But the Santiago campaign, the charge up San Juan hill, did not “make” Roosevelt.  It was a dramatic episode in his history; it attracted attention to him.  Such are the peculiar conditions of politics, it proved a short cut to the White House.  He said, frankly, that he would never have been President if the Rough Riders had not gone to Cuba.  In this he underestimated himself, as he often did.  He had too much ability in politics, too much courage in fighting for the cause of better government, at a time when courage was badly needed, to have failed to rise to the highest office.  Back in the days when he was Civil Service Commissioner two visitors in the White House, saw him, also a visitor, looking about the rooms.

“There is a young man,” said one of them, who knew him, “who is going to move into this house himself, before long.”

After Cuba, the next step was the Governorship of New York State.  Before he was out of uniform, the politicians began talking about him for the place.  The Republican party in New York was in a bad way.  They had quarreled among themselves; the Democrats had just beaten them in an election.  They knew they must have a strong candidate for Governor, or the Democrats, (that is, Tammany Hall) would get control at Albany.

This was the great day of the political Bosses.  Perhaps at no time since have they been quite as powerful as they were then.  A man named Croker was the Boss of the Democratic Party; a man named Platt, the Boss of the Republicans.  Men called the Boss of their own party the “Leader,” but they referred to the “Leader” of the other party as the Boss, without wasting any politeness.  Most men do not pay much attention to politics; a Boss is a man who pays too much attention to them.  He exists because the average citizen thinks he has done his whole duty if he votes on election day.  A Boss works at his business, which is politics, night and day, all the year round.  He might be very useful if he could be kept honest.  He manages to get a great deal of power, in ways that are shady, if not actually criminal.  Then, if he is one kind of a Boss, greedy for money, he sells this power to the highest bidder.  Men are nominated for office, because the Boss has picked them out, as a poultryman might select a fat goose.  Usually he selects a man who will obey orders.  But another kind of Boss does not especially care for money.  He likes the power which his position gives him, he likes to be able to move men about as if they were toy-soldiers.

Such apparently was Senator Platt, the Republican Boss of New York.  People had so neglected their duty of managing their own affairs in politics, that he had seized the reins, and could say who should be nominated.  In the same way Croker was the ruler of the Democratic party in New York, and could say who should be nominated in his party.