Morgan ignored the wretched of the earth. In 1863, he spent $300 on cigars–just what he paid a substitute to fight for him in the Civil War. Still, in his sphere he was a man of principle. The “boss croupier” hated Wall Street gamblers; in 1907, when mining speculators bankrupted two brokerage houses and a bank, his arm-twisting stopped a panic that nearly sank the nation’s economy. He acted not out of altruism–a scarce commodity with him–but because it was sound business. Morgan’s inner life (he seems unaware he had one) eludes even Strouse. But she’s given us a smart, scrupulous, definitive account of what he did and what it was like to be in his presence.
