Andrew Carnegie · Public domain edition · 119 cards · 34 chapters
Andrew Carnegie’s Autobiography recounts his rise from a Scottish weaver’s son to industrialist and philanthropist, emphasizing early influences, self-education, and his mother’s role. The deck covers his memoir’s composition, editorial history, family background, first jobs, and the Pittsburgh library that shaped him.
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Chapter 1 · Question
Where and when did Carnegie write most of these memoirs?
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Chapter 1 · Answer
According to Louise Whitfield Carnegie's preface, Carnegie wrote most of the memoirs during a few weeks each summer at their bungalow on the moors at Aultnagar in Scotland, treating the writing as his play-time. He was engaged in this in July 1914, but when news of August 4 reached them, they left the retreat for Skibo, and the memoirs ended at that time.
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Introduction4 cards
Where and when did Carnegie write most of these memoirs?
According to Louise Whitfield Carnegie's preface, Carnegie wrote most of the memoirs during a few weeks each summer at their bungalow on the moors at Aultnagar in Scotland, treating the writing as his play-time. He was engaged in this in July 1914, but when news of August 4 reached them, they left the retreat for Skibo, and the memoirs ended at that time.
Chapter 1
What ended Carnegie's memoir writing, and what effect did it have on him?
Louise Whitfield Carnegie writes that the memoirs ended in July 1914 when war clouds gathered and the news of August 4 reached them. Afterward he could never interest himself in private affairs; attempts to continue writing were useless. The world disaster broke his heart, and influenza followed by two attacks of pneumonia precipitated old age upon him.
Chapter 1
What instructions did Carnegie leave on the manuscript's fly-leaf?
Written in his own hand on the fly-leaf, Carnegie suggested material for a small volume might be collected that the public would care to read, and a larger private volume might please relatives and friends. Much written from time to time could wisely be omitted. Whoever arranged the notes should avoid burdening the public with too much, and a man with a heart as well as a head should be chosen.
Chapter 1
How does editor John C. Van Dyke describe his editorial role?
Van Dyke argues an editor should not interrupt a man's life story with hecklings, and that enthusiasm or apparent exaggeration should be received as part of the story, since truth may be found in exaggeration. He says he did little more than arrange the material chronologically and sequentially, adding some explanatory footnotes and illustrations, so the narrative runs unbroken to the end.
Chapter 1
CHAPTER I3 cards
What did Carnegie's grandfather Thomas Morrison publish, and what did Cobbett say of it?
Thomas Morrison published a pamphlet titled "Head-ication versus Hand-ication," arguing for the importance of technical education and ending, "I thank God that in my youth I learned to make and mend shoes." Cobbett printed it in his Register in 1833, calling it one of the most valuable communications ever published there. Carnegie notes Morrison also published "The Precursor," thought to be Scotland's first radical paper.
Chapter 2
Why does Carnegie consider his birthplace of Dunfermline so important to a child's development?
Carnegie argues that where one is born matters greatly, since surroundings and traditions stimulate latent tendencies. He cites Ruskin on Edinburgh's Castle and says no bright child of Dunfermline can escape the influence of its Abbey, Palace, and Glen, which set fire to the latent spark within and make the child something beyond what he otherwise would have become.
Chapter 2
What early memory does Carnegie recall involving a map of America and his relatives?
Carnegie's first memory is of a small roller map of America about two feet square, with his father, mother, Uncle William, and Aunt Aitken looking for Pittsburgh and pointing out Lake Erie and Niagara. Soon after, his uncle and Aunt Aitken sailed for America. He also recalls the family hiding a painted flag from the Corn Law agitation in the garret.
Chapter 2
CHAPTER III4 cards
Why did Carnegie's mother react so violently to the suggestion that he peddle goods on the wharves?
She rejected it because the occupation seemed vagrant and not entirely respectable, and she refused to let her young sons mingle with low company on the wharves. She declared she would rather throw him into the Allegheny River, then broke down briefly before telling her boys they could be useful, honored, and respected men by always doing what is right.
Chapter 4
What was Carnegie's first job and wage, and how did he feel about the earnings?
His father obtained him a position as a bobbin boy in Mr. Blackstock's cotton factory in Allegheny City at one dollar and twenty cents per week. The winter hours meant rising and breakfasting in darkness and working till after dark. Though he took no pleasure in the work, he was happy to be a breadwinner, and said no later millions gave him such happiness as his first week's earnings.
Chapter 4
What difficulties did Carnegie face running the steam engine at Mr. Hay's bobbin factory?
He had to run a small steam-engine and fire the boiler in the cellar, earning two dollars per week. The work was irksome and too much for him: he sat up in bed at night trying the steam gauges, fearing the steam was too low for the workers above or too high and the boiler might burst. He concealed his fears from his parents as a matter of honor.
Chapter 4
How did Carnegie get his start as a telegraph messenger in 1850?
Mr. David Brooks, manager of the telegraph office, asked Uncle Hogan over a game of draughts whether he knew a good boy for messenger. Carnegie's father objected that he was too young and small, but withdrew after consulting Mr. Hay, who advised the trial. Carnegie went alone to the interview, said he could start immediately, and got the position at two dollars and fifty cents per week.
Chapter 4
CHAPTER IV4 cards
How did Colonel Anderson's library open to working boys, and what did Carnegie do when messenger boys were excluded?
Colonel James Anderson opened his four-hundred-volume library to working boys, letting each take a book on Saturday afternoon and exchange it the next Saturday. When the question arose whether messenger boys and clerks counted, Carnegie wrote to the Pittsburgh Dispatch urging they not be excluded, signing as "Working Boy." Anderson promptly enlarged the classification, and Carnegie calls this his first public writing success.
Chapter 5
What did Carnegie read through Anderson's library, and what did he say he owed to it?
Carnegie read Macaulay's essays and history and studied Bancroft's History of the United States more carefully than any book he had then read; Lamb's essays were his special delight. He had no Shakespeare beyond schoolbook selections until the Pittsburgh Theater. He says he owes Anderson a taste for literature he would not exchange for all the millions ever amassed, and that nothing kept him and his companions so clear of low fellowship and bad habits.
Chapter 5
How did the Pittsburgh Theater lead Carnegie to Shakespeare?
The theater's telegraph business was done free, and operators got free admission, a privilege partly extended to messengers. Carnegie saw spectacular plays there, but his taste changed when the tragedian Gust Adams began a round of Shakespearean characters. Thenceforth there was nothing for him but Shakespeare; he memorized him almost without effort and says he owes his appreciation to dramatic representation, since until he saw Macbeth his interest was not aroused.
Chapter 5
What did Carnegie's mother believe religiously, and how did she treat her sons' churchgoing?
Carnegie's father attended the Swedenborgian church after leaving the Presbyterian, and Carnegie was taken along and became deeply interested in Swedenborg's doctrines. His mother took no interest in Swedenborg, encouraged her boys to attend church and Sunday school, but maintained a marked reserve, defined by a Confucius maxim about performing life's duties well without troubling about another life. Carnegie says the writings of Swedenborg and much of the Old and New Testaments had been discredited by her as unworthy of divine authorship.
Chapter 5
CHAPTER V4 cards
How did Carnegie first learn telegraphy while a messenger?
The boys had to sweep out the operating-room in the mornings, which gave them a chance to practice on the telegraph instruments before the operators arrived. Carnegie began playing with the key and talking with boys at other stations who had the same purpose. He later learned to read messages by ear, encouraged by operator Mr. Maclean's success with the new method.
Chapter 6
How did Carnegie first take a message by ear, and what happened?
When the copyist refused to copy for a messenger boy, Carnegie shut off the paper slip, took pencil and paper, and began taking the message by ear. The old copyist, Courtney Hughes, was surprised, ordered his pencil and pad back, and afterward became Carnegie's devoted friend and copyist.
Chapter 6
How did Carnegie get promoted to telegraph operator, and at what pay?
Mr. Brooks recommended him to James D. Reid, general superintendent, who approved promoting 'Andy' if Brooks judged him competent. Carnegie began as a telegraph operator at twenty-five dollars per month, which he thought a fortune. He was in his seventeenth year and earning a dollar every working day.
Chapter 6
Why did Carnegie hide his extra two dollars and a quarter from his mother?
When Colonel Glass raised his pay to thirteen and a half dollars a month, Carnegie handed his mother the usual eleven and a quarter and said nothing about the extra two dollars and a quarter in his pocket. He later whispered the secret to his brother Tom in bed, and produced the money at Sunday breakfast, which the family celebrated as his first triumph.
Chapter 6
CHAPTER VI3 cards
What effect did exposure to coarse railroad men have on young Carnegie, according to the chapter?
The author says the experience gave him a lasting disgust—a "scunner," to use his Scotism—for chewing or smoking tobacco and for swearing or improper language, which he says fortunately remained with him through life. He adds that the men were not really degraded or bad characters, that coarse habits were more common then, and that they were most kind to him.
Chapter 7
What risky action did Carnegie take when Mr. Scott was absent, and how did Scott respond?
With trains delayed and freight standing, Carnegie gave train orders in Scott's name without authority, then tracked every train until Scott arrived. Scott asked how matters stood, examined the messages, said nothing, and neither approved nor censured him. Later Scott told Franciscus the "little white-haired Scotch devil" had run every train all right, after which Scott seldom gave train orders himself.
Chapter 7
What does the author argue about the Civil War's effect on the federal system?
The author argues that while one regrets the high price paid to end slavery, slavery alone needed abolition: the loose Federal system with prominent State rights would have prevented or delayed one solid, all-powerful central government. He says the Southern tendency was centrifugal, while to-day it is centripetal, drawn toward the center under the Supreme Court.
Chapter 7
CHAPTER VII4 cards
How did Carnegie first learn of the planned shopmen's strike at Altoona?
A blacksmith whom Carnegie had earlier helped obtain work at Altoona followed him at night and warned him that a paper pledging the shopmen to strike on Monday was being rapidly signed. Carnegie told Mr. Scott in the morning, and notices were posted dismissing all who had signed; the threatened strike was broken.
Chapter 8
How did Carnegie become involved with T.T. Woodruff's sleeping-car venture?
Woodruff showed Carnegie a model sleeping-car on a train while Carnegie was traveling to Crestline, Ohio, to avoid being subpoenaed. Carnegie pressed the idea on Mr. Scott, who agreed to contract for two cars. Woodruff then offered Carnegie an eighth interest, which he accepted, borrowing $217.50 from banker Mr. Lloyd for the first payment.
Chapter 8
Why did Carnegie's mother resist hiring a servant at Altoona?
The author describes his mother's strong jealousy at admitting a stranger into the family circle: she had cooked, washed, mended, and cleaned for her two boys, and resented anyone robbing her of those motherly privileges. Carnegie eventually persuaded her, arguing she should live as 'Her Ladyship,' and she finally recognized the necessity.
Chapter 8
How did Carnegie become superintendent of the Pittsburgh Division?
When Mr. Scott was made vice-president in 1859, he recommended Carnegie to the president as successor to Mr. Potts, who was promoted to the transportation department. Carnegie, then twenty-four, was given a trial. Asked about salary, he said he did not care for salary but wanted the position and the glory of returning to Scott's former place.
Chapter 8
CHAPTER VIII4 cards
What was Carnegie's role in Washington at the start of the Civil War?
Carnegie was summoned by Mr. Scott, appointed Assistant Secretary of War in charge of the Transportation Department, to act as his assistant in charge of the military railroads and telegraphs of the Government and to organize a force of railway men. He calls it one of the most important departments at the war's beginning.
Chapter 9
How did Carnegie receive the facial wound he describes?
While riding the first engine toward Washington, he saw telegraph wires staked to the ground and stopped to release them. He did not notice the wires had been pulled to one side before staking; when released they sprang up, struck his face, knocked him over, and cut a gash in his cheek that bled profusely.
Chapter 9
What did Carnegie think of President Lincoln's manner and appearance?
Carnegie says all pictures of Lincoln are like him because his features were so marked. He calls Lincoln homely in repose, but says intellect shone through his eyes and illuminated his face when excited or telling a story. Carnegie describes his manners as perfect because natural, with the same kind word and deference for the messenger boy as for Secretary Seward.
Chapter 9
How was the Trent affair resolved, and what did Carnegie urge?
When Mason and Slidell were taken from the British ship Trent in 1861, Carnegie urged Scott to stand firm for surrender, arguing Britain would fight and that immunity of ships from search had been American doctrine. Lincoln was at first inclined to hold the prisoners but was converted to Seward's policy; the Cabinet postponed action a day so absent members like Cameron could attend.
Chapter 9
CHAPTER IX4 cards
Why did Carnegie organize the Superior Rail Mill in 1864?
During the Civil War iron prices rose to about $130 per ton, but delivery, not money, was the real problem: American railway lines were becoming dangerous for want of new rails. Carnegie therefore organized a rail-making concern at Pittsburgh in 1864, finding no difficulty in obtaining partners and capital, and built the Superior Rail Mill and Blast Furnaces.
Chapter 10
How did the Keystone Bridge Company get its start?
Carnegie had seen the first small iron bridge at Altoona and concluded wooden bridges would no longer do for railways. He proposed to H.J. Linville, John L. Piper and Mr. Schiffler that they come to Pittsburgh, and organized a company with Mr. Scott of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Each of five partners paid $1250 for a one-fifth interest; Carnegie borrowed his share from the bank.
Chapter 10
What did Carnegie do when Eads's St. Louis Bridge plans were unsound?
Linville judged that the bridge, built on Eads's plans, would not stand up or carry its own weight. Carnegie told Linville to explain this gently to Eads, get the plans into proper shape, and say nothing to others. This was successfully done, though Piper later struggled with Eads's extraordinary requirements during construction.
Chapter 10
What policy does Carnegie credit for the Keystone Bridge Works' safety record?
Carnegie argues the secret of success was using only the best material and enough of it, making their own iron and later steel, acting as their own severest inspectors, and refusing work known to be of insufficient strength or unscientific design. No Keystone bridge ever failed, he says, and he welcomes inspectors rather than objecting to them.
Chapter 10
CHAPTER X4 cards
What business rules did Carnegie's iron mills follow, and what was the result regarding lawsuits?
Carnegie states the firm's rules were: attempt what others could not or would not do, make nothing except of excellent quality, accommodate customers even at some expense, and in disputes give the other party the benefit of the doubt and settle. He notes they had no lawsuits.
Chapter 11
What accounting problem did Carnegie find in iron manufacturing, and what did he introduce?
Carnegie was surprised that the cost of each process was unknown; manufacturers ran a 'lump business' and only knew results at year-end. He insisted on a system of weighing and accounting throughout the works to know the cost of each process and what each man produced, though managers resisted and years were needed.
Chapter 11
Who was William Borntraeger and how did he come to Carnegie's attention?
Borntraeger was a German clerk, a distant relative of Kloman, who surprised them with a detailed statement of results he had prepared at night, unasked and unknown to them, in a uniquely original form. He became superintendent, then a partner, and died a millionaire.
Chapter 11
What did Carnegie observe about American adaptability in the oil regions?
Carnegie describes the oil region as good-humored, like a vast picnic, with flags bearing mottoes such as 'Hell or China.' He argues Americans quickly evolve order from chaos, organizing schools, churches, newspapers, and brass bands, while an equal number of British would first determine hereditary rank and leadership claims.
Chapter 11
CHAPTER XI1 cards
Why did Carnegie move to New York in 1867, and how did his mother react?
Carnegie moved to New York in 1867 to direct the general policy of the companies and negotiate important contracts, since New York was the headquarters of important American enterprises. His brother married Lucy Coleman and took over the Homewood residence. Carnegie says the change was hard for him but much harder for his mother, though she was still in the prime of life and they could be happy anywhere together.
Chapter 12
CHAPTER XII4 cards
How did Carnegie profit from Colonel Phillips's Allegheny Valley Railway bonds?
Carnegie got a 60-day option on five million Allegheny bonds at 90 cents on the dollar, then exchanged them with the Pennsylvania Railroad for Philadelphia and Erie gold bonds. In London the Barings agreed to bring out the loan, leaving Carnegie a clear profit of more than half a million dollars before the deal collapsed.
Chapter 13
Why did the Barings back out of Carnegie's London bond agreement?
Carnegie had not yet signed the papers when the Barings postponed closing to consult Mr. Baring. That night Bismarck locked up a hundred million in Magdeburg, panicking the financial world, and the Barings withdrew. Carnegie later regretted not returning to them and waiting for the panic to subside.
Chapter 13
What rule did Carnegie adopt for giving the first offer to Junius S. Morgan?
After the Barings failure, Carnegie resolved to give Junius S. Morgan the first offer in all later negotiations. Morgan rarely let him leave without buying, or else connected him with a friendly house that did, taking an interest. Carnegie says he never negotiated a security that did not to the end command a premium.
Chapter 13
Why did Carnegie refuse to endorse the Texas Pacific loan for Mr. Scott?
Carnegie's capital was all in manufacturing and needed there. He felt responsible for his brother's family, Mr. Phipps, and Mr. Kloman, and knew he could not pay the Morgan loan in sixty days or the half-dozen loans that would follow. He also warned Scott against building railways on temporary loans.
Chapter 13
CHAPTER XIII4 cards
What did Carnegie's firm do instead of relying on an intuitive blast-furnace manager?
Carnegie's firm replaced the rule-of-thumb, intuition-based manager with a young shipping clerk, Henry M. Curry, as manager, and then hired a learned German chemist, Dr. Fricke, as Curry's assistant and guide. Chemistry revealed that reputations of ores were often wrong, dispelling nine tenths of the uncertainties of pig-iron making. Carnegie notes they were the first to employ a chemist at blast furnaces, which competitors called extravagant.
Chapter 14
How did chemistry change the firm's purchasing of ore, such as Pilot Knob?
Chemistry showed that mines with high reputations often contained ten to twenty percent less iron than credited, while poorly regarded mines yielded superior ore. The firm bought heavily of Pilot Knob ore in Missouri, low in phosphorus but high in silicon, which others avoided; properly fluxed, it was excellent. They also bought cheap phosphoric cinder and roll-scale that competitors threw away, sometimes exchanging a poor article for a good one with a bonus.
Chapter 14
Why did Carnegie name the steel works after Edgar Thomson, and what was Thomson's reaction?
Carnegie wanted to honor his friend Edgar Thomson, president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, and proposed the name for the new steel-rail works at Braddock's. Thomson's reply was significant: he did not wish to connect his name with American steel rails, since they had proved far from creditable. Carnegie assured him it was now possible to make American steel rails as good as any. The company was organized January 1, 1873.
Chapter 14
What did Carnegie do with the Dodds rail-hardening patents before Bessemer succeeded?
Carnegie obtained control of the Dodds patents, which carbonized the heads of iron rails, and recommended that President Thomson of the Pennsylvania Railroad appropriate twenty thousand dollars for experiments at Pittsburgh. Several hundred tons of rails were treated with good results, and these were the first hard-headed rails used in America, placed on sharp curves. Carnegie believed that without Bessemer, the Dodds process might have been improved and widely adopted.
Chapter 14
CHAPTER XIV4 cards
How did William Borntraeger rise in the Carnegie mills?
Borntraeger came from Germany unable to speak English, joined the mills in a minor role through a distant connection to Mr. Kloman, quickly learned English, and became a shipping clerk at six dollars a week. Despite having no mechanical knowledge, his zeal and industry made him known everywhere in the mill. He was among the first young men admitted to partnership and at his death received about $50,000 a year, which Carnegie says was fully deserved.
Chapter 15
What did Carnegie decide about two men sharing equal authority in the works?
When the auditor proposed splitting the works into two departments under Mr. Stevenson and Mr. Jones with equal control, Carnegie rejected it, insisting one man must be captain and report alone. He compared it to an army with two commanders or a ship with two captains. The choice fell on Mr. Jones, who became the famous Captain Jones of Bessemer steel.
Chapter 15
Why did Captain Jones decline a partnership interest in the firm?
Carnegie told Jones that young men given an interest were earning more than he was, and offered him a partnership with no financial risk since the cost was payable only from profits. Jones refused, saying he did not want his thoughts running on business and had enough trouble looking after the works; he asked instead for a large salary. Carnegie gave him the salary of the President of the United States.
Chapter 15
What happened when Carnegie's steel company first entered the rail market?
Competitors ignored the new company, doubting it could deliver rails for another year. Carnegie sent an agent across the country to take orders at the best obtainable prices, securing enough orders to justify starting. The first month's operations left a profit margin of $11,000, and Carnegie credits the accounting system that tracked each transfer of material between departments.
Chapter 15
CHAPTER XV4 cards
What public speaking advice does Carnegie give, and who reinforced it?
Carnegie advises speakers to remember their audience is only men and women, and to speak as in daily conversation. Trying to be someone other than yourself causes embarrassment; being your natural self removes it. He credits his Uncle Bailie Morrison with the lesson "say just what you really feel," and Colonel Ingersoll with "avoid elocutionists like snakes and be yourself."
Chapter 16
How did Carnegie's coaching trip book come to be written and published?
Carnegie kept only a few lines a day in twopenny pass-books during the 1881 coaching trip from Brighton to Inverness. On stormy days he wrote instead of going to the office, finishing a book in exactly twenty sittings. It was printed privately in 1882 as Our Coaching Trip, then published by Scribner's in 1883 as An American Four-in-Hand in Britain, subject to a royalty.
Chapter 16
What happened to Carnegie's mother and brother in 1886?
Both his mother and his brother died in November 1886, within a few days of each other, while Carnegie lay bedridden with a severe attack of typhoid fever. He was despaired of and near death himself, and their condition was kept from him. When told they were gone, he felt it natural he should follow, but he recovered slowly.
Chapter 16
Why did Louise Whitfield initially resist Carnegie's advances?
Carnegie says his wealth and future plans worked against him: she felt she could be of little use to a rich man who had everything. Her ideal was to be the indispensable helpmeet of a young, struggling man, as her mother had been to her father. After his illness left him alone, she saw he needed her, and they married April 22, 1887.
Chapter 16
CHAPTER XVI4 cards
What vital lesson in iron and steel did Carnegie learn in Britain?
Carnegie states that the one vital lesson he learned in Britain was the necessity for owning raw materials and finishing the completed article ready for its purpose. This principle drove his firm to build blast furnaces, secure coke supplies, and pursue iron ore deposits, so they would not depend on outsiders for essential inputs.
Chapter 17
How did Carnegie's firm come to make ferro-manganese, and what was the result?
Mr. Julian Kennedy, manager of the blast furnaces, suggested that with the ores within reach they could make ferro-manganese in their small reconstructed furnace. The experiment succeeded: they became the first and for years only American firm making it, supplying the entire American demand and dropping prices from eighty to fifty dollars a ton.
Chapter 17
Why did Carnegie prefer a partnership over a corporation when buying the Virginia manganese mine?
Carnegie argues the great advantage of a partnership over a corporation is speed: a corporation's president would have to consult a board of directors and wait weeks or months for a decision, by which time the mine would probably belong to others. The partnership acted at once, buying the mine after a thorough investigation proved enough manganese ore in sight.
Chapter 17
What did Carnegie conclude about the National Trust Company shares and individual liability?
Carnegie noticed twenty shares of the National Trust Company among the firm's assets and insisted Mr. Phipps sell them that same day. The bank soon failed with an enormous deficit, ruining individually liable shareholders. Carnegie's rule: give money freely when you have a surplus, but never your name, as endorser or in a corporation with individual liability.
Chapter 17
CHAPTER XVII1 cards
Why did Carnegie not return to America during the Homestead strike?
He was in the Scottish Highlands and did not hear of the trouble for two days. According to Henry Phipps's 1904 statement, Carnegie wired that he would take the first ship, but his partners begged him not to come, believing the company's welfare required his absence because of his extreme disposition to grant labor's demands however unreasonable. Carnegie says the wound of Homestead never healed.
Chapter 18
CHAPTER XVIII4 cards
Why did Carnegie refuse the blast-furnace committee's wage demand despite their strike threat?
The men had agreed to a scale lasting until year's end, months away, and Carnegie held that breaking an agreement dishonored labor. He told the committee they could leave the furnaces and that grass would grow around them before he yielded to a threat, calling the day labor breaks its agreement the worst day labor has ever seen.
Chapter 19
What was Carnegie's sliding scale and why did he consider it his chief service to labor?
The scale based wages on the price the firm received for its product, with a minimum guaranteeing living wages. Carnegie argues it makes capital and labor partners, sharing prosperous and disastrous times alike. He preferred it to a yearly scale, which he said makes both sides prepare for a struggle; he favored no fixed end date, only notice on either side.
Chapter 19
How did Carnegie get each workman to sign the scale himself rather than only union officers?
After granting the committee's request that union officers sign, Carnegie asked as a small favor that every workman also sign for himself, arguing that over three years some men might dispute the president's authority to bind them. One man whispered 'the jig's up.' Carnegie calls it a flank movement; he says the union was afterward deserted and never heard of again.
Chapter 19
What did Carnegie identify as the main root of labor trouble, and what did he say about working-men's loyalty?
Carnegie says the main root of trouble is ignorance, not hostility, and that workers have prejudices and 'red rags' that must be respected. He argues one can rely on the great body of working-men to do what is right unless they have promised their leaders to stand by them, and he praises their loyalty even when mistaken, saying they need only fair treatment.
Chapter 19
CHAPTER XIX4 cards
Why did Carnegie stop accumulating wealth after publishing 'The Gospel of Wealth'?
Carnegie says that after his book was published it was inevitable he should live up to its teachings by ceasing to struggle for more wealth. He resolved to stop accumulating and begin what he called the infinitely more serious and difficult task of wise distribution. He notes profits had reached forty million dollars per year, with an amazing prospect of increased earnings ahead.
Chapter 20
Why did Carnegie decline payment for the common stock in the sale to Morgan?
Carnegie explains there had been much deception by speculators buying old iron and steel mills and foisting them on innocent purchasers at inflated values, with hundred-dollar shares sometimes selling for a trifle. Because of this he declined to take anything for the common stock. He notes that doing so would have given him about one hundred million more in five per cent bonds, which Morgan said he could have obtained.
Chapter 20
What was Carnegie's first distribution of surplus wealth, and to whom?
Carnegie's first distribution was to the men in the mills. In a letter dated March 12, 1901, he gave four million dollars of first mortgage five per cent bonds as acknowledgment of his deep debt to the workmen who contributed greatly to his success. It was designed to relieve those suffering from accidents and provide small pensions for those needing help in old age. He added one million dollars of bonds to maintain libraries and halls built for workmen.
Chapter 20
What incident led Carnegie to establish the Hero Fund?
Carnegie had heard of a serious accident in a coal pit near Pittsburgh, where the former superintendent Mr. Taylor, then engaged in other pursuits, instantly drove to the scene hoping to be of use. He rallied eager volunteers and led them down the pit to rescue those below, but the heroic leader lost his own life. Carnegie could not get the thought out of his mind and resolved to establish the Hero Fund.
Chapter 20
CHAPTER XX4 cards
Why did Carnegie create the pension fund for aged university professors?
Carnegie argues teaching is the most unfairly and meanly paid profession, with professors' salaries ranking below some clerks', making saving for old age impossible. Without pensions, universities are compelled to retain men no longer able to perform their duties. He found the first list of beneficiaries conclusive proof of the fund's usefulness, containing names of world-wide reputation.
Chapter 21
How did Carnegie structure the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland?
After reading Thomas Shaw's article on poor Scottish families unable to pay university fees, Carnegie gave ten million in five per cent bonds. Half the £104,000 yearly revenue pays fees of deserving poor students; the other half improves the universities. The first trustees met in 1902 in Edinburgh, with Lord Balfour of Burleigh presiding.
Chapter 21
What power did Carnegie give trustees to change the fund's purposes, and why?
Carnegie gave a majority of trustees the right to change the objects of beneficence and modes of applying funds if purposes became unsuitable. Balfour questioned this unusual testator power; Carnegie replied he had never known a body of men capable of legislating for the generation ahead. Lord Balfour suggested two thirds instead of a majority, which was accepted.
Chapter 21
Why did Carnegie prefer aiding smaller colleges over large universities like Harvard and Columbia?
Carnegie believed the chief universities, with five to ten thousand students, were large enough and further growth was undesirable. He thought smaller institutions, especially colleges, were in greater need of help, and that aiding them was a better use of surplus wealth. He later confined himself to these and was satisfied this was wise.
Chapter 21
CHAPTER XXI4 cards
What did Carnegie cable John Bright about the warship Monarch in 1869?
Carnegie cabled John Bright, then in the British Cabinet, without a signature, urging that the best service for the Monarch would be bringing home the body of George Peabody, the American philanthropist who died in London in 1869. The ship was instead used as a messenger of peace, and Bright later said his heart was in the act.
Chapter 22
What did Carnegie think of the first Hague Conference's results?
Carnegie called the first Hague Conference's action a source of intense joy. Though it was called primarily to consider disarmament, which he says proved a dream, it created a permanent tribunal to settle international disputes. He saw this as the greatest step toward peace humanity had ever taken, achieved as if by inspiration without much previous discussion.
Chapter 22
How did Mr. Cremer use his Nobel Prize money, according to Carnegie?
Carnegie says Cremer received the Nobel Prize of £8000 for doing the most for peace that year and promptly gave all but £1000, which he needed for pressing wants, to the Arbitration Committee. Carnegie calls it a noble sacrifice, noting Cremer lives on a few dollars a week from his trade and calls this the heroic in its finest form.
Chapter 22
What role did Carnegie play in presenting the Arbitration Committee to President Cleveland?
Carnegie says he had the great pleasure of presenting the Committee to President Cleveland in Washington in 1887. Cleveland received the members cordially and assured them of his hearty coöperation. Carnegie adds that from that day the abolition of war grew in importance with him until it overshadowed all other issues.
Chapter 22
CHAPTER XXII3 cards
What did Matthew Arnold say about miracles, according to Carnegie?
Carnegie recalls that Arnold, though a seriously religious man who never spoke irreverently, had in one short sentence slain the supernatural: "The case against miracles is closed. They do not happen." Carnegie notes Arnold's theological writings grieved friends and cost him promotion, but Arnold said he could not help it—he had to express his views.
Chapter 23
What did Mrs. Carnegie say about Arnold's first American lecture?
When Arnold asked the family's opinions, Carnegie told him he must get elocution lessons. Arnold then turned to Carnegie's mother, asking what she thought of his first night as a lecturer in America. She replied slowly and softly, "Too ministerial, Mr. Arnold, too ministerial." Arnold often referred to this afterward, saying it hit the nail on the head.
Chapter 23
How did Arnold explain knowing a duke of questionable character?
Arnold said a duke is always a personage in England, independent of brains or conduct, and that "we are all snobs"—hundreds of years had made them so, "it is in the blood." Carnegie took this as smilingly said, with mental reservations, noting Arnold was no snob himself. Arnold also wished to meet Vanderbilt, saying it is something to know the richest man in the world.
Chapter 23
CHAPTER XXIII1 cards
What does Carnegie conclude about British municipal government?
The author argues the United Kingdom is better served by leading citizens of its municipalities, elected by popular vote, than any other country, and that this branch of government is sound to the core. He notes mayors and councils increasingly rise from the ranks and serve without pay.
Chapter 24
CHAPTER XXIV4 cards
What did Gladstone do with Carnegie's book that impressed Carnegie at Hawarden?
At Hawarden in April 1892, Gladstone, arranging his library, quoted from memory a passage from Carnegie's "An American Four-in-Hand in Britain" comparing Dunfermline to Mecca, Benares, and Jerusalem. He told Carnegie he had sent for the book after Rosebery mentioned it and read it with delight. Carnegie cites this as proof of Gladstone's remarkable memory, eight years after the book was written.
Chapter 25
How did Carnegie describe Gladstone's religious sincerity?
Carnegie says his early suspicion that Gladstone's public piety might cost him no votes vanished once he knew him; he calls Gladstone devout and sincere. He cites Gladstone's diary, quoted by Morley, recording that while speaking on the budget he felt sustained by Divine Power. The author argues this faith genuinely sustained him, though others may find it shocking that Gladstone believed the Creator concerned Himself with his budget.
Chapter 25
What happened when Carnegie and Blaine encountered Gladstone on Jubilee night?
On the night of the Queen's Jubilee in June 1887, Carnegie and Blaine dined at Lord Wolverton's to meet the Gladstones, arriving at nine due to crowds. After eleven, Gladstone said he would return home through Hyde Park. Later, Carnegie recognized Gladstone's voice near the Reform Club and found him muffled in a cloak, past midnight and aged eighty, having seen Mrs. Gladstone home and then come out to view the illuminations.
Chapter 25
How does Carnegie contrast himself with Morley?
Carnegie says he and Morley are close friends despite being opposites: Carnegie is optimistic, seeing all his ducks as swans and earth as often a real heaven, while Morley is pessimistic, seeing real dangers ahead and "an officer in every bush." Morley's judgment is deliberate and he sees the spots on the sun. Carnegie also notes Morley's tribute that Carnegie's freshness of spirit carried others over occasional crudity or haste.
Chapter 25
CHAPTER XXV4 cards
What did Carnegie say was the difference between great men imagined and beheld?
Carnegie told Spencer that nothing could be more different than the being imagined and the being beheld in the flesh. He illustrated this with Spencer himself, whom he had pictured as a calm, Buddha-like philosopher, but instead saw him peevishly pushing away Cheshire cheese and demanding Cheddar. Spencer laughed heartily at the story and refers to the incident in his Autobiography.
Chapter 26
Why did Spencer sign a remonstrance against a Calais-Dover tunnel he actually favored?
Spencer explained he was as anxious for the tunnel as anyone and did not believe the objections raised against it. He signed anyway because he believed his countrymen were such fools that the military and naval element could stampede and frighten the masses, stimulating militarism and demands for an increased army and navy. He cited a past scare that led to millions spent on useless fortifications.
Chapter 26
How did Beecher describe his intellectual debt to Spencer at the Delmonico's banquet?
At the banquet given for Spencer at Delmonico's, Henry Ward Beecher turned to Spencer and said that to his father and mother he owed his physical being, but to Spencer his intellectual being. He credited Spencer with providing safe paths through bogs and morasses at a critical moment, calling him his teacher. Carnegie noted the slow, solemn tones and deep feeling, and Spencer was touched.
Chapter 26
What works did Carnegie credit with resolving his doubts about theology?
Carnegie says that while in a stage of doubt about theology, the supernatural, and salvation through vicarious atonement, he fortunately came upon Darwin's and Spencer's works: "The Data of Ethics," "First Principles," "Social Statics," and "The Descent of Man." Reading how man absorbed salutary mental foods and rejected deleterious ones, light came as in a flood. He adopted the motto "All is well since all grows better."
Chapter 26
CHAPTER XXVI4 cards
What word did Carnegie suggest changing in Blaine's Yorktown address, and why?
Blaine's address hoped peace between the English-speaking nations would last for "many" centuries. Carnegie disliked "many" and suggested "all" the centuries to come, which Blaine called "perfect." The address was delivered with the phrase "for all the centuries to come."
Chapter 27
How did Governor Ritter's speech help pass the inland fresh waters bill?
Strict constructionists argued only salt-sea harbors fell under federal authority. Ritter, a German ex-governor speaking for the first time, said he didn't know much about the Constitution but wouldn't give a cent for one that didn't wash in fresh water as well as salt. The House erupted in laughter and the bill passed.
Chapter 27
What did Carnegie do to resolve the dispute between Quintana and Chairman Blaine?
Carnegie believed the excited colloquy stemmed from a false translation. He slipped behind the chairman on the platform, whispered that an adjournment would let the differences be adjusted, and Blaine nodded assent. Carnegie moved adjournment, and during the interval everything was satisfactorily arranged.
Chapter 27
Why did Pittsburgh renew its request for a library after refusing Carnegie's first offer?
Pittsburgh had declined Carnegie's first offer; Allegheny City accepted instead. After President Harrison visited Allegheny to open its library, Pittsburgh's Council asked Carnegie to renew the offer, agreeing to spend a larger percentage on maintenance. Carnegie then offered a million dollars instead of two hundred fifty thousand, starting the Carnegie Institute.
Chapter 27
CHAPTER XXVII4 cards
Why did Carnegie visit Washington during the Chili quarrel?
Carnegie went to Washington to try to reconcile the United States and Chili, hoping to prevent war. As a member of the first Pan-American Conference, he knew the South American representatives and was on good terms with them. He argued to President Harrison that honor wounds must be self-inflicted and that the dispute involved foreign, not American, sailors.
Chapter 28
How did Blaine and Carnegie explain Salisbury's repudiation of the agreement?
Carnegie argued that Salisbury was powerless: Canada protested the stipulations, and Britain also faced a dispute with Newfoundland, so no British government could add Canadian dissatisfaction to Newfoundland's. Once Blaine was convinced, he brought the President into line, and they accepted Salisbury's proposal for arbitration, believing he had done his best.
Chapter 28
What was Blaine's proposed joint police arrangement for Behring Sea?
Blaine suggested that Britain and America each place two small vessels in Behring Sea with equal rights to board or arrest fishing vessels under either flag, effectively a joint police force. Salisbury cabled Ambassador Pauncefote to congratulate Blaine on this 'brilliant suggestion.' Carnegie cites it to show that willing statesmen are sometimes unable to coöperate.
Chapter 28
How does Carnegie characterize Blaine as a statesman?
Carnegie calls Blaine a great statesman of wide views, sound judgment, and always for peace, citing his calm handling of the Chili war threat, the Force Bill, and the Behring Sea question. He says Blaine's reputation as an aggressive American actually enabled him to make concessions others could not, and that he would have made an excellent and safe President.
Chapter 28
CHAPTER XXVIII4 cards
Why did Hay, White, and Carnegie clasp hands in London in 1898?
They agreed in Hay's London office that the United States should not annex the Philippines, upholding the traditional policy of avoiding distant and disconnected possessions and keeping the empire within the continent, especially out of the vortex of militarism. Hay, however, privately wondered how far it was now possible to withdraw from the Philippines.
Chapter 29
What did Carnegie think of Bryan's advice on the Treaty of Peace?
Carnegie held that Bryan could have defeated Philippine annexation in the Senate with one word, but Bryan advised his friends that it was good party policy to let the treaty pass and discredit the Republicans before the people. Carnegie thought it unworthy to subordinate such an issue to party politics and could not be cordial to him for years.
Chapter 29
How did McKinley reverse his policy on the Philippines, according to the chapter?
The author argues the Cabinet, led by the President, had agreed to ask only for a coaling station, and such instructions were reportedly cabled to the Peace Commissioners at Paris. After a tour through the West where he was cheered on the flag and Dewey's victory, McKinley returned believing withdrawal would be unpopular and reversed the policy; Carnegie says a Cabinet member told him every member opposed the reversal.
Chapter 29
What did Carnegie and Roosevelt discuss about leaving the Philippines in 1907?
At supper at the White House, Roosevelt pointed to Secretary Taft and himself as the two men most anxious to get out of the Philippines. When Carnegie asked why they did not, both believed duty required preparing the Islands for self-government first. Carnegie called this the policy of not going into the water until you learn to swim, but said the plunge must come someday.
Chapter 29
XXIX. MEETING THE GERMAN EMPEROR 3663 cards
Whom does Carnegie meet in Chapter XXIX of his autobiography?
The chapter title identifies the encounter as "Meeting the German Emperor." Carnegie devotes the chapter to recounting his meeting with the German Emperor, an episode he considered notable enough to name the chapter after. The chapter appears late in the autobiography, following his accounts of his business career and philanthropy.
Chapter 30
What does the illustration list place near the end of the book?
The front matter lists illustrations, including portraits of Andrew Carnegie, his mother, his brother Thomas, and figures such as Thomas A. Scott, John Pierpont Morgan, William E. Gladstone, Herbert Spencer, and Matthew Arnold. It also lists views of Dunfermline Abbey, Skibo Castle, and the Carnegie Institute at Pittsburgh, followed by the bibliography and index.
Chapter 30
How is the autobiography's back matter organized after the main text?
Following the main text, the volume contains a bibliography beginning at page 373 and an index beginning at page 377. The illustration list appears at the front, before the autobiography proper. These elements indicate the book was prepared as a complete published volume with reference apparatus for readers.
Chapter 30
CHAPTER XXIX4 cards
How did Carnegie first meet the German Emperor at Kiel in 1907?
Carnegie went to Kiel with Ambassador Tower to register on the Emperor's yacht, expecting no meeting. The Emperor came on deck, asked Tower why he had come, and on learning Carnegie was aboard said to present him at once. The Emperor approached from behind and touched Carnegie's shoulder; Carnegie raised both hands and said the meeting happened as he wished, with no ceremony.
Chapter 31
What exchange did Carnegie and the Emperor have about kings and Robert the Bruce?
The Emperor said he had read Carnegie's books and teased that Carnegie does not like kings. Carnegie replied he does not like kings but does like a man behind a king when he finds one. The Emperor named Robert the Bruce as his boyhood hero; Carnegie noted Bruce is buried in Dunfermline Abbey, his native town, and that Bruce was more than a king, leader of his people, with Wallace the man of the people coming first.
Chapter 31
What did Carnegie argue about the German navy and the prospects for peace with Germany?
The author argues it is very unwise, because unnecessary, to enlarge the German navy, though the Emperor insists the navy is too small to affect Britain and was never meant as a rival. Carnegie believes Germany's industrial aims favor peace and that the world has little to fear from her, while noting the Emperor claims twenty-four years of rule without shedding human blood.
Chapter 31
What did Carnegie identify as the obstacle to world peace in his 1914 reflection?
Carnegie wrote that the Emperor could have secured world peace had he not been surrounded by a military caste that gathers about one born to the throne and becomes as permanent as the ruler, proving its power whenever war was at issue. Carnegie concluded that until militarism is subordinated, there can be no world peace. He added that the 1914 war made him dare not relinquish all hope.
Chapter 31
D. Reid, _The Telegraph in America_, New York, 1879.)4 cards
What extra press work did Carnegie take on, and what did it pay?
Carnegie made five copies of all press dispatches for a single reporter appointed to serve all the Pittsburgh newspapers. He was paid one dollar per week for this extra work, which raised his salary to thirty dollars per month. He calls it his first work for the press and notes that every dollar counted in those days.
Chapter 32
How did Carnegie describe his method of filling in lost telegraph words?
The lines worked poorly and much had to be guessed during storms. Carnegie preferred filling gaps rather than interrupting the sender over a lost word or two. He says his guessing was called phenomenal and was safe for foreign news because his knowledge of British affairs was extensive, so he was usually right if he got the first letter or two.
Chapter 32
What were Carnegie's two rules for public speaking?
Carnegie credits the Webster Literary Society with his self-possession before audiences. His two rules were: make yourself perfectly at home before your audience, and simply talk to them, not at them. He adds that one should not try to be somebody else but be one's own self and talk, never 'orate' until one can't help it.
Chapter 32
How did Carnegie come to work for Thomas A. Scott?
Scott, superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad's Pittsburgh division, needed frequent telegraphic communication with Altoona and visited the office at night. An assistant told Carnegie that Scott had asked whether he could be obtained as clerk and telegraph operator. Carnegie said Scott could have him and was engaged February 1, 1853, at thirty-five dollars a month.
Chapter 32
D.4 cards
How did Carnegie respond when White and Holls suggested he fund a Temple of Peace?
Carnegie refused to act presumptuously, saying he could never offer on his own initiative. He told them that if the Government of the Netherlands formally requested the temple and hoped he would furnish the means, he would consider it favorably. When the Dutch Government later applied through Minister Baron Gevers, Carnegie agreed, and the government drew a draft for a million and a half that he kept as a memento.
Chapter 33
Why did Carnegie initially decline the presidency of the Peace Society of New York?
Carnegie declined because he claimed to be kept very busy with many affairs, which was true, but his conscience troubled him afterward for refusing. He reasoned that if he would not sacrifice himself for the cause of peace, what would he sacrifice for? When Reverend Lyman Abbott, Reverend Mr. Lynch, and others came to urge reconsideration, he accepted the presidency and promised to do his duty.
Chapter 33
What childhood connection did Carnegie have to Pittencrieff Glen and its Laird?
Carnegie's grandfather Morrison began the campaign for Dunfermline's rights to the Abbey grounds, and his uncles continued it; the Laird then barred any Morrison from the Glen. Carnegie, a Morrison, was debarred and thought of the Glen as paradise. He later bought it from Colonel Hunt for forty-five thousand pounds and gave it to Dunfermline as a public park.
Chapter 33
What did Carnegie's trust deed say the Dunfermline gift should accomplish?
The trust deed said the gift should bring more 'sweetness and light' into the monotonous lives of Dunfermline's toiling masses, giving them, especially the young, charm, happiness, and elevating conditions that residence elsewhere would have denied. Success meant that a child of his native town, however far it roamed, would feel life was made happier and better simply by being from there; otherwise the trustees failed.
Chapter 33
M.4 cards
What did Mark Twain write to Carnegie about the professors' pension fund?
Twain sent a letter addressed to "Saint Andrew" after Carnegie sailed for Scotland, joking that Carnegie could take his halo: had Carnegie told him at his bedside what he had done, he would have gotten it then and there. Twain calls it "pure tin and paid 'the duty' when it came down."
Chapter 34
How did Clemens respond to his partners' bankruptcy, according to Carnegie?
Carnegie says two paths lay before Clemens: the legal path of bankruptcy, surrendering property and starting afresh, which was all he owed creditors; or a long, thorny struggle with everything sacrificed. Clemens chose the second, saying the issue was not what he owed his creditors but what he owed himself, and paid his debts by lecturing worldwide.
Chapter 34
What does Carnegie argue the public misunderstands about Mark Twain?
The author argues the public knows only the amusing side of Clemens and little suspects he was a man of strong convictions on political and social questions and a moralist of no mean order. Carnegie cites his trenchant pen against Aguinaldo's capture by deception, saying Junius was weak in comparison.
Chapter 34
What words did Clemens say to Carnegie after Mrs. Clemens died?
On Carnegie's first call after Mrs. Clemens passed away, finding him alone and before either had spoken, Clemens pressed his hand and said, "A ruined home, a ruined home." Carnegie writes that never had three words left so keen a pang, and years later he still hears them and his heart responds.
Chapter 34
Source and licence
Text used: Project Gutenberg eBook #17976 (Public domain in the United States). Generated from the full text; cards paraphrase the source.
Version: Public domain edition. Retrieved 2026-11-02. Cards reviewed 2026-11-02.
These cards paraphrase the text for study. They are not a substitute for reading the book, and they do not reproduce long passages.
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