it was a recognizably american class. tycoon the cumulated fortunes but also felt some obligation to the country around them. steel tycoon andrew carnegie build still libraries for the edification of people beneath him. john d rockefeller and others set aside huge portions of their wealth and cases property to make the country better. maybe most significantly in january 1914 henry ford more than doubled the prevailing factory waste to remarkable $5 for an 8 hour day. he didn t have to do that but his company was succeeding and he thought he should. some historians trace the creation of the american middle class to that decision. it is nearly impossible to imagine a big company doing anything like that today. attitudes are too different. private equity isn t built in a