John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie's attack on their given titles of "Robber Barons".

Despite the fact that many had viewed John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie as "Tycoons of Industry" or "Robber Barons", these two industrial giants begged to differ. "Robber Baron" was a name given to industrial giants in the late 19th century who were believed to have become wealthy through unethical means, such as questionable stock-market operations. Rockefeller once stated "...and only through such successive steps and by a great aggregation of capital is America today …

…stated that capitalists were modest and did not live ostentatiously although most capitalists of his time did flaunt their wealth. It seems that the statement given by Andrew Carnegie provided a sense of security and a newfound trust within capitalists. He tried to prove that he was not at all a "Robber Baron" of his time. He portrayed capitalists such as himself as men of wisdom and not shrewd men that hand swindled their wealth.