Mining Tycoons in the Age of Empire, 1870–1945. Entrepreneurship, High Finance, Politics and Territorial Expansion (review)

As the editor of this welcome collection of essays makes clear in his introduction, the history of mining development weaves together numerous important themes, political, economic, and social. This is particularly true of the years encompassed by this volume, witnessing the emergence of a global mining industry, when the origins of modern multinational and transnational enterprise can be detected. These selected life stories do much to illuminate the complex processes involved, and the contribution of some of the industry’s most colorful personalities. Their geographical scope is impressive, embracing the United States, Latin America, Africa, and Australia, making the collection genuinely international and comparative. The contributors have been allowed a degree of latitude in their individual discussions, allowing for a variety of perspectives and interpretations, but the volume retains its coherence, since these biographies are related to larger historical trends, illustrating changes in technology, investment patterns, and business organization.

Examining these entrepreneurs’ background, experience, and personal connections sheds light on the “general socio-cultural ethos” that produced them, and on the climate in which they operated. Notably, the majority had middle-class origins, and the fabled “rags-to-riches” story is rare. Their relatively comfortable origins, however, guaranteed no protection from the high risks associated with mining. A gift common among these characters was the ability to recognize and exploit opportunities. Although most were energetic, some (such as Horace Tabor in Colorado and Cecil Rhodes in Southern Africa) struggled to maintain their early success. Others, notably Frank Murphy in the Southwest U.S.A. and the Guggenheims, were overwhelmed by natural obstacles or uncontrollable economic shifts. Nor were they driven primarily by personal greed or competition. In discussing Rhodes, Colin Newbury detects a “complex mix of visionary, businessman and political operator.” Crucial to these tycoons’ success was a capacity to select effective and trusted subordinates. Rhodes, notoriously bored by routine, happily delegated to his partner at the De Beers Company, Alfred Beit, while the Guggenheims and Chester Beatty, mastering minor details, retained the larger picture of their operations clearly in view. Equally valuable to these tycoons were friendships and personal bonds. The use of ‘personal magnetism’ to secure the skills of others, and even their political backing, could be critical to the success of a new venture.

These essays examine the technological and other developments helping to drive the late nineteenth century mining revolution. New possibilities in prospecting, extraction, and chemical processing were grasped by leading entrepreneurs, who, like the Guggenheims in the United States and Mexico and Chester Beatty in Northern Rhodesia, soon hired technical specialists as consultants, and seized opportunities to extend their operations’ geographical range and exploit previously unprofitable lower-grade ores.

Complementing technical developments were risk-reducing financial innovations, including the investment trust, permitting collective purchases of shares in a range of mines. The resulting “houses” could provide cheaper, centralized technical services to subsidiaries, but could also reflect the tycoons’ attempts to achieve rapid speculative profits rather than serious commitments to productive mining. Further reinforcing a trend toward monopolistic organization was the increasing scale of operations, and the need for large initial spending and capital reserves to cover depressed periods. Most of the tycoons examined in this book, notably Frank Murphy and Chester Beatty, sought to expand their holdings and diversify into subsidiary industries. Similarly, amalgamation and cartelization offered devices to tackle overproduction and volatile prices. In the case of Chilean nitrates, Colonel John North, helped by friends and associates, formed the Nitrate Trust in London to address these problems.

Some of these essays lend support to the concept of “gentlemanly capitalism,” prominent in recent discussions of imperial expansion, which stresses London’s key role as a source of mining investment. Certainly, mining activity could be intimately associated with overseas territorial acquisitions, especially by Britain, fretful about the supply and control...