the kid-gloved hand extended him had a dagger up its sleeve.

These were the conditions when I, as an expert in stock-market affairs,
was called in for assistance. Here was this sound, sturdy institution
standing for everything that was best and self-supporting in American
finance adrift on the Wall Street shoals, and it seemed almost a
hopeless task to attempt its rescue. But it was a task eminently worth
while, and I undertook it with all the energy I could command.

The problem was to restore the Westinghouse stocks to their former high
price, and, confidence being re-established, to sell the new treasury
stock at such a figure as would pay for the plants and other projects
the company had under way. The completion of these meant greatly
increased earnings and such an advance in facilities and economy of
manufacture as would surely seal the fate of General Electric if it
competed with Westinghouse under the new conditions. Small wonder
"Standard Oil's" whole strength was bent to force the alliance.

My fight had hardly begun when I saw it was to be opposed by all the
forces of General Electric and the "System," and I concluded defeat was
sure unless by a counter movement on their stock I could keep them so
busy that they would have no time to interfere with Westinghouse.
Thereupon I laid out that attack on everything connected with General
Electric which created so much consternation at the time. To this day,
if my enemies are asked to name the act which most conclusively
justifies their hatred of me, they will point to my terrible General
Electric raid. They will tell you I broke the stock from 118 to 56 in a
day, and thereby caused one of our most disastrous panics; that I
continued to hammer it to 20, that I compelled reorganization, and then
did not let up. They will show you that the misery and ruin I wrought
were beyond calculation. I will only say that, of any of the things I am
proud of having done, I am proudest of what I did in General Electric,
and, willingly, I would give over five years of my life to go through
the experience again.

It was a most arduous campaign, and our fate trembled many times in the
balance. By dint of hard, overtime work, and what my enemies were
pleased to call rank manipulation, we drove Westinghouse stock back to
its former price, after which a strong syndicate was formed to take the
new stock, and the righted institution at once magnificently swept on
its international caree