodore took him aside and said that he would give $500,000 to endow the university. "It was a grateful surprise," McTyeire later remarked; wisely, he had never asked for any money, let alone such a vast sum as $500,000 represented in 1873. As the Commodore explained, it was his lifelong nationalism, his patriotism, that moved him. "It was a duty" Vanderbilt later quoted himself as saying, "that the North owed to the South, to give some substantial token of reconciliation which would be a benefit, and he wanted to do his individual share by founding an inst.i.tution."40 Charles F. Deems testified under oath to hearing similar statements by the Commodore about his motives. Vanderbilt, he said, voiced a fear that "the greatn