ABSTRACT
Edward W. Bok arrived in Philadelphia when he was twenty-five. He was already well known; he became successful and rich. He subordinated his social life to the higher purpose of self-advancement. He attended a party, where "his latent journalistic sense whispered to him that his young hostess might like to see her social affair in print". Edward calculated how many parties he would have to attend a week to furnish a column, and decided that he would organize a corps of private reporters himself. Well before his retirement, he pronounced the high civilizational merits of suburban life. He founded the Merion Civic Association, which, under his guidance, adopted the motto: "To be nation right, and State right, one must first be community right". Bok's most meritorious philanthropic act was his support of the Philadelphia Orchestra at a difficult stage of its development.
