Book excerpt: Jay Gould was an individual who for a century has been singled out as the most unscrupulous of the turn-of-the-century robber barons. In this splendid biography Maury Klein paints the most complete portrait of the notorious Gould ever written. Klein's Gould is a brilliant but ruthless businessman who merged dying railroads into expansive, profit-making lines, including the giant Union Pacific. 40 illustrations.