The House of Morgan had closely followed European events. Although later accused of World War I profiteering, it nearly engaged in clandestine diplomacy to stop fighting between the Balkan states and Turkey in 1912. The plan was to have the House of Morgan provide loans to both sides on condition that they submit to American mediation, and President Taft was to have acted as mediator. The scheme was apparently hatched by Herman Harjes, senior partner of Morgan, Harjes in Paris, and U.S. ambassador to France Myron Herrick. Jack Morgan finally vetoed the idea, fearing that the loan money would
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