Chapter 9 7 Berkshire.Hathaway

For New Bedford, Massachusetts, it is truly miraculous to experience two economic booms instead of one.Since the Puritans built it, it has experienced the baptism of British plunder during the American Revolutionary War and has become a trade center for the world's whaling industry.Wet, sea-salt-soaked cobblestones run down to the pier that once brought New Bedford to life and put the town at risk for the whaling industry.A local seaman - Herman."Perhaps the most livable town in all of England," says Melville. So how did its wealthy class rise? "Look at the symbolic iron harpoons surrounding the towering mansions in the distance! You'll find the answer to your question...they've all been dragged here from the bottom of the ocean."

During the Civil War, whalers suffered huge losses.They were doomed when the first oil well was drilled in Pennsylvania.New Bedford, however, seized on the body in a shudder—thanks to the prescient diversion of its capital. Back in 1947, whalers in New Bedford financed the construction of a spinning mill.The aim is to reduce the city's dependence on the sea.A later textile mill was built, named after the whaler Akushnit, marking a shift in capital flows.In the end, some $100 million was invested in the textile industry, and even when the Harpoons lay idle, the steamships still piled up in the docks with bales of southern cotton.By the early 20th century, New Bedford's 70 spinning mills were spinning better cotton than any other city in the country.

The most prominent experience is: capital is infinitely mobile.The ship may rot, but profits need not be thrown overboard at the captain's lamplight.It is this that has kept the largest spinning mill in the city alive for almost 100 years. The Hathaway Manufacturing Company was founded in 1888 by Horatio.Founded by Hathaway.The Hathaway family started to operate China's sailing industry in the early 19th century.Its capital of $400,000, mostly from whalers, is evident this time from its location on Cove Street - directly facing the ocean. The New Bedford Evening Standard trumpeted that the ambitious new enterprise would "employ about 450 workmen and operate 30,000 spindles".Hetty.Green is Warren.One of Buffett's original investors in Spinning Mills, she was a notorious miser who went by the nickname "Wizard of Wall Street."

Hathaway's fortune, and that of the trade as a whole, grew with the increase in cotton.Profits reached an all-time high during World War I, thanks to the army's high demand for uniforms and flying clothing.In Nebraska, 30,000 workers—nearly half the workforce—worked in the spinning mills. Later, the textile factories suddenly failed, or fled to the south in search of cheap labor.During the 1920s New Bedford workers - most of them immigrants - were forced to endure wage cuts again and again, and in 1928 the spinning mill owners demanded a further cut of 10%; They had no choice but to go on strike, which lasted painfully for five months.Afterwards, many spinning mills failed to reopen, and those that did were soon too sluggish to stall.By 1940, the workforce in the textile industry had shrunk to just 9,000.

It is worth mentioning that the owners of the factory have a very cold evaluation of the declining industry.By the end of the 1920s, they were running their factories with outdated machinery, even though they were still making good profits, and dividends were still pretty high -- basically 10%.Owners pay ① Green, a shipping heiress, is said to have wrapped herself in newspapers to keep warm in winter.She died in 1916.as the world's most prestigious Also the richest woman, she left a fortune of $1 billion. Gold went to the spinning mills in the South, to the stock market, and to spending on their yachts.

Wherever the money went, the owners took to heart the whalers' admonition that if the industry were to die, they would not reinvest it in spinning mills.There's only one exception: Hathaway Manufacturing. Hathaway is run by Seaberg.Stanton operates.He is a proud, respectable New Englander.His grandfather was the captain of a whaling ship, and his father was the president of Hathaway.Young Seaberg was born in Nebraska, graduated from Harvard in 1915, fought in France, and was promoted to lieutenant on the spot.He returned after the war as Hathaway's rightful heir, working as an apprentice in a spinning mill.If he hadn't met Warren.Buffett, he might be there for half a century.

Stanton is 6.2 feet tall and lanky.He appeared serious and indifferent, with sharp eyes like a sword.The moment that sealed his fate came in 1934, at the height of the Great Depression.One by one the spinning mills closed down or moved south, but Stanton, a seafarer like his ancestors, was determined after careful consideration to ride out the storm safely.He conceived a plan to modernize the factory.In the next 15 years, he invested a total of 10 million company funds back into the spinning mill. With the creed of American loyalty, Seaberg and his brother Otis walked into the pawn shop and bought Hathaway stock.They carry the noble notion that if shareholders' money is at risk, their own money should be in the same boat.With Seaberg at the helm, the red-brick spinning mill on Kaufstrasse bravely withstood the waves.

The ensuing years were mixed, as Hathaway established a branch of the synthetic fiber mill and became a leading manufacturer of rayon.The need for parachute fibers in World War II was nothing short of a shot in the arm.After the war, Hathaway continued to develop rayon, and finally became the largest manufacturer of men's clothing shirts in the country, perhaps in the world. The trouble is that the products are very easy to imitate.It has gradually been strongly impacted by manufacturers from the South and even the Far East.Then, in 1954, a hurricane swallowed the entire factory, causing it severe damage.Stanton received a lucrative invitation to go south to make a new choice, but the old captain never surrendered.He was unwilling to leave New England, so he decided to combine Hathaway with Berkshire, an equally vulnerable northern manufacturer.Fern Spinning Society merged together.

Berkshire's blood can be traced back to Samuel.slater.He established the country's first spinning mill in 1790.Oliver.Chase, a carpenter who had worked for Slater, followed up with his own spinning mill in Rhode Island in 1806, and the business continued to prosper as the Chase family continued. A century and a half later, the Chase family still controls Berkshire, which has become a collection of factories specializing in the production of staple fibers for bed sheets, shirts, handkerchiefs, muslin and petticoats. Like Hathaway, Berkshire was highly profitable during and for a short time after World War II, and it suffered a similarly difficult time afterwards.However, Malcolm.President Chasi took a very different tack than Stanton.Hathaway has modernized and established fashion, ready-to-wear linings, and curtains; and thrifty Berkshire still uses ancient machinery to process cotton.Chase—also a gray-haired, thin New Englander who had been in business since 1930—felt that the industry had no future in New England, and he had no potential.His nephew Nicholas.Brady — who later became Treasury Secretary — evaluated Berkshire as his senior thesis at Harvard Business School in 1954.His conclusions were so disturbing that he promptly sold his shares.

① Hathaway has nothing to do with Hathaway shirts. The two companies merged in 1955 to form Berkshire.Hathaway.The new company is huge, with 14 factories, more than 12,000 workers, and annual sales of 112 million. Some people think that the combination of Hathaway's modern management and Berkshire's cash preservation will become a powerful overall. Corporate headquarters moved to New Bedford with Stanton as president and Chase as chairman. Stanton took a look at Berkshire.When he saw thousands of looms running on pulleys connected to the roof, he decided to modernize.He put in new yarn, reset and increased the speed of the looms, and merged all the best factories into one.

Seaberg.Stanton has a certain nobility, in his mind, he is Samuel.The continuation of Slater.Slater was "a man of great imagination, who wove a kingdom together with rushing rivers, whirling flywheels, crude looms and yarns." All experience to guide their own forward.That period is in his memory a "time when people depended on their own resources and courage to survive".Under his stewardship, Berkshire.Hathaway became New England's largest—and eventually the only surviving—textile manufacturer. From an economic point of view, he might as well go whaling.According to one lieutenant: "Sieberg has no idea of ​​return on investment, he only cares about one thing - and that is to keep the factory running." Always limit his additional investment. In the process of managing, Stanton became increasingly withdrawn.He strictly required managers to wear multicolored argyle socks and white shirts, and secretaries to wear gloves and long trousers.He also severely punished anyone who wore a blazer in public: he seemed to be the master of the territory, and almost all communication with others was in the form of written reports.He works in a state of formidable alienation, known behind his back as "the ivory tower".According to Malcolm.Chase said: Seaberg had an office in the attic room on the second floor, and everyone who walked into his office passed his secretary, the secretary, and her own secretary.If you were called to his office, you had to climb a long flight of stairs, at the top of which was a door with a long conference table, beyond which was Seaberg's office. At noon, he would step down from the well-equipped ivory tower and get into a long-awaited Cadillac.The car drove him past the working-class timber-framed houses in the South End and back home for lunch.Although the spinning mill buildings could be seen from his stairs, Stanton barely had any contact with the workers.He meets the night shift workers once a year at Christmas time.He descended sullenly from the ivory tower to shake hands with the workers -- the workers carefully anointed their hands with grease, expecting a gentle shake from the boss. Seaberg and his younger brother Otis are at odds.Otis was quite dissatisfied with Seaberg's heavy investment plan, and he was quite dissatisfied with Seaberg's insistence on cutting wages at the risk of a strike.The factional struggle between the two brothers gradually permeates the entire company. Otis spends part of his time in New Bedford and part of the company's sales office on New York's Garment Avenue.He was an extroverted, passionate man who was very committed to Hathaway's rayon fiber garment lining business.It was Otis who marketed Hathaway's synthetic fibers, including its lining material, to "converters," who would dye and process the material and sell it to garment manufacturers.During the war, other suppliers have been focusing on red envelopes mixed with a small amount of fiber materials, but Otis has always adhered to the principle of honesty and no deceit.After the war, the supply became much more abundant, and those customers who liked him paid him back by placing orders. However, Seaberg, who specializes in manufacturing, encroached on Otis' territory.He set up a new division so that fiber materials could be finished in-house and sold directly to manufacturers—thus eliminating the need for processors.This move seems sensible for New Bedford, but it ignores an important fact of the trade.The textile business was controlled by non-Jews, but the processors were Jewish, as were the garment makers. "You have to live with them in order to do business with them," Stanley said.Rubin, a vice president of sales at Berkshire in New York, explained: "It was the worst mistake Seaberg ever made, and it was the beginning of the end." Gradually, Berkshire has become like a house with deeper and deeper cracks in the walls.As Seaberg touts the bright future of the textile industry, those in New York who market companies to process fiber—“gray goods,” as they call it—sneer.The business collapsed before their eyes.Once, when a Berkshire salesman was staying with a client on Fifth Avenue, the salesman wanted to sell handkerchief fabric.The customer pointed out the window at a woman who walked into a Lauder & Taylor and said, "See? All the women are carrying handbags, and in each handbag is a box full of Clenex wipes. That's the end of the handkerchief industry." sign." By the end of 1961, Berkshire had only seven factories left.In its first three years, it invested 11 million back into the business.Although the number of spinning mills increased, business did not grow much.Its "common plain" fibers couldn't stand out from other manufacturers' products, leaving Berkshire helpless as competitors flooded the market.So in 1962, the year its modernization was completed, it suffered a staggering $2.2 million in damages. At this time, the blood feud between Seaberg and Otis finally intensified.That's because Seaberg intends to pass on his position to his son.Jack.Stanton was a tall, thin man with a face like stone sculpture, who looked a lot like his father.But there was a hint of melancholy in his cloudy blue eyes.Jack followed in Seaberg's footsteps to Harvard, fought in World Wars, and threw a good number of good shots in the Navy. The athletic college in Philadelphia invited him to campus, but Seaberg wouldn't let him.Seaberg, the conscientious son, gave up baseball and went to work at the loom, "shoulder to shoulder with the workers, covered in oil." In 1962, the grim Jack jumped to the position of comptroller, and the 70-year-old Seaberg planned to appoint him as president after a few more years of work.Otis and Malcolm.Chasi felt that Jack was not qualified enough, so he began to secretly look for another candidate. Berkshire's stock is getting a cold shoulder on Wall Street.Richard, a securities analyst who studies the value curve.Tilly had recommended Berkshire stock in 1955.The price at that time was $1434/share.Over the next few years, Tilly experienced an oversupply in the market and closures of spinning mills.By early 1963, the stock had fallen to 8.13—a 45% drop from the initial investment. But the flame of hope in the textile analyst's chest was not extinguished. In March 1963, Tilly reported that Berkshire was in a much more promising position than it had been for quite some time, and in June he jumped out without hesitation, predicting modest quarterly profits, while In September, he had to swallow a bitter fruit: As previously estimated, Berkshire is now likely to split into earnings.This trend has led to a temporary softening of market prices as a large number of cotton fabric manufacturers have rapidly switched to blended fibers. No profit "for now" due to "temporary" weakness.This situation continued for 8 years. According to economic theory, if a company is not doing well, sooner or later investors will Can put its assets to greater use, so it took over, all this happened when Buffett and Tillison noticed Berkshire at the same time.It was the 1950s, and Buffett was working at Graham-Newman.howard.Newman visited Berkshire and decided to buy it. And until 1962, Buffett was just a bystander who witnessed the company's miserable operations.At this time, the stock price had fallen to $8 per share, and Berkshire's working capital was worth $16.50 per share, which looked like a pretty good opportunity, so Buffett bought some shares through partnerships.However, he has not yet had the idea of ​​​​taking it over.He handled it like any other stock and assumed he would hold it for years. However, as his interest gradually increased, Daniel.Coyne, a broker friend in New York, found him a large pile of stocks. By 1963, Buffett Partners had become the company's largest shareholder.Buffett temporarily concealed his shareholder status, and Coyne acted as his own smokescreen to secure a seat on Berkshire's board. Then, word got out that Coyne's client was Buffett.Stanley, Berkshire's sales director.Rubin knew Buffett, so he called to ask if Buffett was interested in buying more stocks. Buffett said vaguely: "It is possible, and it is impossible." But still no one realizes what kind of action Buffett will have. Not long after, Buffett visited the spinning mill.When he learned about Jack.Once Stanton had copies of Berkshire's financials from the 1920s, he was so excited that he rushed to make another copy.He then asked to see the factory building, and Jack recalled: "I was very busy at the time, so I sent Ken Chase to accompany him." So Jack made the mistake of his life.Otis had long considered taking Ken.Chath (who had no connection to Malcolm) was chosen to replace Seaberg.But neither Seaberg nor Jack, salivating over the power and position, noticed this.Chasi is an approachable chemical engineer in his late 50s.He's a local guy who always drives a Chevrolet.He studied at a textile school called New Bedford, entered Hathaway's synthetic fiber department in 1947, and worked his way up to the top position of vice president of production. For two days, the square-jawed Chath led Buffett around the spinning mill, and everything Buffett could see seemed to be from Samuel.From Slater's sketchbook, thick bales of raw cotton disappear into giant funnels, fibers woven into glistening transparent webs, their rope-like filaments floating in thousands The spinning frame of the platform was twisted into sand threads, as if soldiers were gathered together.No matter how Buffett feels, there's always something compulsive about an industry that's no longer celebrated.It has similarities to the spirit of New England.According to Chase: Warren asked questions like a madman.About marketing, about machines, about what I think should be done, how should the company develop; about its technical lifespan, what kind of products we are currently selling, and who are we selling to, etc... For everything He wanted to get to the bottom of it all. Chase spoke candidly about the company's problems, and Buffett thought he had found the man he was looking for. He didn't say much, but at the end of the trip, he left Chath a hint: "Ken, I'll keep you in touch." Meanwhile, Stanton finally realizes he's under siege. In 1964, Berkshire repeatedly asked to buy back stock -- which would increase the percentage of stock Stanton controlled.Buffett was hesitant to sell at this point, but he thought Stanton was trying to play a price game. "The two of them had a dispute over the price of $3/8", otherwise Buffett would have sold the stock.According to Charlie.Inge recalled: "Berkshire became Buffett's property absolutely by accident." As a corporate institution, Berkshire has nothing to admire, but Buffett felt that the accounts between himself and Stanton were not settled, so he didn't want to stand by.Buffett Garstanton has a big difference in one understanding. Although Buffett, as usual, let other people specialize in planning, he still feels that he is not satisfied. Dan.In his ivory tower, Coyne and Stanton engaged in a verbal battle over the issue.Stanton yelled that he didn't need anyone to tell him what to do.When Edmund.When Rigby learned that Coyne was representing Buffett, the executive vice president rushed in and warned Stanton, "You shouldn't be talking like that to our major shareholders!" Then things came to a head.The outspoken executive who gave Buffett a tour of the plant was worried about Berkshire's future.So he had a conversation with a competitor in South Carolina. In early 1965, Stanley.Rubin called Chath once and asked him to stay put.Chas asked him why he did this, and Rubin said mysteriously that just take his word for it. About a month later, Rubin called again. "You remember that Warren. Buffett? He wanted to control Berkshire. Hathaway. He already owns the stock under the name Street Brokerage." Rubin said that Buffett had something to talk to Chase Talk, hope that Chasi can meet him at the Plaza Hotel in New York. It was a beautiful spring day. Buffett and Chath walked into a small company in front together. Buffett bought some ice cream and cream bars. Buffett asked straightforwardly: "I want you to be the president of Berkshire. Hathaway, what do you think?" Chase was 48 at the time, and the man who promised to launch his career was only 34. Before Chath could agree, Buffett added that he already had enough stock to settle the matter at the next board meeting.He asked Chath to remain silent for the time being. Regarding the future of Berkshire, he said: "Think about what you need, it is your baby." The conversation between Buffett and him ended in less than 10 minutes. , but Chasi never came back to his senses. He didn't know that Buffett had approached Chairman Malcolm.After thinking about it, he proposed to be selected.Malcolm mentioned his long-standing relationship with the company and rejected Buffett.But some members of Malcolm's family have agreed to sell the company. Buffett still has a hurdle to overcome.Otis.Will Stanton sell his stock?In other words, would it harm his brother's interests?stanley.Rubin arranged for a lunch with Buffett and Otis at the Wormshula Club in New Bedford, and Otis agreed to sell the stock if Buffett agreed to buy Seaberg all on equal terms.This is a crucial breakthrough.While Jack was still fighting for the representation fight, Seaberg had little interest in it.After owning the shares of Stanley Brothers, Buffett Partners owns 49% at an average cost of $15 per share. Jack.Stanton, who had remembered being reluctant to show Buffett a factory, realized—and it was too late—that he had to see Buffett.So Jack and his then-wife Katie traveled to New York to have breakfast with Warren and Susie at the Plaza Hotel.But Jack was so timid at the time that he forgot what to say.According to a man named Ralph.Rigby's fabric salesman said Katie pleaded far more than Jack.Later, Buffett joked, "If I'm going to hire someone, I'll start by hiring Katie." Maybe Buffett wanted to change the subject, so he told Jack about his career and his growth as an investor.Jack asked him, "How do you succeed?" Buffett said he read "thousands" of financial statements every year. Buffett secretly named a director shortly after the May board meeting.Early on the morning of the official takeover, Buffett flew to New Bedford.With a crew cut, tightly buttoned and wrinkled clothes, and a briefcase and huge travel bag hanging down, he looked like a scruffy but enthusiastic salesman on a business trip. As Buffett made his way to his office on Cove Street, Seaberg emerged from the ivory tower for the last time.After calling all the conference personnel and getting ready, Seaberg read the agenda carefully without saying anything.Then, Seaberg.Stanton signed it, as if swallowing a glass of poison, and the two men stormed out of the elegant parquet-floored conference room without a word.Ken.Chase was elected president and Buffett chaired the executive committee.Otis, in a final blow to his brother, voted for the majority and secured a seat on the board, and although Malcolm's title remains chairman, Berkshire is now in charge Buffett.The stock closed at $18 that very day—May 10, 1965. Buffett's good image was almost severely damaged when a messenger handed in a copy of the afternoon Standard Times, showing the shocking news on the first page.Seaberg broke the news, berating the brothers for their estrangement and being forced to leave because of "some outside interest."Buffett seemed irritated by his concern that the public would see him as a lender—an abominable term derived from Dempster Manufacturing.But he has written publicly to praise the Stanton brothers' turnaround, and has softened his plans.On the second day's page, Buffett promised that he "will sell the same products to the same customers as before, from the same manufacturers." In the past few decades, Berkshire has closed all factories except two spinning mills, with a total accumulated net loss of more than 10.1 million yuan, its assets have been reduced by half, and only 2,300 workers are left. Only one out of every five workers in the merged firms in 1955 remains today.But his current fortune seems to be improving. The market demand for synthetic fibers is very strong, and the company can finally turn around.One would have expected to know what Tillisson would do with Buffett's arrival, but the loyal analyst disagreed with Seaberg.Stanton took the same position, with "Value Line"'s May statement on Berkshire signed by another new analyst who found the plans of the "new controlling shareholder" were unknown. After the board meeting, Buffett and Chath wandered past the historic spinning mill and sat down to talk.Chase had been ready to hear the new owner's plans for the factory, but Buffett said that anything related to yarn and looms would be handled by Chase, and he was only in charge of the funds. Afterwards, Buffett gave a candid overview of what they could expect from each.And the first point is frustrating: Buffett doesn't allow Chath or anyone else to get their hands on stock options. Buffett's disapproval of options stems from the fact that most CEOs are enthusiastic about them.Options do offer potential—sometimes huge—returns on investment; but they spread the risk for those who buy them, so the executors have greater freedom to harness shareholders' money. More nuanced, Buffett wants managers whose personal interests align with those of shareholders.A manager with options, as if isolated from shares, does not contain any losses, so it is more likely to embezzle shareholders' funds for gambling. Instead, Buffett agreed to sign a loan for Chase to buy 1,000 shares for $18,000.and That's a lot of money for Chasi, who earns less than $30,000 and often refuses to borrow even a shoelace.But Buffett is a good salesman, especially when it comes to selling himself.Like those early partnership investors, Chath sensed that good luck would come as long as Buffett was in charge.So Chasi accepted the suggestion. Buffett explained to Chath some basic theories about investment returns.He is not particularly interested in how much yarn Chath can produce or even sell; he is not interested in the total profit represented by a single figure, but in the percentage value of profit and capital investment. , this is the yardstick for evaluating Chasi's performance. Like most managers, Chasi does not believe that corporate growth is an absolute good thing. This view is still too new for him.But he realized that this was the crux of Buffett's credo, so Buffett explained this point in Chasi's easy-to-understand way: "I would rather have a 10 million yuan enterprise with a profit rate of 15%." , rather than a 1 billion-scale enterprise with a 5% profit.” Buffett said, “I can invest the money elsewhere.” That night, he flew back to Omaha. Buffett places a lot of emphasis on "elsewhere" to invest in.He relied on Chace to secure inventory and keep costs as low as possible.As Chase puts it: "One of the things Buffett cares about is moving cash faster." Buffett has kept his word and given Chace autonomy, telling him not to bother with quarterly projects and other time-wasting chores.All he needed was for Chas to send him his monthly financial statements and to remind himself of any unpleasant incidents. In fact, Buffett has established such a relationship that gets the most utility from the least contact with people.It was easy to find him, but it also had a negative side: It made Chase never call him unless he had to; and when Chase did call, Buffett never lingered on the phone for an extra minute. . "As long as I give the results and estimates for the year, he'll always remember them," Chath said. At one point, Buffett pointed out that Chath had changed a number he had mentioned on a previous call—and Chase argued for it.But when he scrutinized the records, Chath found that Buffett was right. Since then, Chasi has always double-checked the data before calling. Chasi's freedom is limited, only Buffett can allocate funds, and since most of the funds that Seaberg previously poured into textiles have long been wiped out, Buffett is no longer willing to invest more. But Chasi still made some attempts. He once made an investment proposal, giving careful research and decent project settings as the background support.And Buffett's answer was: "Ken, you can't beat the historical average." J. Wayne.MacKenzie, Berkshire's treasurer, met Buffett when he worked as an external auditor for Buffett Partners.He said, "Ken, you have to remember: Warren is using the same yardstick for a $5,000 investment as for a $5 million investment." For the first two years under the Buffett/Chas system, the market for textiles was booming and profitable.However, they did not return to invest in the textile industry.Chase cleaned up inventory and fixed assets as Buffett requested, taking a symbolic step away from the ivory tower.The company's cash position has also improved.Buffett paid only a meager dividend of US$0.1 in 1967, but he soon remembered that the money could be used better. Since then, Buffett has held on to the funds and never let go, just as he ① After the dividend was announced, Buffett said, "I must have been in the bathroom." He never paid a dividend again. As I said. For Berkshire's shareholders -- most of whom live in New England -- there's nothing to suggest that these big decisions are being made in Omaha.The company headquarters were still in New Bedford, and the annual statements were also signed by Ken and Malcolm, but any careful reader might suspect that there was a pair of hands behind the tiller at the helm. The company has been looking for a suitable position in the textile industry, but conceivably has been unsuccessful. It didn't take long to write these words, and Buffett was alarmed.For a while, he'd been researching insurance companies like Omaha: National Indemnity, whose primary owner was Jack.Ringwalt, the one who turned down Buffett's request to invest $50,000 in the partnership.Since then, Ringwalt has heard about Buffett's performance, and Buffett knows him well. Ringwalt is a clever college dropout full of tricks.他靠在大萧条时期为出租车提供保险发家，他的结论是：要想挣钱就得为那些别的承保人都不敢涉足的风险提供服务。 这一点对于我而言尤其重要，因为我的竞争者有比我更多的朋友，更高的学历，更大的 ①决心，也比我更有人性一些. 他是靠经营高风险的汽车保险来获利的，但林沃尔特愿意为任何别人不承保的风险提供保险——不论是钢锭缺陷，还是驯狮员，只要是你能叫得上名字的。因为这类保险的效益通常会更高一些。他还因为在全国各城市广播台承办寻宝节目而名声大噪。比如：某个广播台播出一系列线索，暗示说某地有一张10万美元的银行汇票。如果这张汇票被找到了，林沃尔特就会将它兑现，而这通常是不可能的，因为林沃尔特把它藏了起来，往往是被放在唇膏筒里埋在地底下。他提供的线索都很晦涩，比如这样的语句，“蒲公英不是玫瑰花，在你经过乔的家时你便来到一个街区中。”等等。他只在旧金山曾经兑现过一次。 林沃尔特是这样简明地陈述自己的哲学的：“世界上并没有一种叫做糟糕的风险的东西，而只有糟糕的比率。”这可谓一句价值千金、寓意深刻的话语。从巴菲特在跑马场上懂得了这一道理时起，他便明白林沃尔特和自己是同一类人。他们各自都乐于承担风险，但都只在成功可能垂青于他们时才这样去做。在巴菲特认识的一群人之中，林沃尔特是最吝啬的一个。他甚至在去市中心吃午饭的时候都把外衣脱在办公室里以省去一笔存衣费。 1967年时，巴菲特问林沃尔特是否可以在凯威特广场暂留一下，两人讨论一件事情。巴菲特说只需占用他15分钟的时间。那时，巴菲特已经从一位名叫查尔斯。海德的奥马哈经纪人那里知道，要想说服林沃尔特放弃国家保险公司绝非一件易事。 “你为何从未想过要卖掉你的公司？”巴菲特问道。 “也许只有恶棍和破产的人才会想要它。” “还有其他原因吗？” ① 林沃尔特的回忆录《国家赔偿公司及创始人轶事》。 “我不想让别的股东得到的每股收益比自己低。” "What else?" “我也不愿让我的雇员丢掉饭碗。” "What else?" “我想让它在奥马哈持续经营下去。” "What else?" “理由还不够多吗？” “你的股票价值多少？”巴菲特切入正题问道。 “市场价每股33美元，但股票本身每股值50美元。” “我要买下它。”巴菲特说道。 成交价格总共是860万美元，可是令人费解的是为什么一个新贝德福德的纺织工厂想要并购奥马哈的一家保险公司。但巴菲特认为没有必要把伯克希尔看作一个纺织品公司，而是看作一个其资本应被用到赚头最大的地方去的公司。 虽然纺织品行业需要厂房和设备投资，故而很消耗现金；但是保险业却是能产生现金的，收益可以马上得到，而债务可以到以后再偿付。在两者之间的时间内，一个保险公司就可以投资于基金，这在贸易中叫做筹款。 传统上来说，承保人都相当保守地经营自己的筹款，在手中持有远远多于需求的资金，但自从巴菲特早期在尝试以来就一直在认真地考虑保险这项业务。他认为保险业的筹款可以像火箭燃料一样威力巨大。筹款不过是资金，而保险公司实际上是一个可用于投资的现金通道。 巴菲特的这种观点很快就流行起来了，但在当时，保险业还是一潭死水。 许多保险公司甚至懒得公布他们的赢利情况，同时几乎也没有什么人有兴趣看这些东西，交易商查尔斯。海德说：“巴菲特比全国任何一个人都更早地领悟了筹款的本质。” 一旦巴菲特吞并了国家赔偿公司，伯克希尔就有了资金来源。在接下来的几年里，伯克希尔又并购了奥马哈太阳报公司——奥马哈的一个周报公司群体，以及规模更大的位于罗克福德的伊利诺斯国民银行和信托公司。罗克福德银行的经营者是尤金。阿贝格。他从1931年开始接手管理，当时的罗克福德一文不值，而且镇里的其他银行也处于经营不善的境地；他本人也是一个奋斗不息，牢记大萧条教训的巴菲特式的人物，仿佛是巴菲特从中央铸件中造出来的。从30年代起步开始，阿贝格打下了价值10亿美元的存款基础，并使资产收益率（银行业的主要评价指标）接近大的商业银行的最高值。 许多类似于阿伯格的年龄偏大的企业家都想在自己卖空以后就退休，而新的业主们一边称颂他们的业绩，一边巴不得将他们扫地出门。巴菲特却不同，无论经营银行，清算所还是零售连锁店，都是他领域之外的，他本人也井没有去尝试的欲望。事实上他认为，如果自己不喜欢这个企业的经营方式，那又何必要买下它呢？ 他在物色这样一类人：他们靠奋斗起家，并取得了令人瞩目的成就，有趣的是这些人都很忠实于他。阿贝格在卖企业给巴菲特时已有71岁了，他们继续在巴菲特的所有权下管理着企业——这就和杰克。林沃尔特经营的国家赔偿公司，本。罗斯纳经营多元化公司一样（阿贝格将主持经营这家银行直至80高龄为止）。 其实，这群数百万富翁中没有任何人需要去工作，但巴菲特懂得：无论 大多数的人怎么说，他们对满足感的渴求与他们对金钱的渴求是一样强烈的。巴菲特让他们感到他依靠了他们，而他也通过对他们的工作表示尊敬及对他们表示信任来突出这一思想。 一次，希尔斯的一位纺织品买主怒气冲天地打电话给巴菲特，想把肯。察思弹劾下来。他提醒巴菲特说他们都认识同一位朋友，以此要求巴菲特按自己的理由撤掉这位经销商，巴菲特对这过时的套话显得极为不屑，认为这完全是感情用事，没有任何道理可言。他直率地告诉这位来自希尔斯的人士说这件事的决策取决于察思。自然，这种忠诚的表示只会更加增强察思对巴菲特的忠心。 当巴菲特把伯克希尔的资本投入到保险业、银行业以及出版业时，他还在从纺织业中抽取资金。1968年——在他许诺出售同样厂家生产的相同产品之后3年——他关闭了罗得岛上一些相对小规模的纺纱厂。它和绵织品业不可避免地拴在了一起，并且由于精美品等衬裙以及服装加硬材料市场的逐渐缩小而日趋没落。辉煌一度的棉花王国只剩下了一所纺纱厂——也就是在新贝德福德的那一家。连考夫大街上的厂房也都停工了。霍雷肖。哈撒韦创办起来的企业只剩下了纱线衬里和合成纤维窗帘的生产。 巴菲特亲自过问每一笔资金，甚至于办公室削笔刀的费用，伯克希尔的“财务委员会”会议记录——此次会议是某个夏季通过新贝德福德和巴菲特在加州度假常住的地方之间的电话召集起来的——说明任何费用都难以逃脱巴菲特的目光。 同意，确认购买一台二手的整经机和经轴架，成本估价为11110元。 同意，确认购买50台二手的64英寸XD织布机，估计成本为71160元（包括包装费在内）。 同意，确认修理办公大楼楼顶，估计成本9340元，修理装货车间地板，估计成本9940元。 在写给察思的信中，关于不确定风险，巴菲特专门提醒他，“除了现金以外什么都不要相信”。 让我们更严格地审查我们的客户，保证他们不存在财政困难。如果有人拖欠付款，那就只有当他们偿还过去所有的欠款，并且连支票也结清以后，才能给他们更多的货物。 巴菲特不对任何人例外，即使是一位非常“特殊”的顾客。70年代初，苏茜曾到伯克希尔在纽约的办公室去买一些呢绒。推销员拉尔夫。里格比说：“我们尽量以最昂贵的价格把呢绒卖给她。这是一件好事。后来巴菲特打电话来询问我们收了她多少钱。” 随着1970年巴菲特合伙人企业的解体，巴菲特个人拥有29％的伯克希尔股票。他任命自己为主席，并且首次在伯克希尔的年度报告里拟就了一封写给股东们的信。 在信中，巴菲特所用的尺度与他私下里对肯。察思的尺度是完全一样的：即权益资本收益——也就是投资的每一元钱赚到的利润百分比。在这些事上，巴菲特都保持高度的一致性。他绝不会对凯威特广场用一个尺度，而对新贝德福德用另一个尺度，再对公众用其他别的尺度。 另外，在评价投资时，巴菲特也从不放宽自己的标准。许多投资组合经理都说：“它看起来不够走红，因此我们只投资一点点吧。”巴菲特绝不会 做出这种让步，反而会老实地坦白自己是如何残忍地压下一种颇有希望的股票。他在奥马哈数据文献公司的马斯科蒂。霍德，在巴菲特重新整顿伯克希尔的时期就发现了这一点。当时霍德获得了一笔意外之财，于是希望能拥有一家自己的公司。巴菲特便答应在他独立行动前为他测评一下将来。霍德描述说： 我为他买了4～5家公司，每次我都要到他家里去。这些公司中有一家制造了一种新产品，一种供医院、饭店使用的薄纸容器。他们希望我能投入6万美元。巴菲特说：“你觉得这件事成败的可能性有多大？”我说：“相当不错。”他说：“这样就不错了吗？ 为什么你不背着一个每开启二次可能打开一次的降落伞从飞机上往下跳呢？“我为他买了另外一家——米比丽制造公司。它生产的汽车喇叭很有创意。我问：”你觉得它投资于我的量够了吗？“他说”不够“。我又问：”那你的投资足够了吗？“他说”也不够“。 他毫不犹豫地就说出口来，让人听起来觉得很新鲜，他没有任何一句解释的话语。 巴菲特愈发觉得纺织业和臆想中的降落伞下降属于同一类事物，不论制造商们投入多少，他们都无法抬高价格。因为这种产品是一种日常品，而且总是处于供过于求的境况中，所以，他们再也不愿意追加投资了。 令人啼笑皆非的是在1970年来自于纺织业的利润只有45000元，但是，它从保险业赚了210万，从银行业赚了260万。而这两个行业在年初的时候，动用的资金量和纺织品业是大体相等的。 在他的年度报告中，巴菲特对肯。察思的工作态度和表现表示了敬意，但他也提出纺织业“正逆着一股强大的潮流而上”。他直截了当地指出的回报率是10％，达到了美国公司的平均水准，而且“它远远超出了假如把资源全部投入到纺织行业中去可以得到的回报率……” 当然，关于巴菲特作为一个外人，是否会关闭纺织厂这个问题从最开始起就一直萦绕在马尔科姆。察思心头。他声称自己从第一天起就知道巴菲特“没有任何意向想要投入资金为纺织业添砖加瓦”。Jack.斯坦顿，一直从旁观者的角度冷眼静观，他得出结论说巴菲特不过是个清算者而已。 但是巴菲特却始终在进行适量的再投资。他不想被世人认为是他关闭了新贝德福德的最后一家纺织厂。在给合伙人的最后一封信中，他写道： 我喜欢在纺织业工作的人们，他们在如此恶劣的条件下为了改善企业辛劳地工作；而且，尽管回报率不高，只要它的产量保持在当前水平，我们就希望把纺织业继续经营下去。 他觉得自己欠肯。察思的情，是他给巴菲特提供了多元化经营的现金，而在他身上，巴菲特看到了自己最为赞赏的品质：坦诚、自立。有一次，肯。察思自我批评时，巴菲特瞥了他一眼，说道：“肯，你从一无所有终于奋斗到了现在的地位。” 他给察思的报酬相当吝啬，结果察思得到的比其他纺织厂的竞争者要少得多。1970年的时候，察思身居此位已经5年了，他的工资还只有每年42000美元。同时，巴菲特和其他纺织公司一样对养老金计划相当抠门儿。“沃伦对于管理层牺牲股东利益为代价来牟取利益的行为非常反感。”察思说道。 但是在巴菲特的领导下，察思对自己拥有的自治权相当满意。因此他对巴菲特也是忠心耿耿，这也说明了巴菲特给人们的究竟是怎样的一种影响。 尽管他紧紧抓住钱袋不松手，但作为一个操作者，他是不寻常的。 察思曾担心巴菲特会令其停业，但他后来觉察到这位上司并不想因为关闭纺纱厂而引发一场骚乱。他知道巴菲特不喜欢变化。“沃伦倾向于继续经营下去。”察思说，“他还是留下了他的老朋友。” 要是根据巴菲特的资本家的信条，他也许应该关闭纺纱厂，但是他从内心感到自己对这古老的工厂怀有一种深深的喜爱，它的过去似乎比它的未来更有生机。他宁愿忍受一个中等水平的回报率，只要纺纱厂的现金不会枯竭而迫使他追加更多的资本。哈撒韦纺纱厂从精神上，而不是财务上，象征着一种一直被巴菲特奉为神圣的新英格兰的工作伦理学。于是巴菲特在他的良心，满足感以及金钱之间达成了浮士德似的协议。纺织业也许会衰败下去，但考夫街上的织布机还会嗡嗡地响下去。