Most politicians are charged, certainly Mr. Roosevelt was sometimes charged, with being a selfish seeker after personal advancement.  There is not much on which to base this argument in Mr. Roosevelt’s acceptance of this office.  For the man who is looking out merely for his own ambitions, for his own success in politics, is careful of the position he takes, careful to keep out of offices where there are many chances to make enemies.  The Civil Service Commission was, of all places at that time, the last where a selfish politician would like to be.  Nobody could do his duties there and avoid making enemies.  It was a thankless job, consisting of trying to protect the public interests against a swarm of office-seekers and their friends in Congress.

It is ridiculous now to remember what a fight had to be waged to set up the merit system of the Civil Service in this country.  The old system, by which a good public servant was turned out to make room for a hungry office-seeker of the successful political party, was firmly established.  Men and women were not appointed to office because they knew anything about the work they were to do, but because they were cousins of a Congressman’s wife, or political heelers who had helped to get the Congressman elected.  Nobody thought of the offices as places where, for the good of the whole country, it was necessary to have the best men.  Instead, the offices were looked on as delicious slices of pie to be grabbed and devoured by the greediest and strongest person in sight.

The Civil Service Commission, when Mr. Roosevelt became a member, had been established by Congress, but it was hated and opposed by Congress and the Commission was still fought, secretly or openly.  Congressmen tried to ridicule it, to hamper it by denials of money, and to overrule it in every possible way.  A powerful Republican Congressman and a powerful Democratic Senator tried to browbeat Roosevelt, and were both caught by him in particularly mean lies.  Naturally they did not enjoy the experience.

At the end of his term, President Harrison was defeated by Mr. Cleveland, who came back again to the Presidency.  He re-appointed Mr. Roosevelt, who thus spent six years in the Commission.  When he retired he had made a good many enemies among the crooked politicians, and some friends and admirers among well-informed men who watch the progress of good government.  He was still unknown to the great body of citizens throughout the country, although he had been fighting their fight for six years.

He went from Washington to accept another thankless and still more difficult position in New York City.  It was one which had been fatal to political ambitions, and was almost certain to end the career of any man who accepted it.  This was the Presidency of the Board of Police Commissioners.

CHAPTER VII

POLICE COMMISSIONER