. I never got anything for it. A few years afterward I went
to see them, and asked what they were doing, and said I would like
to sell my interest. They said: 'Sell out what?' 'Why,' I said, 'my
interest in the machinery.' They said: 'You don't own this machinery.
This is our machinery. You have no papers to show anything. You had
better get out.' I am inclined to think that the percentage of crooked
people was smaller when I was young. It has been steadily rising, and
has got up to a very respectable figure now. I hope it will never reach
par." To which lugubrious episode so provocative of cynicism, Edison
adds: "When I was a young fellow the first thing I did when I went to
a town was to put something into the savings-bank and start an account.
When I came to New York I put $30 into a savings-bank under the New York
Sun office. After the money had been in about two weeks the bank busted.
That was in 1870. In 1909 I got back $6.40, with a charge for $1.75 for
law expenses. That shows the beauty of New York receiverships."

It is hardly to be wondered at that Edison is rather frank and unsparing
in some of his criticisms of shady modern business methods, and the
mention of the following incident always provokes him to a fine scorn.
"I had an interview with one of the wealthiest men in New York. He
wanted me to sell out my associates in the electric lighting business,
and offered me all I was going to get and $100,000 besides. Of course I
would not do it. I found out that the reason for this offer was that he
had had trouble with Mr. Morgan, and wanted to get even with him." Wall
Street is, in fact, a frequent object of rather sarcastic reference,
applying even to its regular and probably correct methods of banking.
"When I was running my ore-mine," he says, "and got up to the point of
making shipments to John Fritz, I didn't have capital enough to carry
the ore, so I went to J. P. Morgan & Co. and said I wanted them to give
me a letter to the City Bank. I wanted to raise some money. I got a
letter to Mr. Stillman; and went over and told him I wanted to open an
account and get some loans and discounts. He turned me down, and would
not do it. 'Well,' I said, 'isn't it banking to help a man in this way?'
He said: 'What you want is a partner.' I felt very much crestfallen.
I went over to a bank in Newark--the Merchants'--and told them what
I wanted. They said: 'Certainly, you can have the money.' I made my
deposit, and they