RECOLLECTIONS OK GROVER CLEVELAND RECOLLECTIONS ^ { •a U OF GROVER CLEVELAND BY GEORGE F. PARKER, A.M., LL.D. Yet remember all He spoke among you, and the man who spoke; Who never sold the truth to serve the hour, Nor paltered with Eternal God for power; Who let the turbid streams of rumour flow Through either babbling world of high and low; Whose life was work, whose language rife With rugged maxims hewn from life. Tennyson. NEW YORK THE CENTURY CO. 1909 '■\ Copyright, 1909, by The Century Co. Copyright, 1909, by George F. Parker Copyright, 1909. by The S. S. McClure Company Published October, igog 248 5 05 THE DE VINNE PRESS CONTENTS rAGS Preface xv Introduction" 3 Collection of writings and speeches— Biographical sketch- Writing of recollections — How materials were gathered — Let- ter from Mr. Cleveland— Accuracy, how secured— Lack of gen- eral historical and biographical materials— Difficulty of public men supplying these— Estimate of Mr. Cleveland's character- Not a portrait, but studies. CHAPTER I Ancestry — Early Life 13 Mr. Cleveland's lack of interest in family history— First of the name on the American continent— Genealogical poem by the Rev. Aaron Cleveland— Marriage of William Cleveland- Birth of Richard Falley Cleveland— Enters the ministry- Pastorates in Caldwell, New Jersey, Fayetteville, Clinton, and Holland Patent, New York— Birth of Grover Cleveland— Mr. Cleveland's tribute to his father— Employment of the brothers in the Blind Asylum, New York— Recollections of Miss Fanny J. Crosby. CHAPTER n Professional Career 28 Law studies- Habits of life in Buflfalo— Ideas on education — Admission to the bar — Assistant District Attorney of Erie Count} — Family representatives in the army— Early party affi- liations—Defeated for District Attornej — Elected Sheriff of Erie County— Qualities as a lawyer described \)y Wilson S. Bissell. CHAPTER HI Mayor of Buffalo— Candidate for Governor ... 42 Condition of city politics— Nominated and elected Mayor — In- dependent attitude in dealing with City Council— Close atten- tion to public business — Frequency of vetoes and their positive character — Suggested for gubernatorial nomination — Asked to meet Daniel Manning— Letter from Edgar K. Apgar— Mr. Cleveland's reply— Visits State Convention at Syracuse— Letter of acceptance — Opinion about corporations — Remarkable cam- paign that followed— Elected Governor by an unprecedented majorit}'. vi CONTENTS CHAPTER IV FAGB Governor of New York— Presidential Election . . 56 Inauguration as Governor— Severe test to w^hich a new official is subjected — First annual message and his difficulties explained — Public questions discussed— Still the master of vetoes— Five- Cent Fare Bill — Appointments, labor, and first Railroad Com- mission—Second annual message— Working of Civil Service Reform Law— State business under better control — Discussed as candidate for President— Nomination by National Conven- tion at Chicago— Letter of acceptance, conduct of campaign, and election— National Civil Service and the silver question. CHAPTER V Organizing the Executive Departments • • • • 73 Inauguration as President— Delivery of inaugural address — Choice of advisers — Private secretary, Daniel S. Lamont — Daniel Manning — William C. Whitney — Three men chosen from the Senate for the Cabinet : Thomas F. Bayard, Augustus IT. Garland, L. Q. C. Lamar- William F. Vilas- William C Hndicott— Dealing with political managers. CHAPTER VI The Work of Administration 83 Members of Cabinet not mere clerks— Some foreign complica- tions—Mexico—Austria—England—Extradition treaty— Peril in Treasury— How the surplus was dealt with— Decline in cost of collecting revenue— Reconstruction of the navy— Mr. Whit- ney's methods and genius— Management of the War Depart- ment—Care in Department of Justice— Growth of the Post Office — Interior Department and its management— Public land policy — Attention to the Indian problem — Department of Agri- culture taken seriously— Contest with the Senate— Attitude on pensions — Extension of Civil Service Reform Law— Tariff re- form in earlier messages— The message of 1887— Character of administration. CHAPTER VII The Campaign of 1888 106 The writer called to Washington— Preparation of Campaign Text-Book in the White House— Credentials-Working oppo- site the President's room — Discovering his working habits— The old-fashioned public reception— Mr. Cleveland's popularity with subordinates— Working with Cabinet officers at night- Methods of dealing with pardon cases— First meeting with President — .Approves of matter in the Text-Book— Opinion of the plan adopted. CONTENTS vii CHAPTER VIII PAGE The Presidential Interim . 122 National headquarters— Visit to Washington— Mr. Cleveland in New York — Preparation for Boston speecii — I'irst knowledge of methods of writing— Difficulties in distribution — Opening gun for campaign of 1892— Disinclination to run again and reasons given — Renomination inevitable — Demands for speeches and letters — Organization without plan or money — "Old Roman" banquet at Columbus — Reform Club banquet — Looking for a Vice-President— Not consciously a candidate — New York a political Mecca — A queer campaign — How it gathered momentum — Class of men interested in it— Few ma- chine politicians — Course of events in California. CHAPTER IX Preparation for 1892 144 Democratic State Convention in New York — Address at Mich- igan State Universit}' — Contesting delegation chosen at Sara- toga — Two newspaper men taken into confidence — Plans adopted for dealing with newspapers— William C. Whitney's position — His interview in favor of Mr. Cleveland's nomination — His return from Europe— Energy and methods of work — Mr. Whit- ney assumes command— Conference at his house— Arrange- ments made for the convention — Meeting of conference in Chicago— Mr. Whitney's methods there— Anecdote of Whitney — Bourke Cockran's speech. CHAPTER X CaxMpaign Management 166 Mr. Cleveland as a politician — The usual management difficul- ties — Notification response, no other speech — Stevenson's letter of acceptance— Election night- Satisfaction at end of cam- paign—President without obligations. CHAPTER XI Making the Second Cabinet 174 New dealings with the newspapers— Mr. Cleveland's opinion of John G. Carlisle — Colonel Lamont — Hoke Smith — Hilary A. Herbert— Richard Olney— Secretary of State: Walter Q. Gresham — Three tenders of Agricultural Department — Kind of men desired for Cabinet — Tribute of John P. Irish — Wil- liam L. Wilson of West Virginia— Public opinion of new Cabinet. CHAPTER XII Some Foreign Conditions 187 The writer appointed Consul to Birmingham— Pressure for patronage— Diplomatic relations with England— Letter from PAGE viil CONTENTS Mr. Bayard — Effect in England of Venezuelan message- Celebrating Shakespeare's birthday— Letter from Mr. Cleve- land—Attitude towards foreign relations— His opinion of Secretary 01ne> — Preparation of message— Hoke Smith's esti- mate of Mr. Cleveland's position. CHAPTER XIII Later Campaigns— Bryan and Bryanism .... 202 Renewal of the writer's relations with Mr. Cleveland— His refusal to consider suggested renomination— Work of prelim- inary nomination canvass— Correspondence— Interest in Judge Parker's campaign— The Populist movement— High estimate of the Democratic party— Attitude of the silver Democrats- Letter showing deep feeling— Continued activity of the silver advocates — Distrust of Bryan— Convinced that latter would not be nominated in 1908— Last expressions of opinion on pub- lic questions- Letter to Mr. E. Prentiss Bailey— Sorrow over party division and impotence. CHAPTER XIV The Insurance Episode 223 Disinclination to take post— Mr. Rvan's plan for bringing this about— Letter to Mr. Cleveland— His repl> — Chairman of the Board of Trustees— Difficult work at early meetings— Care exercised in choosing directors— Address to policv-holders— Collecting ballots — Satisfaction with the work— Opinion of Mr. Ryan— Fortunate excursion into public life. CHAPTER XV Rivals— Predecessors, AND Successors 242 Alonzo B. Cornell- Charles J. Folger- James G. Blaine- Chester A. Arthur-Benjamin Harrison-William McKinley- Iheodore Roosevelt. CHAPTER XVI Civil Service Reform Jirn'*^1 *"^^''^^t in questions- Suggestion made by Professor VVillard Fiske through David B. Hill-Careful attention to pub- lic busmess- Valentine P. Snyder's expcrience-His criticism ot some Reform Associations-A new White House stenog- rapher-First appearance of George B. Cortelvou-Mr Cleve- land s admiration for him— Tribute to the merit system. CHAPTER XVII Public Patronage Wide range of opinion consulted-Did not stand upon position or dipity- Refusal to use offices for punishment of opponents -l-nendship and patronage- Pride in his appointments- Character of men put into office-Less public interest in sec- ond administration— How appointees became friends 252 265 CONTENTS ix CHAPTER XVIII PAi.E Economic Questions 285 Their study taken up after first term— Special attention to early statesmen — Attracted to Mr. Tilden — Strong friendship for Joseph E. McDonahl — Resentment of weakness in public men — Opinion of John Sherman — Attention to general taxation — Not specially interested in its incidence— Relations to railroad control— Starting the Interstate Commerce Commission. CHAPTER XIX What a Closed Room Revealed 301 Examining miscellaneous articles — Little interest in his own writings — One or two unique documents — Letter from the King of Samoa— Revelation of human nature. CHAPTER XX The South 307 Intense interest in conditions in the South — Choosing Cabinet members from that section — Danger in interfering with balance in the Senate— The question of benefits forgot— Feeling about military branches— Pain given by changed attitude— Mani- fested in letters and conversation— Pleasure experienced by changes. CHAPTER XXI Some Opinions of Men 317 Thomas F. Bayard— Mr. Bayard's opinion of Mr. Cleveland— Correspondence— J. Pierpont Morgan — James J. Hill — George Gray— Patrick A. Collins— Party position and associations — Attachment to his early political faith — Samuel J. Tilden: his knowledge of financial conditions — Preparation of the Warner letter on silver — David B. Hill — Hill's conclusions on his own ambitions— William E. Russell— John E. Russell. CHAPTER XXII Party Position and Associations 334 How he chose his party — Passed through novitiate in practical politics — Attachment to principles — Set forth in veto of Texas Seed Bill — Pride in large independence shown by his party — Sam- uel J. Tilden and Mr. Cleveland — Represented same principles and policies — Reading of first presidential letter of acceptance — The Warner letter on the silver question — Prepared by Manton Marble at suggestion of Mr. Tilden — Opinion of Tilden — David B. Hill and the campaign of 1888 — Mr. Cleveland's expressed opinion — Mr. Hill's conclusions — William E. Russell and his relations to the larger politics. X CONTENTS CHAPTER XXIII PAGE Style in Writing and Speech 347 Deficiencies in earlv training keenly felt— Method of preparing speeches or messages— Unwearied industry— Dependence upon his own efforts- Ease and fun in private letters — Correctmg his earlier speeches— Opinion of his own style— Easy manner in conversation. CHAPTER XXIV Public Opinion— Legislation— Courts 359 Disinclination to adjust himself to newspapers— Refusal to re- sort to usual methods- Appreciation of articles about himself— Not a manager of legislative bodies— High belief in judiciary and resentment of official criticisms— Care in appointing judges —The Chief-Justiceship. CHAPTER XXV Friendships— Religion 3^9 Did not mix politics with friendship— Feeling in Buffalo— En- larging circle of friendship in Washington— Appreciation of friends— Relations with Senators and Representatives— With legal associates and literary men — Correspondence with busi- ness men — Refusal to court newspaper editors— Capacity for friendship— His friendships largely political— Letters from Whitney and Vilas— Ingrained religious convictions — Opinion of the Bible— Believed ours a Christian nation— Interest in the missionary cause— Opposition to sensational preachers. CHAPTER XXVI Some Contributed Estimates 386 John P. Irish: Return of the battle-flags— Insight— Tilden's opinion— Strength of policy. William U. Hensel : At a barbecue— Manning and Cleveland- Curious gifts — His capacious memory — Pardons. Colonel Hilary A. Herbert : Reconstruction of the Navy — William C. Whitney's work— The gold standard— An amusing illustration— Relations with Spain. George B. Cortelyou : Mr. Cleveland's career remarkable in many ways— Earliest relations with him — Methods of handling his official correspondence— Home life and character as a friend — Conscientiousness. Appendix I. Chronology 407 Appendix II. Bibliography 409 Index . . 411 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Grover Cleveland. Photog^raviire Frontispiece FACING PAGE Parents of Grover Cleveland 14 The Manse, at Caldwell, New Jersey. Birthplace of Grover Cleveland 20 Daniel Manning: 52 William C. Whitney and his wife, Flora Payne Whitney . 76 William Freeman Vilas 80 Frances Folsom 100 Colonel Daniel S. Lamont 108 Mr. Cleveland at his desk 132 William L. Wilson 158 E. C. Benedict 168 John Griffin Carlisle 174 J. Sterling Morton 178 Facsimile of a letter written to the president of the Birming"- ham Dramatic and Literary Club 194 FACING PAGE xii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Richard Olney ig8 Grover Cleveland, Morgan J. O'Brien, and George West- inghouse , 228 Chester A. Arthur 246 William McKinley 248 George B. Cortelyou 260 Cleveland's second Cabinet 276 Samuel J.Tilden 288 Hilary A. Herbert of Alabama 312 Thomas F. Bayard 318 Patrick A. Collins 328 John E. Russell 332 William E. Russell 344 Dr. Joseph D. Bryant 370 J. Jefferson 382 Westland, the Cleveland home at Princeton 388 Grover Cleveland and his family at their home in Princeton, New Jersey 396 Mr. Cleveland in academic dress 402 PREFACE I HAVE explained the principles and policies that have guided me in writing this book. But no task like this can be executed without incurring agreeable obligations to many persons. The Executors of the estate have generously given me 'permission to print letters written by Mr. Cleveland, and I have received useful suggestions from his sisters, Mrs. S. C. Yeomans and Miss Rose Elizabeth Cleve- land. I owe especial thanks, to Colonel John P. Irish of Cali- fornia; ex- Attorney-General William U. Hensel of Pennsylvania; Colonel Hilary A. Herbert of -Washing- ton, D. C. ; ex-Secretary George B. Cortelyou of New York; Hon. Alton B. Parker of New York; and Mr. Herbert P. Bissell of Buffalo. They have all sent me useful contributions to history. I have limited myself, in general, to letters written by Mr. Cleveland to me, but, during the course of pre- paration, a few others, confirming personal impressions and reports of conversations, have come from Messrs. Everett P. Wheeler of New York, Kope Elias of North Carolina, Thomas Spratt of Plattsburg, and E. Prentiss Bailey, editor of the Utica Observer, to all of whom my XIV PREFACE thanks are due. Mrs. William B. Hilles has permitted me to use four letters written by her father, the late Thomas F. Bayard, while our Ambassador in England. Useful suggestions have been made by Dr. Joseph D. Bryant, ex-Secretary Charles S. Fairchild, Colonel John J. McCook, and Judge George Gray ; Messrs. E. C. Benedict, Morgan J. O'Brien, Francis Lynde Stetson, Frederic C. Penfield, Thomas F. Meehan, and Mrs. Wilson S. Bissell and Mrs. John E. Russell. Colonel Samuel R. Honey, lately of Rhode Island, now living in England; ex- Attorney-General L. T. Michener of Washington; Colonel Robert Grier Monroe of New York; and Messrs. William F. Harrity, for- merly Chairman of the Democratic National Commit- tee, John J. Lentz of Columbus, Ohio, William Duff Haynie of Chicago, Josiah Quincy, Nathan Matthews, and Robert Lincoln O'Brien of Boston, have furnished information or verified references and have thus made me their debtor. Nor can I overlook the encouragement which has come from many strangers who, during the progress of partial serial publication, have written me from every part of the country. My only regret is that, owing to the personal character of the book, it has not always been possible to use the information which they have furnished or to adopt their suggestions. Although one side of a colloquy cannot be given in exact language, the substance of conversations has been reported with scrupulous fidelity. Whatever faults or merits any of these may have, no one else can be held PREFACE XV even to the smallest responsibility cither for them, or for the opinions expressed, or the conclusions reached. The hope is indulged that the Chronology may afford the reader a bird's-eye view of a life; that the brief Bibliography may induce readers to go further ; that the unusually full Table of Contents may be a useful guide ; and that the Index may be found a real aid. George F. Parker. Winnisook Club, Slide Mountain, New York, September 8, 1909. RECOLLECTIONS OF GROVER CLEVELAND RECOLLECTIONS OF GROVER CLEVELAND INTRODUCTION After it became evident, in 1891, that nothing could prevent the nomination of Mr. Cleveland, I began to collect his writings and speeches. As it was to be a campaign for a personality, as much biographical mate- rial as possible ought to be available. Nearly every- thing dealing in a literary way with him, or his quick rise into national 'prominence, had been tentative, hurried, incomplete, and had failed fairly to represent either his attainments or his ability. Little material had been gathered which revealed the man as he really was, or showed what he had done, or how he had gone about it. In making my compilation, Mr. Cleveland gave every assistance in his power. He detected errors, suggested correct readings, and read proofs with his usual care- thus fairly completing his public utterances up to that time. The volume contained no biography and no opin- ions or judgments of the compiler, other than a critical introduction or appreciation. 4 RECOLLECTIONS OF In August, 1892, after the Presidential campaign was well under way, it was represented to Mr. Cleveland that a comprehensive biography was needed. Although no part of my plans, I undertook it. Fortunately for the emergency, I had the material ready at hand — collected, in the main, from the lips of the subject himself. It in- cluded elaborate notes of conversations and incidents, memoranda, letters, and documents. The book was written in the overtime of eleven days, and issued in newspaper and book form some six weeks before the election. Its defects were obvious: but it did condense the available facts into small compass. It drew ma- terials and inspiration from its subject, had been pre- pared at his request, and was published with his co- operation and oversight. II I THOUGHT then, and for nearly sixteen years after- ward, that I had told my story, and prolonged absence seemed to confirm this opinion. But my plans were changed and, without seeking, I was again thrown into close association with Mr. Cleveland. It was a new case of propinquity. From the beginning, the note-taking habit — part of the equipment of the old-fashioned editor — has stood me in good stead when the need came ; for, in dealing with Mr. Cleveland, as with other men or events, it had led me to record facts or traits, estimates of men, happenings, and opinions — many of them unconventional, but illum- inating. He would certainly be a stupid man who, in the conferences incident to the discussion of the details of more than half a hundred addresses, saying nothing GROVER CLEVELAND 5 of an incalculable number of other interviews, did not obtain some insight into the mind of his neighbor. It is inevitable that these recollections should deal mainly, though not wholly, with public questions and public men. His life, attention, and interests were closely linked with politics in the myriad forms it takes in this country. But, as a progressive man, he kept in touch with current thought, especially with new figures in it, and discussed in private a range of questions not touched upon in public. These would find a place in both note and memory, and in this way I gathered many interesting expressions of a man whose mind grew, day by day, to the end. To a writer who is free from the thought or necessity for making copy, opinions, thus expressed and many times repeated, noted again and again in all their varia- tions, became almost personified. There may not be agreement with them: but such association afifords many opportunities. When one knows and believes in the man, his philosophy becomes absorbing. Ill In 1893— after my long absence from the country was assured — I pressed upon three personal friends, already chosen for the Cabinet, the importance, for the truth of history, of having inside views of the administration, from beginning to end. The suggestion was well re- ceived, and I supposed, until many years later, that Daniel S. Lamont, Wilson S. Bissell, and Hoke Smith had collected and collated such a record. But the exac- tions of public life would have made it difficult even for practised writers, accustomed by training and habit to 6 RECOLLECTIONS OF take notes of documents, discussions, conferences, in- structions, or conversations. The effect is that, in this case, as in so many others, the real material of his- tory has been lost. In 1906 a little group of friends had worked out a plan which made provision for gathering, from Mr. Cleveland's still living associates and friends, estimates, in the form of opinions, and facts about his two terms as President. The materials were to be locked up for use until the time should come for telling the story of his life and service. Mr. Cleveland set no store by such things so long as they concerned him. More by acci- dent than design, after his retirement, he wrote the il- luminating story of some of the chief events of his two administrations as President for use as lectures or news- paper articles. When, therefore, he discouraged the proposed method, the plans were, in the necessity of things, dropped. Nearly eighteen months later I was surprised to re- ceive the following letter: Princeton, October 7, 1907. My dear Mr. Parker: I have lately had a letter from Henry L. Nelson, whom you know well — now a professor in Williams College — informing me that he has a commission from the North American Review to write something about me and asking if I can furnish any material in his aid outside of the State Papers and "Presi- dential Problems" which he already has. You know how thoroughly incompetent I am in this matter and how little I know about myself: but I confess to a desire that, at some time, there should be written, by some one, some things that will present the personal traits and disposition that have given direction to my public, as well as my personal, con- duct. I have written to Professor Nelson telling him of the book GROVER CLEVELAND 7 of speeches and letters you compiled in 1892 and saying that of all men yon would be the best to consult. If he applies to you I shall greatly appreciate any effort you may make in aid of the presentability of what he intends to write. Sincerely yours, Grover Cleveland. George F. Parker, 120 Broadway, New York. IV Not long after, I went to Princeton and spent some hours with Mr. Cleveland discussing many questions— among them, that of bringing his writings and speeches up to date. For the first time in our association— or with any one else, so far as I know— he willingly con- sented that I should again take up this work, not with a view to immediate publication, but for the purpose of having them ready for future use. When it was dis- covered that some instalments were unattainable at the ofifice of the newspapers in which they had been printed, he supplied the missing numbers and showed some of the interest in this question that had been felt all along by his friends. Lack of time, and stress of employments remote from writing, had driven from my mind any idea of con- tributing further to the elucidation of Mr. Cleveland's career. After finishing the sketch of 1892, I had writ- ten no more about him. But after his death the memo- ries of twenty years came thronging back as if revealed in a vision. It seemed to me that I could tell a story which might be valuable to my countrymen as an esti- mate of a man known, in his nobleness and greatness, only to a few people. 8 RECOLLECTIONS OF Upon my return to town I took counsel with friends of my own and Mr. Cleveland, who insisted that it was a duty to pay this homage to his memory. I then began a search for the materials. In dozens of drawers, pigeon- holes, boxes, and letter files, were documents, letters, notes of conversations, or minutes of organizations of which I had been secretary. More than a thousand care- fully preserved letters, written by leading men in forty States, either to me or to Mr. Cleveland— during the prenomination canvass of 1 889-1 892— were taken from their dusty hiding-places. With these aids the past lived anew. I found myself again in the atmosphere of campaign text-books; or in national conventions or committees, surrounded either by able statesmen or by pushing, eager politicians; or behind the scenes with the master mind of all. Thence- forth, business, rest, or interest in the things about me had to wait. I wrote on and on until the prescribed limits of two or three magazine articles had grown into the book here presented. If these random recollections wandering at will from topic to topic — and thus remote from formal biography — have any value, it is due to the fact that they are personal and intimate. While not based upon the report of others, but resting upon knowledge, I have not relied upon memory for a fact, opinion, inference, or report of conversations, unless it was verified by note, memo- randum, document, letter, or minute, or was checked by others. Before printing a line or being approached by an editor or publisher, the manuscript was submitted to those best qualified to know and judge, and in the course GROVER CLEVELAND 9 of partial serial publication, suggestion from any quali- fied critic has been welcomed. It has been written with high reverence and a strong sense of responsibility. I have tried, as honestly as any man could, to carry out the wish expressed in the quoted Princeton letter: "that, at some time, there should be written, by some one, some things that will present the personal traits and disposition that have given direction to my public, as well as my personal, conduct." VI Few literary deficiencies of our time and country are more apparent than the absence of satisfactory studies of our commanding public men. Our people get little from books to aid them in learning or preserving the truth about their leaders, or in promoting that dignity of history without which a nation soon loses its sense of perspective. Under existing conditions the difficulties are almost insuperable. The brevity of tenure in public life; par- tizan activity on lines which repress originality, if not thought itself; the attention given to whimsical and evanescent speech and writing; the flippancy of public comment and criticism ; the practical disappearance of the letter as a form of literature, and along with it, of diaries and note-books ; the frequent indifference of our public men to the claims of history; the ruinous tidal waves of sentimentalism which, now and again, sweep over our national life; and the truculent assertion of a false and belittling equality — all tend to reduce political biography to its lowest terms. This absence of inemoires pour servir makes it ex- lo RECOLLECTIONS OF tremely difficult for even the best-equipped historian or biographer to write, with fairness and with a decent re- gard for Hterary finish, of our public men. They are seldom surrounded officially by those endowed both with observation and literary gifts: perhaps worst of all, few contributions are made by women— whose letters, gossip, estimates, and opinions, have, in other times and countries and even in our own earlier days, enlivened and illustrated history, and, in a special way, biography : the record of human nature. VII Our public men are themselves too busy to leave other than an official record; to do more than see swarms of reporters— each on the lookout for his little catch- word — in order to discuss some temporary, snapshot phase of patronage or dispute; to defend themselves from idle or vicious criticism; or to forecast some cut- and-dried policy. While in office, with its worries and its wearing, never-ending responsibilities, they have no time or strength, even if so inclined, to lay, firmly and sensibly, the foundations for a sane presentation of their cases in the court of history ; to save themselves from a return into obscurity; or to resent or correct hideous injustice. Out of office, the tide sweeps over them and, at its ebb, generally leaves them high and dry, bereft alike of power and of interest for a mercurial public. In some instances, when the delayed memoir or auto- biography finally reaches the world — often in the form of a subscription book with its few thousands of un- critical gudgeons — our once conspicuous public man has passed into the condition of neglect which encourages GROVER CLEVELAND ii and emphasizes, in each new generation, the conclusion that the past is nothing and that the present, with its noisy buzzing insects of the hour, is all that the world holds. In this somewhat disjointed study, I have sought, within the limits of ability and opportunity, to reveal the character of the man, as I saw it, and also to demon- strate that, when afforded the necessary scope, the quali- ties distinctive of our old-time Americanism remain as potent and encouraging as ever. VIII Other than the man under consideration, we cannot expect to find, anywhere in modern life, a finer product of democracy at its best estate. Earnest, honest, a lover of mercy, charitable in disposition and manner, as free as men may be from resentments, the country has not yet realized the blessing vouchsafed it in finding for high place a man with will, capacity, and courage— one who could and would tell the truth, without concealment or abatement. /The whole of Mr. Cleveland's public life was a sacri- hce for the public good. Whether in or out of it, he stood for the dignity of his great office, not because it was his own, but for the better reason that he repre- sented his country before the world. He did not have to study for the part: it was a dignity inherent in the gentleman. He had the quality now somewhat unfashionable: reticence. He never deemed it necessary to exhibit every emotion : to cry every thought or notion from the housetops. He would no more surrender to the pass- 12 GROVER CLEVELAND ing whim of intimates, or listen to their protests, than he would when dealing with public clamor. Welcoming the new when also true, he preserved old ideals and realities. He made the reform of abuses in public life a business: not a profession. He loved humanity in all its various forms : and sympathized with its joys and sorrows ; he hated hypocrites, shams, Pharisees, pretenders, and liars: he despised none but incompetents and toadies. The outstanding points in his character were: sturdy manliness, unyielding, in- herent honesty of life and opinion, and the virility found only in real men. While the need for these qualities remains, his memory ought to furnish both example and inspiration. IX I HAVE not painted a portrait : I have only made studies. But, if anything that I have written shall conduce to a better understanding of the man, or of public life in gen- eral, or give my countrymen some conception of the steadiness and nobility of a Great Public Character, as it presented itself to me during the changes of twenty years, I shall be amply rewarded. CHAPTER I ANCESTRY — EARLY LIFE WHEN I assisted Mr. Cleveland in the work of house-cleaning, after his first return from the White House, we found many publica- tions dealing with his family history. I could but note his indifference to these— most of them being consigned to the waste-basket. He told me then, as on many sub- sequent occasions, that, in accordance with old-fashioned American ideas, and following his own inclinations, he had only taken a slight interest in the details revealed .by many industrious investigators. Since he had come into the higher politics many persons had so exaggerated the genealogical point of view that he had been inun- dated with questions about his family— most of which he could not answer. In all these publications he had found little that was new or of special value. He insisted that the traditions, which somehow drift down in American households until they take their place in the history of families, had already shown him that each generation of his ancestors had been made up of God-fearing, industrious men and good women, who — like most of our American progeni- tors long settled here— had done their duty as best they 14 RECOLLECTIONS OF could, and that he neither knew nor cared to know more than this. It was one conclusion from a long observation of life, he often insisted, that, whatever pretension or assertive- ness may suggest, there can be no better human origin than such people as these. He often expressed the opinion that a really good family is one in which the members have tried so honestly and earnestly, in successive generations, to do useful things that their success has been assured, and he was satisfied that, so long as this result is achieved, there is small cause either for pride or vanity of birth or for undue humility, and no serious danger of that degeneracy of which so much is heard from time to time. This characteristic opinion was certainly enough to discourage a biographer from an effort to deal, at any length, with the questions of his family and origin, and makes possible only a brief reference to them. As he seldom talked of them, and as, naturally, this book deals, almost wholly, with recollections, conversations, impres- sions, and opinions derived from personal association — information received from him at first hand— it af- fords little opportunity for researches of this order. II The first of the name on the American continent seems to have been Moses Cleaveland— the a was dropped within two or three generations by the immediate family of the man who was to make it known and famous. He emigrated from Ipswich in England to Massachusetts in 1635. As in a Puritan society it generally required only about two generations, from the beginning, to start GROVER CLEVELAND 17 wich, where he fitted for Yale Colleg-e, from which he was graduated in 1824. Looking- about for a place to begin his life-work, he was led to Baltimore, Maryland, where, for a year, he filled the position of tutor in a private school. Here he met and engaged himself to Anne Neal— born in Feb- ruary, 1804— but, as he had not concluded his theological studies, he left her behind to enter upon the study of his chosen profession in the seminary at Princeton. In 1829, when he was twenty- four years old, he returned to Baltimore, and he and Miss Neal were married. They settled for a time at Windham, Connecticut, in which But soon, alas! this happy reign Must for some other change again. Sewell perhaps may next bear rule ; _I 'm then a philosophic fool. With Jefferson I correspond And soar with him the stars beyond, While every fibre of the brain To sense profound I nicely strain. And then arise beyond the ken Of common sense and common men. But who comes next? Alas! 't is Waters, Rushing fearless to headquarters. He knows no manners nor decorum. But elbows headlong to the forum ; Uncouth and odd, abrupt and bold, Untaught, unteachable, and uncontrolled, Devoid of wisdom, sense, or wit, Not one thing right he ever hit. Unless by accident, not skill. He blundered right against his will; Such am I now,— no transmigration Can sink me to a lower station. Come, Porter, come depose this clown. And once for all assume the crown ; If aught in Sewell's blood you find Will make your own still more refined, If found in Cleveland's blood a trait To aid 3'ou in the affairs of state. Select such parts, but spurn the rest. Never to rule my brain or breast. Of Waters' blood expel the whole, Let not one drop pollute my soul. Then rule my head, then rule my heart, From folly, weakness, wit apart ; With all such qualities I '11 dispense, And only give me common sense." i8 RECOLLECTIONS OF place the young man had been offered the pastorate of the Congregational church. Mr. Cleveland always re- called with interest that his father had begun his pro- fessional life with the enthusiasm and energy which distinguished him to the end and that his earnest, elo- quent sermons were long remembered in the neighbor- hood in which he began his Hfe-work. His health be- coming somewhat shattered, he soon accepted a call from the Presbyterian church at Portsmouth, Virginia. He remained there only long enough to restore his he*alth, after which he returned North and, upon the recom- mendation of his former instructors at Princeton, he was called to the pastorate of the Presbyterian church at Caldwell, New Jersey, then, as now, an important village near Newark. He began work in this new field just before Christ- mas, 1834. In the parsonage attached to this modest church, Grover Cleveland was born on March 18, 1837. He was named for the predecessor of his father who, for many years, had been the pastor of the same con- gregation, the Rev. Stephen Grover. The first name, however, was seldom used even in childhood, and he him- self dropped it before he had arrived at manhood. In 1841 Richard Falley Cleveland accepted the pastor- ate of the Presbyterian church at Fayetteville, New York, a small village situated in what was then a pioneer region in Onondaga County. The settlement of cen- tral New York had only fairly begun, so that Syra- cuse, which has long been an important city, was then little more than a village. The task of reaching the new pastorate was a difficult one, so that it was only after many days of weary travel by river, canal, and wagon that the Cleveland family, then numbering, in GROVER CLEVELAND 19 addition to the father and mother, three daughters and three sons, reached its destination. The father settled down to his new and cong-enial work. Like ah' ministers in those days, the salary was small and the allowances meagre, but the energy of the husband and the watchful prudence and loving foresight of the wife and mother enabled them, in those days of the really simple life, to bring up a family, not in luxury, but with all the comforts of life. With only $600 a year, upon which few men of this type would now under- take the responsibility, there was never anything like poverty in the Cleveland home. The necessity existed for close management, for care and prudent economy on the part of all, and each member did his part in the task of making life happy for himself and for others. The family remained, at Fayetteville about ten years, when, in 1851, the father accepted the presidency of the American Home Missionary Society at a salary of $1000 a year. This involved the removal, with his wife and children — the latter now increased to nine — to Clinton in Oneida County. The ruling motive for this change was a desire to utilize the educational facilities afforded by Hamilton College, then in its youth— now become an important centre of education. Here the eldest son, the late Rev. William N. Cleveland, finished his education, and the yoimger boys were enabled to take advantage of the Clinton Academy and schools in prepa- ration for a college course. Before leaving Fayetteville, Grover, then fourteen years old, had taken a place in a grocery-store, where he was able to earn $50 a year, with the prospect of doub- ling this sum in the second year. At the end of the first period, the boy followed the family to Clinton to begin 20 RECOLLECTIONS OF his work in the academy. Mr. Cleveland always spoke with enthusiasm of his youthful experience. The duties did not greatly differ from those performed by the ordinary boy, nor did he claim that he was even more or less efficient or active than the average young merchant at this tender age, but he always did say that it enabled him to begin early in life the study of human nature and to get that insight into the motives of men which had been so useful to him throughout his public career. As the result of this and other humble experiences in early life it is perhaps safe to assert that he acquired the faculty of knowing the people and of being able to reach them as effectively as any other public man of his century, with the possible exception of Abraham Lincoln. Upon joining his family he attended the academy, where he made satisfactory progress and looked for- ward, in due time, to entering Hamilton College. These plans, however, were never carried out, for, in Sep- tember, 1853, the family removed to Holland Patent— a village about fifteen miles from Utica— the father hav- ing been called to the Presbyterian church there. Here he died on the first of the succeeding month, leaving his wife and children to struggle with the world. The mother remained in the new home and kept \vith her those members of her family w^ho had not already gone out into the world to make their w^ay. She lived in the same place until her death in July, 1882, only a few weeks before her son, then Mayor of Buffalo, was nomi- nated for Governor. Mr. Cleveland was fond of talking about his father and his courageous and successful struggle as a country minister. In the course of a long talk wnth him, in November, 1907, after he had been confined to his room GROVER CLEVELAND 21 for some months, somehow the conversation drifted to his early experiences — as indeed had been the case on many previous occasions. It was perhaps suggested by an article he had been reading in which the fact was developed that Edward H. Harriman and other men of contemporary prominence were sons of clergymen. It was one of his habits to take an interest in the careers of such men, and so he kept himself pretty well posted about them and their doings. "Looking back over my life," he often repeated, "nothing seems to me to have in it more both of pathos and interest than the spectacle of my father, a hard- working country clergyman, bringing up acceptably a family of nine children, educating each member so that, in after life, none suffered any deprivation in this re- spect, and that, too, upon a salary which at no time exceeded a thousand dollars a year. It would be impos- sible to exaggerate the strength of character thus re- vealed. It emphasizes," he continued, "the qualities of pluck and endurance which have made our people what they are," and he often said that nothing in our later development, great and commanding though it has been, was to be compared with the wonder-working process of making men and women — a fact so signifi- cant of our ideas and origin. He recalled with pride the cheerfulness and resignation of the father and mother as well as the devotion of the members of so large a family to one another, which led him to realize what a boon it was to have been a pioneer in our Amer- ican life; to have its effective discipline and to share in the honors which these people had won for themselves. 22 RECOLLECTIONS OF III The eldest son, William, had obtained employment as the principal male teacher in the Institution for the Blind at Ninth Avenue and Thirty-fourth Street, New York City, which at that time had about two hundred pupils. Returning from the funeral of his father, he arranged with the institution, of which the late Augustus Schell— later a friend and supporter of Grover Cleveland— was the president and leading trustee, to give the younger brother a place, so that within a few weeks the latter became bookkeeper and assistant to the superintendent. Mr. Cleveland often spoke of this first absence from home and of his earliest real work after going out into the world. In 1892, when I was collecting information for a sketch of his life, he referred me to Miss Fanny Crosby, a pupil and teacher in that institution from 1835 to 1858. In order to get her impressions of the young man as he appeared to her at that time, I had a long interview with her in which I had taken down steno- graphically her recollections of her former associate and teacher. Miss Crosby— who is still living in Bridgeport, Con- necticut, at an advanced age— is one of those indepen- dent persons who do not permit misfortune to keep them from hard work or from satisfying their ambitions. Blind from infancy, she has been for more than half a century one of the most popular hymn-writers in the country. During her early life she devoted herself to literary work, and, at the same time, to the promotion of the interests of the Institution for the Blind, then comparatively new and unknown and little appreciated by the families of those who had afflicted members. GROVER CLEVELAND 23 From the elaborate notes taken during my visit to Miss Crosby I was able to compile, in her own words, the fol- lowing account of her early boyish friend who was afterward to attain such high distinction: When Grover Cleveland came to the institution in 1853, he was in his seventeenth year. His mind was unusually well developed for his years ; so well, in fact, that he might be called a marvel of precocity. He was nearly full grown as to height, but slender, though he had reached mental maturity many years earlier than the average man. He had an intellectual appearance; indeed, it was surprising that one so young was able to hold a position of such importance and to make his mark in it. He seemed to have about him even then the man- ner of a mature man. It was my fortune to make his ac- quaintance soon after he came to the institution, and I felt, therefore, free to tell him, as I did many times, that he had a mind much in advance of his years, and I also used, with almost motherly caution, to say to him : "Take care that you do not study too much and injure yourself." Every moment of his spare time was given to the hardest kind of study. He was a persistent reader, devoting most of his attention to history, and developing even in those days something of a bent for the law, which he was finally to make his calling. But he did not confine his reading entirely to such solid matter. Many times he favored myself, and other teach- ers and pupils in the institution, by reading to us from the poets. Among other authors who were favorites of his was Thomas Moore, from whom he read a good many selections, as well as from Byron. I remember that at one time he read Byron's "Corsair" to me. Even tlien he had developed the faculty of hard work, which has so distinguished his later career, so that it is no new thing for him to burn the midnight oil. He did so even as a young man when I first knew him thirty-nine years ago. No man could have a kinder heart than had Grover Cleve- land in those days— days that, to most boys of his age, might be termed formative. He came to us almost immediately after the death of his father, and as a result he had an air of pensive 24 RECOLLECTIONS OF sadness about him. He showed that he felt very keenly the loss of his father. This did not take the form of melancholia, but he used often to talk to me about his father in an intimate, familiar way that was touching and very natural. As a child, he had been brought up in a Christian household, under the ministrations of a father noted for his deep piety and of a mother distinguished for tenderness and care for her family. When he first went there I used often to talk to him when his office duties were over, and in due course of time we became good friends. Perhaps I knew him quite as well as any of the teachers or officers of the institution. He came into contact with mature men and women, many of whom have since be- come well known in various fields of work, and was able to meet them upon their own plane. He showed himself to be keen and thoughtful. At the same time he was extremely modest; something I have noted with interest since his great public career has brought him before the people of his country. Indeed, the first time I met him after those early associations was in Lakewood, New Jersey, during the past winter. At that time I noticed the same modest demeanor. He was interested in telling me of an experience of his while President. A con- vention or meeting of blind people was held at Baltimore dur- ing that time, and he went there on purpose to see them. In recounting to me this incident he never referred to the matter as having occurred while he was President, but he used a form, which I am told he has almost uniformly adopted, of saying, "When I was in Washington" ; in fact, I do not believe that during our interview he used the word President, or in any way said anything to indicate that he had held such an exalted office. This was thoroughly characteristic of him, as he was always anxious to avoid anything like praise or commendation of himself. He did not strike me during the period I knew him as a young man who would have a great number of friends, al- though he had a capacity for friendship. I thought that he was somewhat chary of giving his confidence to many people. This did not come from any feeling of vanity, but from his natural reserve. But when he came to know a person and gave his confidence, he did so fully and unreservedly. He was al- ways kindly and sympathetic, and during his residence there the GROVER CLEVELAND 25 tendency was strongly developed at every turn. He resented occasional cruelties practised by a superintendent, who lacked the qualities necessary for a successful administration of such an important place. I remember at one time that when a boy was punished with undue severity, young Cleveland spoke to me about it with much feeling. He could not, of course, in his position, take steps to resent it by a physical demonstration, but he showed in every word and action that he would like to punish its perpetrator in the most efifective way. I remember another incident that had a bearing personal to myself. The same superintendent had about him a dictatorial way when he found himself in authority over anybody. It so happened one day that I went down-stairs into the office, where Mr. Cleveland worked, and asked him to copy a poem. He did so, and when he had nearly finished the work, the superin- tendent came in and said, in a very insolent way : "Miss Crosby, when you want Mr. Cleveland to copy a piece for you, I will thank you to come and ask me." Of course I felt very much hurt, and when the superintendent went out, Mr. Cleveland said to me : "Now, Fanny Crosby, how long do you intend to allow that man to haVrow up your feelings like this?" I asked him : "What can I do to stop it?" and he said, "By giving as good as he sent." I was nonplussed, and in reply I said, "Mr. Cleveland, I never was saucy in my life." To this he replied : "But it is not impudent to take your own part, and you never will be taught independence and self-reliance any younger. Now, we will try an experiment. Come down to-morrow, and ask me to copy another poem for you. I will do so, and then you come in as usual, and you will see the consequences, but in any event make up your mind never to let any one impose upon you." Accord- ing to this agreement I went down and asked Mr. Cleveland to copy a poem for me. As was anticipated, the superintendent came in and made the same remark. Then I turned round and said to him : "I want you to understand that I am second to no one in this institution except yourself, and I have borne with your insolence so long that I will do so no longer; if it is re- peated. I will report you to the managers." The superintendent looked at me with the greatest astonishment, but my reply had just the effect that Mr. Cleveland said it would have. I never 26 RECOLLECTIONS OF had any further trouble with the obnoxious superintendent, nor did he assume such a manner towards me or Mr. Cleveland any more. After young Cleveland left the institution I myself remained until 1858. I never heard from him or about him until he was nominated for Governor in 1882, while Mayor of Buffalo. But he took occasion the first time he heard from me to show his kindly feeling. While he was Governor one of my friends gave me a sort of benefit, and sent an invitation to the Governor. He immediately wrote back expressing regret at his inability to attend, but saying, "I remember my old friend Fanny Crosby very well," and in further token of his remembrance he sent to the friend managing the affair a neat little sum of money. I have always regretted that I did not keep myself in touch with him after he became Governor or President; but in both cases I felt that, as I had neglected him for so many years, it would not seem just the right thing to open a correspondence with him then, because it might look as though I wanted to court favor. So I never met him again until at Lakewood last winter. I cannot say that I have been surprised at his rise to promi- nence and greatness. I always felt that he was a man far above the average, both intellectually and morally. He seemed to me to have great possibilities, so that one who came in con- tact with him in an intimate way, as I had an opportunity to do by reason of official association with him, would have predicted for him a successful career. I do not think that he looked upon his teaching work as other than preparatory for the more serious struggles of life. But he did his duty then, in a humble position, as conscientiously and as well as he has shown his ability to do it since in the large and important responsibilities thrust upon him. While he was Governor he made a visit to the institution in company with the late Augustus Schell, who was one of the managers during Mr. Cleveland's term of work there. After- ward, when I went to the institution, I heard many of the in- mates, some who had been there as pupils in his day, say: "Well, although Grover Cleveland rose to great power he did not forget the Institution for the Blind, and we all praise him for it." GROVER CLEVELAND 27 It seems very odd to me to recall after nearly forty years the injunction of his older brother. William, to me. The brothers were very close friends and associates in spite of the fact that William was several years the elder. He always showed his desire to protect his younger brother, and would not allow any- body to be ungenerous or unjust to him. When they were first there together the younger brother was petted a good deal. Naturally, he grew out of this to some extent toward the close of the joint association there, and yet I recall with pleasure how W^illiam. when he was to be absent for a time, would say to me, "Well, I know you will be kind to my little brother" — a fatherly sort of feeling — something quite in consonance with the beautiful character of William Cleveland, who, even as a young man, was an exemplary Christian ; generous to every one in his class, just in everything he did. I could not speak too highly of either of them. CHAPTER II PROFESSIONAL CAREER RETURNING home in 1854, the young man began to think anew of the independent career which he had mapped out for himself. Although he had con- cluded to become a lawyer, for a time he sought, with- out success, in Utica and Syracuse, for temporary work which should be both congenial and remunerative. Thereupon he planned to go to Cleveland, Ohio, a town which had attracted his attention for the reason that it had been named for some member of his family. On his way he stopped in Buffalo to visit his uncle, the late Lewis F. Allen, then a well-know^n farmer, also engaged in editing the "American Shorthorn Herd Book." As it was necessary to revise this publication each year, the nephew was persuaded to remain, and so gave up his trip to the West. This incident fixed his future resi- dence and enabled him to await there the professional success and the political career that came to him in due time. Aided by his uncle, he obtained a place as student in the office of Bowen & Rogers, for many years one of the leading legal firms in western New York. For a time he lived with his uncle some distance from town and 38 GROVER CLEVELAND 29 continued to help him in the pubHcation of the revised editions of his book. In 1855 his compensation as office- boy had reached the sum of $4 a week. He was then in his nineteenth year, and in the days of his power and influence he often, recounted to his friends that he was thoroughly satisfied to earn this amount, because as the result of all his labors he was able to maintain himself and even to assist his mother. He worked hard, and his name first found its way into print in an acknowledg- ment of aid given to his uncle in the preparation of the Herd Book for 1861. In connection with this work and while also a law student, he obtained an insight into the life of the plain, every-day people whom he understood so well and so often commended. For some years he lived at the South- ern Hotel in Buffalo, then a favorite resort for drovers and farmers, I came into contact, some years ago, wath one or tw^o of the men, then far advanced in years, who had known him in these surroundings, and they in- sisted that they and their neighbors were always sur- prised to find so much knowledge of their own work and business in a young law student in what was to them a large city. It was here that his country train- ing — added to his work with his uncle and his own in- terest in a great variety of people — had given him in- formation about their occupations to such an extent that he was able, without effort, to sjiow that he was almost an expert in their business and to obtain fpom them a degree of confidence which afforded him that insight into the characteristics of many kinds of people which was a distinguishing quality, not always recognized during his public career. He was wont, all through his life, to speak of these early experiences, saying, in substance : 30 RECOLLECTIONS OF Looking back at that period, I can see that, while I lost a great deal by absence from home and family, and the lack of other domestic ties, it carried with it many compensations. Since entering public life, I have often recalled, almost instinctively and with advantage, the experiences growing out of the asso- ciations of that time. I came into contact, in the familiar way which enables one to understand human nature, with a class of men then much more com- mon than now. Rude in many respects, with little of book education and less opportunity for obtain- ing it, they had strong, vigorous, and independent minds. They had a great deal more of practical knowledge than they were then credited with, and infinitely more than the studies of that period now current lead our young people to know. He felt that few things could be more unfortunate than that so many persons should plume themselves upon their education and culture, and, at the same time, fail to remember the narrow facilities enjoyed by their grandfathers and fathers only a generation or so back. He thought that, many times in his life, when called upon to deal with great numbers and kinds of people, he had found these early experiences — in store, drovers' yard, hotel, or blind asylum — of the utmost value, and, without belittling or neglecting the literary side of edu- cation, if he could have had his way, he would have in- sisted that young men and women should be brought up to know more of their fellow-men of every grade and oc- cupation. In his view, they would then be better fitted to make their way, rather than start, as was too often the case, with so little practical knowledge of the real world in which they were to live as seriously to handicap them. GROVER CLEVELAND 31 II His life at this time was not much out of the common run of the average law student. He worked hard at his profession, but also confirmed his habit as a per- sistent reader of the best literature. He performed the work of each day as best he could, forming thus early the habit of thoroughness in everything he attempted. He was admitted to the bar in May, 1859, but did not immediately begin practice on his own account, remain- ing four years longer with his preceptors, until he became chief clerk. Those who knew him then saw in him the wisdom, courage, and honesty which were always the salient points in his character. He mas- tered every subject he dealt with in all its bearings, and, having made up his mind for himself, could no more be swerved from his conviction of right than when Mayor, Governor, or President. This predominant quality of absolute integrity commanded respect. His business success was not conspicuous, but was steady. He began as chief clerk with the modest salary of $600, which was increased, year by year, until in the latter part of 1862, when he had just passed the age of twenty- five, it had reached $1000. On the 1st of January, 1863, he left his preceptors and accepted an office which was both professional and political in its character: Assistant District Attorney of Erie County, at an annual salary of $600. He did not enter public life because of any dissatisfaction with his work or from undue ambition. He felt that this was the quickest and most effective way to reach an in- dependent place in his profession. As he was the only 32 RECOLLECTIONS OF assistant in the office, most of the routine work fell upon him, and it was here that he fixed still more firmly those systematic habits which always stood him in good stead. He prepared and filed papers, drew indictments, and tried many cases in the courts. He told me that he then began to work late into the night, a habit which so grew upon him that he was never able to shake it ofif. His success in his new position gave him confidence and enabled him to extend his circle of acquaintances among the people of the country towns, then far more impor- tant than now as elements in the political life of Erie County. He had also'gained recognition from the mem- bers of his profession. During his term in this office he was so busily en- gaged with his duties that when he was drafted as a soldier he could not leave his work to enter the army. Two of his brothers were already in the army, the sec- ond son, Richard Cecil, having enlisted from Craw- fordsville, Indiana, and seen valiant service in the Western armies under General Grant. Lewis Fredric, another brother, went at the first call from New York City and served in the Army of the Potomac. "In each case," as I am informed by a member of the family, "the first notes of the fife and drum drew the volunteers, and the family circle were informed with much pride only after they had become 'bonny boys in blue.' " As the family were dependent upon the earnings of the sons, Mr. Cleveland decided that, instead of entering the army, he would obtain a substitute. It is interest- ing to add that the bounty thus paid by him was bor- rowed from his superior officer, the District Attorney, and he told me that it was some time after his term had expired before he was able to spare the money to repay the loan. GROVER CLEVELAND 33 Although the office of District Attorney was his first public place, this did not mark his earliest interest in politics. He himself has recorded that he chose his party in 1856, nearly a year before he reached his ma- jority. In that campaign he favored the election of James Buchanan, and in 1858 he cast his first vote for the Democratic ticket. Ill Early in my acquaintance with him, Mr. Cleveland began to talk freely about his party affiliations. Only a few years before his death, in an article published dur- ing a Presidential campaign, he explained these pretty fully, so far as principle and personality entered into account. He talked very often, and with great free- dom, about the old-fashioned methods of politics. These were explained by him substantially as follows : Before I reached my majority, I had begun work in the capacity of what would now be called a prac- tical politician, I had no aspirations to be a boss, even if either the word or the thing had then been known, but I only followed the custom of my time in taking my place at the polls and distributing ballots to all those who asked for them, using my influence to convince the wavering, or to confirm those who be- longed to my household of faith. As the result of this form of activity, I began as a boy the work of distributing ballots, standing alongside the veterans of my party. From 1858 until my election as Mayor in 1 88 1, I went to the polls, took my place, ballots in hand, as a voluntary helper to my party and its candidates. 34 RECOLLECTIONS OF He would explain, with interest, how, in those days, nobody knew anything about hiring men to do such work, because it was both unnecessary and beyond the thought in politics. The use of money for any other purpose than printing tickets, hiring halls, or raising banners, did not enter the minds of voters, because they believed in the principles of their party and were not only willing but determined to give one day in the year to these practical efforts to exemplify them; and he continually emphasized his opinion that no change that had come over our life seemed to him more hurtful than this : that the free, devoted services of earnest men .at- tached to principles and personalities should have been replaced by a system in which hirelings and heavy ex- penditures had become leading and almost dominating elements in political management. When he talked of his experience in practical politics, it was never with a sneer or in jest. To him it was very serious. At one of my late meetings with him he said: I have been amused, since I entered the larger public life in 1882, at the spirit of patronage with which I have been treated by the so-called poli- ticians. Somehow there seems to have been an im- pression that I was dealing with something I did not understand; but these men little knew how thoroughly I had been trained, and how I often laughed in my sleeve at their antics. From the be- ginning I never felt at a loss in dealing with them, because I knew that, back of the machinery with which they screened themselves, there was still a great and interested mass of people who did not wait for permission to form their opinions. GROVER CLEVELAND 35 He insisted that, when he found himself in positions of responsibiHty, he had only to appeal to the people behind the machine to enable him, in the end, to carry out his ideas and purposes. He also felt that this kno\vl"ed§-e, acquired in early life, had often fitted him to take advantage of the slips which the modern, pro- fessional politician always makes, and to appeal efifec- tively, when necessary, to the support of sane and sober policies. At one of my latest long interviews with him he remarked, in the course of conversation: "When we shall return, in this country, to the best features of the active, personal party methods of our earlier days, supporting candidates or policies because, believing in them, men are willing to work for them without the hope or prospect of reward, we shall have less reason to despair either of our institutions or their workings." It was, therefore, inevitable that the young man should be drawn into the larger public concerns of his county and section. From this time forth he was recog- nized as a rising figure in politics. At the expiration of the term of his superior, his party turned to him as a candidate for District Attorney. He had become well known in the county, and his opponents realized, in spite of their majority, that they would have no easy task to defeat him. Among his intimate friends at the time was Lyman K. Bass, a young Republican lawyer, after- ward elected to Congress. The Republicans realized that they must select their strongest candidates. One night I\Ir. Cleveland had returned home earlier than usual, when he was soon greeted by his roommate, Mr. Bass, who said: "Well, Cleve, I have been offered the nomination for District Attorney against you." The reply was: "Well, why don't you take it?" He did, with the result that he was elected by a narrow- majority. 36 RECOLLECTIONS OF IV Mr. Cleveland at once returned to his profession as an independent practitioner, and in order to do this he de- clined the position of Assistant United States District Attorney, and associated himself with A. P. Laning and Oscar Folsom, the latter one of his closest friends, who had himself accepted the office in question. Here he had a chance to demonstrate how well he had profited by his experience in an important professional place. The partnership continued until 1870, when Mr. Cleveland accepted the Democratic nomination for Sheriff of Erie County. He hesitated for some time, because it was unusual for lawyers to accept this office, but he concluded that there were strong reasons for doing so. He always said he had worked very hard ever since he was a boy of sixteen, so that he had had little time for reading and for the thorough professional study of which he felt the need. He, therefore, con- cluded that the Sheriff's office, by taking him out of practice for a time and still keeping him about the courts in a professional relation, would give him the required leisure for the needed study. Another important ele- ment was that he could save a little money. So, when the advice of friends confirmed his judgment, he ac- cepted the nomination and was elected. He performed his duties while in the office well and satisfactorily, and returned, on January i, 1874, to the practice of the law, a stronger man and with a much wider outlook than he had had before. He always insisted that this temporary diversion had enabled him to take a better place than he would have otherwise held. When his term expired, he went into partnership with GROVER CLEVELAND 37 his old rival, Lyman K. Bass, and a younger associate, then already known as an excellent lawyer, the late Wil- son S. Bissell, who was to attain prominence by becom- ing Postmaster-General in his second administration. With some few changes in personnel, the firm continued until Mr. Cleveland went to Albany to become Governor in January, 1883, by which time he had become one of the recognized leaders of the bar of this city and sec- tion of the State. He had maintained his interest in politics, without seeking or accepting office. Now and then he would go to a State convention as a delegate. He had neither the reputation nor character of an am- bitious man, nor, at that time, would the public have looked to him as the most available figure for great public responsibilities. He had become a lawyer who gave close attention to his work and to his profession and the duties which it involved. In writing about Mr. Cleveland at a time when his po- litical success had somewhat obscured his position as a lawyer, I procured from the late Wilson S. Bissell an estimate of the professional work and position of his partner. This was done at the suggestion of Mr. Cleve- land himself, and as nothing since written about this part of his life has either improved or superseded the resulting description of his legal attainments, I repro- duce it herewith as one of the most interesting of the documents pertaining to his career : Buffalo, New York, August i, 1892. Dear Mr. Parker: My acquaintance with Mr. Cleveland began in August. 1869. T had just graduated from Yale and made application for and 38 RECOLLECTIONS OF was admitted to a clerkship in the office of Laning, Cleveland & Folsom, the firm of which he was a member, and which was then just organized. The firm did a very large business. They were the attorneys for the New York Central and the other Vanderbilt railroads centring at Buffalo, and they had a large miscellaneous practice as well. I was one of the six clerks em- ployed by them. They defended the New York Central Rail- road in a class of suits brought to recover penalties for overcharge of fare. These suits became a very remarkable class of litigation, aggregating more than three thousand in number. I soon found that Mr. Cleveland was the "working member." Laning and Folsom were both brilliant men, but Cleveland was undoubtedly the most profound lawyer and was the main- stay of the office. He was generally the first one in the office in the morning and the last one out of it at night, and all the hours of these long days were devoted with patience and zeal to the work he found before him. He had already attained prominence at the bar, the result of no influence or relationships or of adventitious circumstance, but of patient industry and of downright — and always upright — hard work. And so, even then, he was of the lawyers of his years facile princeps. His further achievements as a law- yer, which brought him into the very front rank of his profes- sion, were only added and natural results of his untiring industry and energ}^ To these the other disadvantages of limited education and early mental training also yielded. How well and how encouraging it would be to the younger struggling lawyers of to-day if they could appreciate the exact truthfulness of these statements, and take the lesson of it to themselves! True, he was endowed with a great fund of good common sense, and he was honest — honest with himself, honest with his client, honest with his subject. He thus be- came, mentally, rather judicial than partizan. and he would have made as able and capable a Chief Justice as he was a President. In the trial of a cause he neither relied on "genius" nor the inspiration of the moment to help him out. but upon most careful and painstaking preparation of the case in advance and the anticipation of every possible adverse contingency. Before GROVER CLEVELAND 39 the trial he was always timid and self-distrustful; once pushed or dragged into court by his client, however, he was not only part and parcel of the case, but bold and self-reliant; and through much practice he acquired great skill and sagacity in marshaling his facts before the jury. During a trial he would devote himself to the case absolutely and completely, whether it was large or small, whether with fee or without, and for a rich client or for a poor one. The noon hour was, for him, always an opportunity for further study and preparation — not for eating — and the hours of the night, not infrequently the whole night, a further oppoitunity. And so he honestly bought and paid for success with honest work. In an address Jjef ore the bar on the occasion of the death of his devoted personal friend, Oscar Folsom, referring to his qualities as a lawyer, he said: "In the practice of his profession, and in the solution of legal questions, he clearly saw what was right and just, and then he expected to find the law leading him directly there." This with truthfulness could and should be said of Mr. Cleveland. In those days it was the habit of the judges of that locality, more than now, when a close legal question would arise in a trial, to call for an opinion upon it in open court from some lawyer in the court-room not engaged in the case. So good and well recognized was Cleveland's judgment, and so great his legal attainments, that he would almost invariably be the lawyer thus consulted, whenever he happened to be present. "The law is a jealous mistress," but there was never occasion in Cleveland's case to suggest a lack of devotion. Of course it would have been impossible to yield such devotion to his pro- fession if he had not loved it; but he loved his professional work, found his greatest pleasure and satisfaction in it, and he loved also the study of the law as a science. This fact will serve to explain the interruption in his profes- sional career which he permitted when he became Sheriff. His opportunity for considering that step was less, perhaps, than of any important act of his life. The circumstances were these: There was an important local ticket to be nominated, and there seemed a fair opportunity to overcome a normally large ad- verse majority by the selection of a strong combination of candidates. Cleveland was popular and had made a splendid 40 RECOLLECTIONS OF run for District Attorney of the county not long before. On the day before the nominating convention was to be held it was suggested that Cleveland should take the nomination. Such a contingency had never entered his mind, and he at first declined to listen to the suggestion. Party managers then surrounded him. and at length successfully urged upon him the importance of the subject as a party matter, and his duty and obligation to his party. Yet in connection with his reluc- tant assent was the consideration, expressed to me that day, that if he should be elected it would afford him a longed-for and splendid opportunity to study law. His partners were loath to lose him, both because they were personally much attached to him and because they had come to know and rely upon his great strength and ability as a lawyer. He had had the laboring oar in all their more important litiga- tions, and was in the midst of great activity and usefulness. He was conservative by nature and a safe counselor. Indeed, if he erred at all, it was on the side of conservatism and safety. Mr. Cleveland was in the best sense a successful lawyer. He never belonged to the class of ''money-making" lawyers, al- though he often received large fees for his professional ser- vices. He always met his personal obligations promptly, and he abhorred debt ; but he never had any desire to accumulate a fortune, and he was generous to a degree. I recall the fact that, on resuming the practice of law after the expiration of his term as Sheriff, his first act was to lend a considerable sum of money to a poor client in distress. His generosity was evi- denced not alone by direct gifts of money, but by professional advice and service. He tried many a case without fee or the expectation of it, and often intervened to prevent the doing of injustice because of his hatred of injustice. A notable instance of this was his devotion to the case of Flannigan before Gov- ernor Cornell. Cleveland's first relation with the case was after the man had been sentenced to be hanged, and despite Cornell's well-known disinclination to exercise the pardon power, he secured a commutation of the sentence to life-im- prisonment. It seemed to him always a pleasure as well as a duty to give aid and counsel to the younger members of the bar, and many a successful lawyer of to-day in Buffalo will recall and attest the readiness and cheerfulness with which he aided in com- GROVER CLEVELAND 41 plicated legal situations, or assisted as counsel in the trial of causes, accepting for himself at most nothing but nominal fees. On January i, 1874, he resumed the practice of law, becom- ing a member of the firm of Bass, Cleveland & Bissell. Mr. Bass was then a member of Congress, and by reason of failing health he removed to Colorado to reside at the expiration of his term of office, so that Mr. Cleveland became practically the head of the firm at once. The business of the office was large and active, consisting of a general miscellaneous practice, and he applied himself to it as assiduously as ever during the ensuing eight years. This was the period of his greatest activity and usefulness as a lawyer. He tried and argued cases in all the courts of the State and in the District and Circuit Courts of the United States. He was one of the counsel who secured for the plaintiff the largest verdict ever rendered by a jury in western New York — upward of $240,000. He worked incessantly, and his vacation period never exceeded ten days in the year. He was engaged in the trial of a case in court in October, 1 88 1, when he was again called upon by his party to do further public service by accepting the nomination for Mayor of Buffalo, which was then tendered and urged upon him. He yielded to this demand the more readily because he saw before him not only an opportunity to serve his party, but to perform a public duty, and, although he remained a partner in the law firm of Cleveland, Bissell & Sicard during the following year, still, with characteristic regard for and conscientious devotion to the performance of official duty, his personal interests as a lawyer were set aside for a time, and, as events proved, for seven years. Two things remain to be said in portraying Mr. Cleveland's career as a lawyer : One, that in all his varied relations with clients, lawyers, and courts his every act was characterized by the highest sense of honor and by the most delicate apprecia- tion of and compliance with all the rules of professional ethics ; and the other, that every professional engagement, great or small, received the best judgment, thought, and energy of which he was capable. Nothing he undertook was slighted ; therefore all his work was done well. Yours sincerely. W. S. Bissell. CHAPTER III MAYOR OF BUFFALO — CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR IN 1 88 1 Buffalo found it necessary to recognize the changed conditions of municipal development. It was increasing in population and wealth, and in im- portance as a business centre of western New York. Lying at the western end of the Erie Canal, at the head of lake navigation, and with growing railroad facilities, it had developed from village to town, from town to city. It had outgrown primitive methods, and yet neither the people nor the system of government had been assimilated to the new surroundings. Politics and business had become so intermingled that it was often difficult to tell where one began and the other ended. Occasionally Democrats would carry the city, but, as a rule, it was in the hands of Republicans. Whether one or the other was in power made little difference, but it became clear that unless methods were changed the city would suffer. When a revolt against machine rule was inaugurated in 1 88 1, the opposition elements looked about for a Democrat who would both be likely to carry the election, and, by recognizing the new conditions, change them for the better. A number of offices were to be filled, 42 GROVER CLEVELAND 43 and many elements had to be satisfied. The matter was broached to JNIr. Cleveland, and he declined at first to consider it; but when importunity became stronger, he consented to accept the nomination if the convention would select a ticket satisfactory to him and the reform element in his own party as well as to the independents. In accordance with his insistence, ordinary rules were so reversed that nominations for minor ofiices were made before the candidate for Mayor was chosen. The convention was held on October 25, 1881, and INIr. Cleve- land became the head of the ticket as a candidate for Mayor. He was thus able to put his canvass upon high ground, promoting public interest and, at the same time, keep- ing his party up to the highest possible standard. In his speech accepting the nomination, he first emphasized his own reluctance and then insisted that: Because I am a Democrat, and because I think no one has a right at this time of all others to consult his own inclinations as against the call of his party and fellow-citizens, and hoping that I may be of use in your efforts to inaugurate a better rule in municipal affairs, I accept the nomination tendered me. He also believed that much could be done to reduce taxation ; that the most rigid scrutiny of public expendi- tures ought to effect a saving to the community; that existing extravagance, which he never attempted to overrate, could be corrected without injury to the ser- vice ; and that the affairs of the city should be managed with the same care and economy as private interests. He added a significant phrase to the effect that "when we consider that public officials are the trustees of the people, and hold their places and exercise their powers 44 RECOLLECTIONS OF for the benefit of the people, there should be no higher inducement of a faithful and honest discharge of public duty." This was to have consequences reaching much further than its author could have thought upon that October day when he uttered it. Three years later, when, in 1884, the late Colonel Lamont was casting about for a title to the first pamphlet issued during the Presidential campaign, with the instinct of the newspaper man, he tried to find a head-line. So he finally condensed, from the paragraph just quoted, the sentiment, "Public office, a public trust." This was the origin of the sentiment always attributed to Mr. Cleveland, but of which he never claimed to be the author. It was merely the smart, keen insight of a born politician who had coined a phrase 50on to become famous. But the idea was his, and he thus sounded the keynote of a whole career. Upon this principle was based the whole of the campaign for the mayoralty, and it permeated the four others of which he was destined to be the head. The canvass was brief, and the candidate made no further speeches. He was able to command the united support of his own party and that of a considerable element among his opponents. Some of the leading Re- publican papers either openly supported him or failed to oppose him, so that the movement in his favor was soon full of enthusiasm and vigor. He had declared at the beginning that he would not permit the use of money for the purpose of influencing voters, and that he would make no canvass in the saloons, as was then common. He carried out his promise to neglect no legitimate means to deserve and command the public support, and after the short, sharp campaign, conducted through- out in this spirit, he was elected Mayor by a majority GROVER CLEVELAND 45 of thirty-five hundred, carrying into office with him, by good and sufficient majorities, the entire Democratic ticket. He at once began to put his afifairs in order for the responsible duties which he must soon assume. He so arranged his law business that it might be carried on by his partners, and prepared to give the whole of his time to public work. He immediately recalled the promises he had made when nominated — not merely as something by which he had been able to command election, but as something to be redeemed. He announced that he saw no reason why the business of the city should not be conducted as economically and conscientiously as if it were his own private concern. He thought first of the city, next of his own party, and last of himself. II Entering upon his official duties on January i, 1882, no formal inaugural ceremony was necessary. The next day he sent to the Council an elaborate message setting forth in detail his conception of the duties that lay before him and the body which he addressed. He insisted that the money of the people had been placed in their hands to further public purposes, and that when any part of the funds of the taxpayers was diverted to other purposes, or when a greater sum was applied to any municipal purpose than was necessary, it con- stituted a violation of duty and of the oath of office. To him there was "no difference in his duties and ob- ligations whether a person is intrusted with the money of one man or many." He again expressed the idea that he and the members of the Council were "the trus- 46 RECOLLECTIONS OF tees and agents of our fellow-citizens, holding their funds in sacred trust to be expended for their benefit." He began, even thus early, to demonstrate that ca- pacity for details which was so to distinguish him in the public mind during the remainder of his life. The paving and cleaning of streets, abuses incident to pub- lic printing, remissness in the duties of the City Auditor's office — were all dealt with in his first message. As he went on, he discovered other weak spots in the conduct of the city business. When the German newspapers were designated to do the city's printing at a large ex- pense, he vetoed the resolution in spite of the fact that the German population bore a very important relation to its entire number of inhabitants, insisting that the expenditure of public money in such cases came very near to being a subsidy which nobody ought to encour- age and which the people of the city ought not to toler- ate. He called attention to the discrepancy between the cost of public and private improvements, and scarcely a week passed that he did not transmit a message couched in language so strong and positive that there was more than the usual difficulty in dealing with it. He discovered provisions for extra pay for clerks, demanded the improvement of water supply and sewer- age, insisted that the law should not be evaded by di- viding contracts into several parts so that they might be awarded without advertising, as required by law, in all these cases interposing the veto with success. Proceeding from generals to particulars, within a few months after he became Mayor he sent to the Council the most important of his messages. A bill appropriat- ing more than four hundred thousand dollars for the cleaning of streets came before him, and as this estimate was higher than that of another bidder, he sent to the GROVER CLEVELAND 47 Council what came to be known as his "Plain Speech Veto," in w^hich he insisted that "clumsy appeals to pre- judice or passion, insinuations with a kind of low, cheap cunning as to the motives and purposes of others, and the mock heroism of brazen effrontery which openly declares that a wholesome public sentiment is to be set at naught, sometimes deceive and lead honest men to aid in the consummation of schemes which, if exposed, they would look upon with abhorrence." It is scarcely necessary, at this distance from the events under consideration, and with the limitations I have imposed upon myself, to develop further particu- lars. It is sufficient to say that, in less than six months, he was recognized as one of the strong, virile figures both of his city and his State. At no time did he turn aside to look for higher honors. Then, as ever, he acted as if the duty which lay before him was the only one requiring attention. He could not, however, avoid men- tion of his name as an eligible candidate for the guberna- torial nomination, which was soon to be made, but he refused, then as ever, to use one office as a stepping- stone to another. During his term as Mayor he developed an unsus- pected capacity for public speaking, which was destined, in due time, to make him one of the most sought-for men in the public life of that time. He made few speeches, and none of them was long, but those that he delivered found acceptance, not only with his hearers but with a wide reading public. Ill The people of western New York had long deemed themselves neglected by reason of inability to obtain 48 RECOLLECTIONS OF recognition from either party for any candidate for Governor. It was but natural that the local pride of the judicial district, which then comprised a goodly population of the western section of the State, should assert itself anew with little regard to party. In order to do this a strong sentiment was developed in favor of presenting for this honor the man who had so dis- tinguished himself as ]\Iayor of Buffalo. It is the fash- ion, when reputations are made within a brief time, to attribute them to luck; but Mr. Cleveland's friends and the people of his district knew better. The Republican nomination for Governor in 1882 pro- duced a great deal of dissatisfaction, for the reason that the candidate chosen, the late Charles J. Folger, then Secretary of the Treasury, was supposed to be the candi- date of the Federal administration, nominated by the ruthless use of office-holding machinery. It was im- possible to eradicate this idea from the public mind. As a result of this feeling, there was a strong com- petition for the Democratic nomination. Both Brook- lyn and New York presented strong and vigorous candi- dates, the first in the person of the late General Henry W. Slocum, and the latter in that of the late Roswell P. Flower. Neither commended himself entirely to the independent sentiment which had been aroused in the Republican party. So Mr. Cleveland's friends, many of them Republicans, made up their minds to present his name for nomination at the State Convention, which was to meet in Syracuse on September 22. They formed committees, allotted the work among themselves, car- ried the local caucuses, and were ready to march upon Syracuse with a fair number of delegates. But Mr. Cleveland's record as Mayor of Bufifalo had not been limited, in repute, to his immediate neighbor- GROVER CLEVELAND 49 hood. Among others, Daniel Manning, then the most potent manager in his party, had been attracted to the work of the Bufifalo Mayor. Among those who were active agents in promoting this work w^as Edgar K. Apgar, who, as a deputy in one of the departments at Albany, and as one of the accepted pupils of Samuel J. Tilden, had been authorized by Mr. Manning to find out how much strength the movement in favor of Mr. Cleve- land's nomination might have. Mr. Apgar, on August 23, wrote to Mr. Cleveland, assuring him of the conclu- sion to which he had come, that his nomination for Gov- ernor would more certainly insure success than any- other that could be made. He averred that he had formed and expressed this opinion many weeks earlier — even before his name had been mentioned in the Buffalo papers— and that his conviction had been confirmed and strengthened by time and thought. Assuring him that he had consulted with many men qualified to know, and that all of them, after due con- sideration, had come to the conclusion that this was the policy to pursue, he suggested to Mr. Cleveland that he should meet Mr. Manning, who represented so large an element in the Democratic party; that the na- tional and controlling local leaders were accustomed to seek Mr. Manning's counsel and to follow it; and that, while he understood Mr. Cleveland was not seeking the nomination for Governor, he was sure that a conference with Mr. Manning would simplify the situation and enable everybody interested to reach the proper conclu- sion, viz., the one he had already emphasized. In the course of his letter, Mr. Apgar said: The Democratic party has so often, in recent years, abandoned its principles and made dishonest alliances for the sake of tem- porary success, which even in most cases it has failed to secure, 4 50 RECOLLECTIONS OF that it has, naturally, largely lost the confidence of the people. It h"a^ fallfti, in so rhany instances, into bad hands, that thou- sands of Republicans, tired of their own party and longing for a change, have been fearful to trust our promises of reform. Then, as with almost prophetic insight, he proceeded : If we had stood faithfully by Jefifersonian principles; if we had exercised all the power of legitimate party discipline to destroy corruption and demagogism in our own ranks; if we had been content to deserve success and to wait for it, we would, in my judgment, have been for many years firmly in- trenched in power in the State and nation. The weakness of our present position, in which we seem to depend more upon Republican dissensions and decay than upon any strength of our own, is, I think, much more due to our failures in the direc- tions I have indicated than it is to any personal or factional quarrels which have existed among us. Naturally, this put Mr. Cleveland's canvass upon a new footing and devolved new responsibilities. He evi- dently looked upon the matter in this light, and, as a result, he took some time to consider it. He discussed the situation fully and freely with his friends, and six days later wrote the following letter, which has never before been printed : Buffalo, August 29, 1882. My dear Sir: Your letter of the 23d I have read with much satisfaction, not only because of the interest thereby manifested in my can- didacy, but not the less on account of your sentiments therein expressed, so much in accord with my own, touching the cause of Democracy generally and the condition of our party and its needs if success is to be attained. The suggestion you make in relation to my seeking an inter- view with Mr. Manning I have thoughtfully considered. I am sorry that I have not the honor of a personal acquaintance with GROVER CLEVELAND 51 one who occupies so prominent a position in the party and who has it in his power to assist my cause so much. I hope it will not be very long before I shall have the opportunity of meeting him face to face. May I be allowed, however, to suggest to you, who have kindly said that you favor my nomination and hope for my election, that the fact referred to in your letter that I am not seeking the nomination for Governor by personal importunity and have refrained from adopting that line of conduct, together with other considerations which will perhaps occur to you, based upon existing conditions, perhaps furnish reasons why I should not at this time depart from the course which I have adopted, for the purpose of bringing about an interview which it seems to me could not fail, if for no other reason than because it was exceptional, to be misconstrued and misinterpreted. The hearty and spontaneous efforts of my friends and neigh- bors to secure my nomination have been most gratifying, and I feel that I ought to second their endeavors in every way which my judgment approves. The assurance of support and aid contained in your letter, coming as they do from one with whom I have no personal acquaintance, add greatly to my satis- faction and encouragement. I hope it is needless for me to say that, in common with all real Democrats. I sincerely desire the unity of the party and the success which must, I think, be con- sequent thereupon ; that I shall accept without question the result of the convention, whatever it may be. and continue to labor for the election of Democratic nominees and the triumph of Democratic principles. Yours sincerely. Grover Cleveland. Edgar K. Apgar, Esq.. Albany, New York. IV When the delegations from western New York were ready to go to Syracuse, it was intimated that it might be a good thing if they could take with them their 52 RECOLLECTIONS OF candidate, who was comparatively unknown to the great majority of the men who made up the membership of the convention. At first he ridiculed the suggestion and seemed determined to take his own course; but late on the evening of the day before the convention was to meet, apparently by some prearrangement, he was so inundated with telegrams that he consented, almost without any time for preparation, to make the visit. He reached Syracuse late in the day, met Mr. Manning, and impressed upon the mind of the latter and his friends the fact that a new personality had appeared in Demo- cratic politics. He then returned to Buffalo and was at his desk the next morning. He always spoke with a good deal of interest of his trip to Syracuse. As already stated, he had manifested the strongest disinclination to comply with the request of his friends, but when he had done so, the humor of the situation appealed to him. He said in substance: It was almost beyond my understanding what to do, or for what purpose I was needed at Syracuse. As this was my first meeting with Mr. Manning, who had thrown himself into the management of my canvass, I was, naturally, desirous of doing what- ever he wanted. I reached there early in the even- ing of a very hot day, and found myself at once, coatless, in all the hurly-burly of a State convention. I soon discovered that the principal thing that was wanted was a chance to look me over, with the result that, in spite of the difficulty of submitting to such an unusual test, I came rather to enjoy it. As I remember, I remained about the hotel, being intro- duced to delegates from every part of the State, talk- ing freely with Mr. Manning and the various gentle- 1 ^-^ ^ \ DANIKI. MANNING Secretary of the Treasury in the first administration, 1885-18 GROVER CLEVELAND 53 men attached to my fortunes, and finally, about two o'clock, I took a train back to Buffalo. It was a novel experience, but, after the training I had had, did not impress me, after all, as having in it so many diffi- culties as I had anticipated. In general, he was inclined to discourage the personal appearance of candidates before conventions, or even before the people, more than was absolutely necessary, but he realized what the cuiiosity is, on the part of the delegates and interested men, to see the candidate for whom they are asked to cast their vote, and looked upon this, his first and last experience of the kind, as an inter- esting event in his career. In the convention the next day, he commanded, on the first ballot, a fair vote, which was largely augmented on the second; after w^hich the drift became so strong — not only because of his merits, but because of the antagonism between the two candi- dates from the eastern part of the State — that he was nominated by a substantial majority on the third ballot. Then followed one of the most remarkable campaigns ever known, even in the political history of New York. Opposition to the Republican candidate within his own party became so decided and the drift toward Mr. Cleve- land was so strong that there was no such thing as check- ing it. One leading man after another, in every part of the State, bolted the nomination of Judge Folger and allied himself openly with the Democratic candi- date. Many of the sturdiest Republican newspapers pursued the same policy. A little more than a fortnight after the adjournment 54 RECOLLECTIONS OF of the Syracuse Convention, Mr. Cleveland's letter of acceptance appeared. It was based wholly upon the lines laid down by him during his short service as Mayor of Buffalo. He framed it in keeping with the larger politics upon which he had entered. In it he paid no attention whatever to Federal politics, except to con- demn the interference of public officials in the making of nominations for State offices. He took a strong posi- tion in favor of reform in the Civil Service, and against assessments upon office-holders. It was as natural that he should pronounce in favor of home rule in cities as that he should insist upon the proper regulation of cor- porations. In view of the importance of this question in recent years, it will be of interest to quote a single paragraph : Corporations are created by the law for certain defined pur- poses, and are restricted in their operations by specific limita- tions. Acting within their legitimate sphere they should be protected ; but when, by combination or by the exercise of unwarranted power, they oppress the people, the same au- thority which created should restrain them and protect the rights of the citizen. The law lately passed for the purpose of adjusting the relations between the people and corporations should be executed in good faith, with an honest design to ef- fectuate its objects and with a due regard for the interests involved. He also took high ground in the matter of the im- provement and management of the canals, pronounced strongly against the expenditure of money in elections, and again emphasized the duty "which public servants owe, by constantly bearing in mind that they are put in place to protect the rights of the people, to answer their needs as they arise, and to expend, for their benefit, the money drawn from them by taxation." GROVER CLEVELAND 55 VI He made no speeches and wrote no other pubhc letters. When the votes were counted it was found that he had been chosen Governor by 192,854 majority. Nothing like it had been seen in the politics of an American State. Here was a man who, to the ordinary politician, was almost unknown. He had never held any office outside of a comparatively small city, and yet he had been elected Governor by a most decisive majority. In this day of triumph, when his partizans everywhere were indulg-ing- themselves in demonstrations of enthusiasm, the man who was the subject of it felt more strongly than ever before a sense of responsibility seldom equaled in the annals of our public life. But there was no vanity, no exultation, no assertion, even in his most confidential relations with his friends — no expression of any feeling but the sense of obligation which rested upon him from that time forward. During the remainder of his term as Mayor he went about his usual duties, accepted few of the hundreds of invitations that came to him, and made but one speech, that at a reception given him by the Manhattan Club in December. Here he set forth anew his conception of responsibility, and repeated many of the ideas which he was afterward able to carry out as executive officer. CHAPTER IV GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK — PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION M 'R. Cleveland went to Albany only one day be- fore the time fixed for his inauguration as Governor. He did not encourage the attend- ance of Buffalo friends or delegations, but was accom- panied only by his friend and law partner, Wilson S. Bissell. On New Year's day he took office, with a brief address and the simple ceremonies which have long been the rule in New York. When the Legislature convened on the next day he sent in his message and was fairly embarked upon his new and broader career. A Governor of New York is put to a severe test owing to the fact that the State has such a great popu- lation and varied interests. Especially in the olden days this office was looked upon as only second in impor- tance to that of the Presidency, and yet but one of its holders— Martin Van Buren — had been preferred for the higher place. The names of those who had been elevated to that lofty position were proof of the truth of this claim. George Clinton, De Witt Clinton, Silas Wright, William L. Marcy, William H. Seward, Horatio Seymour, John A. Dix, and Samuel J. Tilden were among Mr. Cleveland's principal predecessors, so that 56 GROVER CLEVELAND 57 he came into office with the obHgation strong upon him to maintain its traditions. The people of the State did not have to wait long to discover that they made no mistake when they placed their power into the hands of one entirely worthy to wield it. The enormous majority which had been re- corded in his favor only a few weeks before enhanced rather than diminished the responsibility which he felt. Mr. Cleveland had not been identified, in any definite way, with the management of his party, so that it was not necessary to take sides. Neither then, nor at any other time in his life, did he ally himself with a faction. He had incurred few obligations to individuals and none to districts or interests. His training in the exacting duties of his profession and his experience in the pub- lic trusts confided to him, his settled habit of considering on its merits everything presented to him, his policy of examining everything with great care, but never cross- ing streams before he came to them— all were of ser- vice to him in what he always looked upon as one of the emergencies of his life. II His first annual message, like that of every man who comes newly to a governorship, was prepared under the difficulties incident to lack of opportunity to get fairly into the atmosphere of State business. In the opening sentence he said : I transmit this, my first annual message, with the intimation that a newly elected executive can hardly be prepared to present a complete exhibit of State affairs, or to submit in detail a great variety of recommendations for the action of the Legislature. 58 RECOLLECTIONS OF Naturally it was a brief, concise document, limited to the smallest number of subjects consistent with pre- cedent, and dealt in a practical way with public affairs, treating them in the same manner as he would his own private business. Long after he had served a term as President, he said to me many times that he did not think he had ever undertaken a harder task than that which devolved upon him in the preparation of his first message as Governor. As it was his first experience in State politics, he said it was an absolute necessity that, under the circum- stances, he must deal almost wholly with general con- ditions, because it was impossible that any man,, coming unprepared to such a place, should have the sure grasp of State affairs which would enable him to import into his message any considerable measure of original sug- gestion. He declared that he found in those days, as well as in his later experience as President, that his lack of legislative experience and his ignorance of the legislative mind were drawbacks. He always insisted that the system pursued, not only in New York but in many other States, of expecting from a new Governor a message outlining serious legislative policies was, on the whole, a bad one. The reason assigned for this opinion was that, while occasionally a new Governor may have taken part in a given agitation or held certain ideas that he would like to carry into effect because of his interest in them, yet his position makes it necessary for him to conceal or cover up his lack of information on many of the vital topics which must come before him for action or opinion in the course of his work. For this reason he believed that the considerable interim allowed by the Federal Constitution between the Presidential election and the GROVER CLEVELAND 59 maug-uration gave the new official a great advantage over what he would have if compelled to come into office without the time for complete preparation. Ill Of necessity he dealt with the interests of the canals and emphasized their importance because, at the last session of the Legislature, before his accession, the State had decided to free the canals from tolls, and he insisted that, as the people had surrendered the pro- tection thus afforded, together with the revenue derived from the tolls, the new system should have time to com- mend itself before heavy expenditures were made for enlarging the canals. He devoted considerable attention to the public schools ; emphasized the importance of careful attention to banks and insurance companies; showed a compre- hensive grasp of the relations which the National Guard should bear to the State, and was emphatic in his in- sistence that the management of prisons and charitable institutions should be improved. In dealing with the latter, his early experience had evidently impressed him deeply. This no doubt accounted for his insistence that the abuses of the insane should be exposed and steps be taken to remove them. For many years the Quarantine and Health Depart- ments of the State and its great cities had been in bad repute, and the importance of correcting the abuses was emphasized. It was natural t*hat he should recog- nize the importance of a reform in municipal govern- ment. His own recent experience had impressed upon his mind very strongly the necessity for this. Perhaps 6o RECOLLECTIONS OF the most distinctive recommendation made by him was that in favor of the enactment of a State law govern- ing appointments to office. He did this with such suc- cess that he was able to announce in his next annual message that New York was already in the lead in the inauguration of such a system. IV Maintaining the reputation he had established at Buf- falo, while Mayor, as a master of vetoes, he kept up this process in Albany. It was a change of scene, not of the principles upon which he carried on the business of government. He proceeded, in the one place as in the other, with deliberation, always having in view as his prime object the protection of the public treasury. In Bufifalo, in spite of his sympathy with the object, he had vetoed an ordinance to appropriate money to a Memorial Day fund ; so in Albany, he disapproved a bill authorizing county supervisors to erect a soldiers' monument. In doing so he declared: *'It is not an agreeable duty to refuse to give sanction to the appro- priation of money to such a worthy and patriotic object, but I cannot forget that the public money is raised by taxation, and with all that justifies its exaction from the people is the necessity of its use for a purpose con- nected with the safety and substantial welfare of the public." In closing the same message he indulged him- self in the legislative lecturing that had made him famous in Buffalo and lessons in which were to be trans- ferred to Washington. He expressed the hope that "due regard to fundamental principles and the support GROVER CLEVELAND 6i of the Constitution will prevent the passage of a bill of this nature in the future." He also vetoed bills for the amendment of charters when he saw that they had partizan objects behind them. Of one of these, which was advocated by his own party, and was supposed to bring it some advantages, he said : I believe in an open and sturdy partizanship, which secures the legitimate advantages of j^arty supremacy; but parties were made for the people, and I am unwilling, knowingly, to give my assent to measures purely partizan which will sacrifice or endanger their interests. Nearly every distinctive act was an emphasis of his doctrine that public taxes should only be levied for pub- lic purposes. He also insisted upon the enactment of laws fixing responsibility for the safe-keeping of money, whether public or trust funds. Upon all these ques- tions he showed that independence of party which dis- tinguished the whole of his career both before and after. His first Legislature was one difficult to manage. Llis own party, in the upper branch, was rent by division, and he had to face a series of political trades which had been made between one or other of these factions and the Republican members; but he went his way, paying little heed to these things. He did not escape criticism, as indeed he would have scarcely desired or expected to do. Perhaps the most valiant of these outbursts was caused by his veto of what was known as the bill fixing at five cents the fares 62 RECOLLECTIONS OF to be charged on New York elevated railroads. It was a question which had been agitated for many years, and out of it had grown a strong feeling of opposition to the corporations engaged in overhead transit; but the Governor recognized that, while there were some abuses in the management of the roads, the action of the Legis- lature would produce great injustice and lead to prac- tical confiscation. After giving long and patient hear- ings to all parties, he made up his mind and interposed a strong and comprehensive veto message. His conclu- sions were summed up in the following paragraph : But we have especially in our keeping the honor and good faith of a great State, and we should see to it that no suspicion attaches, through any act of ours, to the fair fame of the commonwealth. The State should not only be strictly just, but scrupulously fair, and in all its relations to the citizen every legal and moral obligation should be recognized. This can only be done by legislating without vindictiveness or prejudice, and with a firm determination to deal justly and fairly with those from whom we exact obedience. That he had expected great, and perhaps permanent, unpopularity from this action was illustrated in an anec- dote told by his friends to the effect that, in the even- ing of the day that he had sent this message to the Assembly, he said: "Well, to-morrow I shall be the most unpopular man in the State of New York." This was, however, a serious mistake, and he soon had reason to discover that his regard for the public honor, his care in examining the matter in all its bearings and then in giving his reasons in full, had made such an impression upon the public mind that, instead of inviting attack, he had really insured commendation and defense. GROVER CLEVELAND 63 VI In appointments to office he carried his own principles into practice by promoting many men who had served in minor places and had thus become familiar w'ith the duties. Thus when it came to the appointment of a Superintendent of Insurance, an office redolent of poli- tics, he chose the late John A. McCall, who had en- tered the office as a messenger and worked himself up by ability and character. Mr. Cleveland applied throughout the principle of choosing his appointees with immediate reference to fitness. The most important question that came before him was the appointment of the Railroad Commission, the law creating this body having been enacted by this the first Legislature with w^hich he had to deal. He exercised the greatest care in the selection of its mem- bers, and his choice gave general satisfaction, regard- less of party. He determined, as he often said after- ward, that he would make this body thoroughly repre- sentative by appointing the best men that he could find in the State. His care in this was justified in the same manner as was his appointment of the original Inter- state Commerce Commission during his second year as President. He came into office at a time when the conflict between labor and capital was perhaps sharper than at any previ- ous period, and he was able so to deal with this question as to avoid unnecessary clashing and to insure the en- actment of laws which were both just and conservative. Even here he never posed as the special friend of labor, a fact which was well demonstrated by his veto of the bill prohibiting work for more than twelve hours a day 64 RECOLLECTIONS OF on the part of drivers and conductors on street railways. He disapproved this law on purely local grounds, but his reasons so commended themselves to public approval that even the advocates of the labor elements finally concluded that the law could never have been enforced, and many of them admitted that it would have been dan- gerous and impracticable legislation. This hurried review of his first year as Governor will show that he shirked nothing, did not interfere unduly with the course of events, took everything seriously, maintained fairly good relations with his party, although refusing to do many of the things which its leaders wanted, and that, in short, he swerved neither to the right nor the left. VII Mr. Cleveland began the year 1884 with his second annual message to the Legislature. If there had been anything like hesitation, it had now disappeared; if he had lacked in confidence or felt that he did not know the afifairs of the State so well as he ought, he was now to demonstrate his ability to carry out his own promises, in spite of all limitations, and to conduct his office as he saw fit. He now felt that he knew what laws the best interests of the State demanded, and he recom- mended them with the positiveness which had distin- guished his earlier efforts as Mayor. He also knew bet- ter how to manage the Legislature, so that every mo- ment of the intervening year had shown growth. He had made only a few speeches, short and to the point, so that he scarcely interrupted his public work for a moment. The new message reasserted the responsibility of all GROVER CLEVELAND 65 in authority in the State and announced his unwavering determination to see that this standard was reached so far as he had power to promote it. He dealt especially with the pernicious influences which made possible so large a body of local legislation. He found that these dealt with interests which under no pretense should be permitted to come before a body which represented all the people of the State. He insisted that the powers of boards of supervisors and other local bodies had been enlarged so that they might deal with local questions, and he complained bitterly that bills for building bridges, roads, engine-houses, monuments, for establishing li- braries, and for the regulation and purchase of ceme- teries, and acts of a like character, were continually en- croaching upon the time of the Legislature and setting aside all precedents. He insisted that log-rolling was an inevitable incident of such a policy, and lectured the Legislature with his customary force — even anticipat- ing the plain speaking which he was soon to use with the Congress of the United States. As was his wont throughout his career, the subject of taxation still commanded his attention, and strict economy in State affairs was enjoined, so that good government should be furnished at the least possible cost. This was pronounced to be nothing but common honesty, the best attribute of sovereignty and the high- est duty to the people. Its recognition was to him a characteristic of beneficent government, and its failure or absence a sign of the oppression of tyrannical power. He reviewed, in some detail and with becoming pride, the different departments of the State for which he and his appointees and elective associates were responsible. Education, banks, insurance, National Guard, prisons, and the charitable institutions were all dealt with, so 5 (^ RECOLLECTIONS OF that the Legislature had an excellent opportunity to obtain all the information it needed. As in the previous year, he gave far more attention than any of his pre- decessors to the charitable work conducted by the State. The first report of the Railroad Commission, ap- pointed the year before, gave him an opportunity to review, at considerable length, the relation of the railroads to the people and to emphasize anew the policy already outlined and upon the adoption of which he had insisted. In like manner, the Civil Service Reform Law, also enacted as the outcome of his recommendations, was pronounced to have begun its work well. He also dealt with the actual workings of the new laws, among them the prohibition of political assessments; the regulation of primary elections ; the working of the Labor Bureau in the collection of information and statistics ; conserva- tion of the forests; revision of tax laws, dealing espe- cially with the evasion of taxes; the regulation of co- operative insurance companies ; reduction of the fees of receivers; the introduction of business principles into the construction of public buildings; and the establish- ment of a court of claims for the assertion of the right of citizens, even against the State itself, all of which were cited as accomplishments important enough to show that the interests of the State had not been neg- lected or overlooked. For the first time he referred in a public document to national politics, citing with approval an extract from de Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" which showed, by contrast, the great decline in our shipping interests, and expressing the hope that the country might be permitted to anticipate the time when a care for the public needs and the application of remedies GROVER CLEVELAND 67 would take the lead in the conduct of national affairs. He perhaps little suspected, only a few months before his nomination for President, how large a scope these words were to have within the next fewyears. The legislative work was under better control by the Governor because of his experience during the preced- ing session. He was able to arrest trifling and imprac- ticable bills and to veto many that were bad. Among other measures was one taking away from the Board of Aldermen of New York City the power to confirm ap- pointments made by the Mayor. It contained many fea- tures of which the Governor did not approve, but he signed it without much hesitation and set forth, at length, his views as to its probable workings. By his insistence, other legislation relating to the city was recalled by the Legislature for amendment, and when this policy failed he used the veto without mercy. One bill that came before him he denounced in almost a savage way: "Of all the defective and shabby legislation which has been pre- sented to me," he said, "this is the worst and the most inexcusable." At the preceding election an amendment had been adopted directing the abolition of contract labor; but the Legislature, instead of dealing directly with the problem, authorized the appointment of a committee to investigate and report at a late day in the session. The Governor disapproved this bill, but, upon amendment, his objections were met, and it was passed. He insisted, however, that the State should keep faith with the prison contractors as well as with everybody else, and in his effort to procure this justice he sent in vigorous veto messages and memorandums. The Niagara Falls Reservation was created, and as this was something of which he had a clear knowledge. 68 RECOLLECTIONS OF he promoted its enactment and tried to perfect it in every way it was legitimate and possible to do. VTII Toward the end of his second year as Governor his rec- ord had given him a strong position in the country at large. It became more and more clear to the Democrats that, if a hopeful effort was to be made in the follow- ing year, the support of the great body of independent voters in the States surrounding New York must be secured. This demand was increased by the distrust of the Republican candidate, so that these two influences again contributed to give unusual strength to the new political figure that had risen so suddenly. While the movement soon spread outside of New York, it was from that State that guidance was expected. So suc- cessfully was the latter given that, at the Democratic Convention held in Saratoga in June, 1884, for the selec- tion of delegates for the National Convention, Mr. Cleveland's friends were able to control it and to choose an uninstructed delegation, bound by the unit rule, as had always been common in New York. Thus, the full vote of the State was cast for Mr. Cleveland, in face of bitter opposition from certain elements in New York City. When the Convention met in Chicago on July 11, it was clear that Mr. Cleveland was the leading candi- date, although the sentiment in his favor was not so marked as to assure nomination. This made good management necessary, and, as some of the New York delegation waged bitter opposition to the man for whom they had been instructed, it was essential that no points should be lost. The Democratic National Convention of that vear GROVER CLEVELAND 69 was in many respects a remarkable body, being com- posed, for the first time since the Civil War, almost wholly of the younger men of the party who had been brought to the front under the dominance of the Tilden regime. On the third day of the convention, after many unsuccessful efforts to postpone nominations and the defeat of all obstructive tactics, the first ballot resulted as follows : Grover Cleveland of New York, 392 ; Thomas F. Bayard of Delaware, 170; Allen G. Thurman of Ohio, 98; Samuel J. Randall of Pennsylvania, 78; Joseph E. McDonald of Indiana, 56, with a small number dis- tributed among several State favorites. An adjourn- ment was had until the next day, when, upon the sec- ond ballot, 683 votes were cast for Cleveland, 81}^ for Bayard, 45,^/4 for Hendricks. As this number was more than the two-thirds necessary to nominate, Mr. Cleveland was declared the candidate for President, and Thomas A. Hendricks of Indiana was associated with him as Vice-President. IX In the campaign of 1884 a large number of Repub- licans, for years inclined to independence, carried this policy still further by opposing the candidate of their party. James G. Blaine. Their numbers were recruited by thousands of others not usually inclined to indepen- dence in political action. Thus it was evident, from the beginning, that, unless something unforeseen occurred, the Democratic candidate w^ould command a large sup- port from those generally inimical to his party. This opposition was so strong in all the States east of the Allegheny Mountains that it made its influence felt everywhere. 70 RECOLLECTIONS OF The campaign management on the part of the Demo- crats was unusually shrewd and far-seeing, while that of the other side was naturally much w-eakened by the dissensions within the party. Seldom have so many im- portant speeches been made by so many men w^io counted for something as in the campaign of 1884. It seemed to have in it all the elements necessary to bring out the strongest and most effective men. Mr. Blaine, himself a practised orator, had always been the idol of his party, and there was to be found everywhere in his favor a personal enthusiasm which had never been sur- passed in this country, except in the case of Henry Clay. On the other hand, the career and character of Mr. Cleveland represented so thoroughly the best instincts of the country that the cam.paign in his behalf pro- duced a series of striking speeches by many able men new to political activity. In addition to his letter of acceptance, Mr. Cleveland made only two communications to the people of the country, in the form of speeches, one at Newark, New Jersey, and the other at Bridgeport, Connecticut. Both were short and dealt with the question that had been the central point of his career and was to continue so, during the remainder of his life. He insisted anew that "the people have a right to demand that no more money shall be taken from them, directly or indirectly, for public uses than is necessary for an honest and economical administration of public affairs." The October election in Ohio, always considered a prophecy of the national result, was carried by the Re- publicans; but the old-time signs had lost their signifi- cance, and so at the election on Tuesday, November 4, Mr. Cleveland received the votes of 219 electors in twenty States, while Mr. Blaine had carried eighteen GROVER CLEVELAND 71 States with 182 electors. Of the popular vote, the former had received 4,874,596 against 4,850,981 for the latter. In addition, something over 300,000 votes had been cast for the Prohibition and the Greenback candidates. Two important questions engaged the attention of the President-elect between November and March 4. On December 25 he reassured the supporters of Civil Ser- vice Reform in a strong letter sent to George William Curtis, in which he set forth his ideas of the use of government office as party patronage. He insisted that no partizan considerations would cause any relaxation on his part of the earnest effort to enforce the law then new to the statute-books. He, however, emphasized the fact that a large number of men holding public places had forfeited all just claim to retention, because they had used the offices for party purposes. They had done this, he declared, "in disregard of their duty to the people and because, instead of being decent public ser- vants, they have proved themselves offensive partizans and unscrupulous manipulators of local party manage- ment." The other public question upon which he pronounced himself, between the election and the inauguration, was the Bland Silver Act. Only eight days before he took up his Presidential duties he wrote a letter setting forth the alarm felt by himself and conservative men every- where about the dangers incident to the coinage of silver. He believed that it was desirable to maintain and continue in use the mass of gold coin, as well as that of the silver already coined, but that this policy y2 GROVER CLEVELAND could only be carried out by a temporary suspension of the act. Without exaggerating the dangers of the situa- tion, he recommended that compulsory coinage should be suspended, thus concurring in the recommendation of President Arthur's last annual message to Congress. This was his first specific utterance upon the silver prob- lem and fixed his position upon a question which he was destined to settle along the lines of his convictions. CHAPTER V ORGANIZING THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS IN accordance with the custom of Presidents-elect, Mr. Cleveland went to Washington a few days before the 4th of March, 1885, the day fixed by law for the inauguration. He was received by President Arthur with distinguished courtesy. Everything was done that could possibly contribute to the comfort of the new occupant of the Executive Mansion, and, as a result of their brief association, a pleasant friendship was formed between them. Few inaugural ceremonies have been marked with more of pageantry or have had in them greater genuine rejoicing on the part of the successful party, and, at the same time, more of genuine grief on the part of the defeated, than that which ushered Grover Cleveland into the Presidency. The day was in every way perfect, the first in the long list which finally grew to have the dis- tinctive name of "Cleveland weather." An elaborate program had been planned, and the men assigned to the work of handling the crowds were expert in the man- agement of great occasions. The military features — participated in by the army, the marines, the navy, and the artillery — were increased by detachments from the 74 RECOLLECTIONS OF militia of the several States, especially from Pennsyl- vania. The inauguration exercises were held at the east front of the Capitol under conditions which were never better for the full success of the ceremony. II Almost every President, from the earliest days, had read his inaugural address. But Mr. Cleveland made a departure when, rising before the great audience on that most beautiful of March days, he delivered his ad- dress with the calmness and coolness which might have marked the professional orator, and with a dignity and impressiveness soon recognized in every part of the country. His composure and self-confidence were the subject of remark, and many years later one of his bitterest personal and political enemies said that nothing like it had been seen in history — the spectacle of a man who, with but slight experience in the larger politics, had been elected to the Presidency in less than three years after he had been only an obscure citizen in a small town, and yet was able thus to stand before his countrymen to deliver his address without a manuscript or word of note before him. Preparing every public utterance with the greatest care, not only as to word, phrase, and sentiment, but as to punctuation, he had the rare gift, with only the slight- est effort, of so memorizing his own writings that he could deliver an address of an hour in length without loss or change of a word. The address itself was pitched upon the lofty plane which had distinguished all his utterances. There was a widely prevailing fear that the change from a party GROVER CLEVELAND 75 that had held uninterrupted power for twenty-four years, to one that had been excluded from responsibility during all this period, had in it some elements of dan- ger; so the new President came to assure his country- men that, although the executive branch was trans- ferred to new keeping, it was "still the Government of all the people and should be none the less an object of their affectionate solicitude." He was thus able to re- assure his countrymen, and he adjured them to renew their pledge of devotion to the Constitution which had "over almost a century borne the hopes and asj)ira- tions of a great people through prosperity and peace, and through the shock of foreign conflicts and the perils of domestic strife and vicissitudes." He set forth, at some length, the duties of a Chief Magistrate to the people, and the people to their Gov- ernment. He emphasized anew the ideas that had found expression in previous utterances, especially in his letters accepting nominations. Ill The members of the Cabinet had been chosen before he left Albany. Day after day and week after week he had asked prominent men in his party, as well as representatives of the independents who had come to his support, to visit him in Albany and discuss the names of the men who ought to be chosen as his official associates. He would not receive delegations. He dealt in each case with individuals, and was thereby enabled to procure the best and most unselfish advice. Coming into power as he did with a united party behind him, there were few jealousies to be allayed, and, tak- 76 RECOLLECTIONS OF ing everything into account, the pressure upon him for places in the Cabinet was really slight. He felt free, therefore, to give to each executive office the calm and careful consideration which its importance deserved. He took with him to Washington, as his private sec- retary, the late Daniel S. Lamont. It would have been impossible to find a man better fitted for the delicate and important duties thus intrusted to him, and he was destined, within a short time, to fix a new standard for executive secretaries. For four years he went in and out before the American people, showing himself and proving his general acceptability, gaining the good will of all with whom he came into contact, and making a host of intimate friendships. So conspicuous was his success that he soon became more than a private sec- retary: he was a recognized part and parcel of the ad- ministration itself. Keen, calm, and self-collected, never saying more than he must, with a strong insight into men, he was not only an efifective secretary, but always the close friend of his chief. This was well attested by his appointment, four years later, into Mr. Cleve- land's second Cabinet as Secretary of War. IV Immediately after the Presidential election of 1884, some leading Democrats in New York concluded to ask the appointment into the Cabinet of a man who thoroughly understood the complicated conditions in that State. Judge Augustus Schoonmaker, of Ulster County, was the leader of this movement, and one day when he mentioned the matter to his friend, Alton B. Parker, then a young lawyer in the same county, the GROVER CLEVELAND 77 latter said to him, "Well, why don't you head the move- ment in favor of the appointment of Daniel Manning as Postmaster-General?"— the office first suggested for him. These gentlemen went at once to Albany to put the movement under way. They found enthusiasm among the leaders of the party, but absolute discouragement on the part of Mr. Manning himself. However, they persevered, and the next move was to enlist the help of the repre- sentative advocates of Civil Service Reform— Judge Schoonmaker being a member of the Commission, then a new body in the State. George William Curtis, John Jay, and other leaders in the movement cordially sec- onded the efforts of Messrs. Schoonmaker and Parker, and, upon their return to Albany, the organizers were able to report real progress, and that the appointment of Mr. Manning would be heartily welcomed. They were still discouraged by the refusal of Mr. Manning even to consider the matter. When it was found that Mr. Manning was so set in his opposition to the movement in his ow^n behalf, an informal meeting was called in Albany of members of the Democratic State Committee and of leading men of the State, w^io met at a public reception given by Governor Hill, who had just come into office. A com- mittee waited upon Mr. Manning the next day, went over the whole matter with him fully, and insisted that, as for many years they had been doing whatever he wanted in every part of the State, it was now their turn and he must do something for them. In the meantime, Mr. Cleveland himself had become desirous that Mr. Manning should accept the Secretaryship of the Trea- sury—so that, with the united efforts of the President- elect, the party organization throughout the State, and 78 RECOLLECTIONS OF the friends of Mr. Manning, a still reluctant consent was wrung from him. Nothing in his first administration w^as more satis- factory to Mr. Cleveland than the results of this appoint- ment. From its opening days the Treasury Department was in the hands of a conservative, practical man who knew well how to handle the di-fficult questions incident to the awful crush for patronage. But this was not all : The great policies inherent in finance and taxation, the more vital problems involved in the coinage issue, all found intelligent study and were carefully set forth both for the consideration of the President and the in- formation and the instruction of the public. Mr. Man- ning's first report as Secretary was often cited by his chief as having furnished the key to the policies after- w'ard enunciated on the tariff, and so successfully car- ried out in dealing w^ith currency and coinage problems. Mr. Cleveland took the step, until then almost unpre- cedented, of nominating two members of his original Cabinet from his own State, whose dominance in the politics of the Union and especially in his own party had increased rather than diminished. The other member chosen from New York was William C. Whitney, who was made Secretary of the Navy. None of his selec- tions more fully justified, itself than this one, and it soon became obvious that no man who had ever occupied that office had shown greater practical or executive ability. He was especially fitted to begin successfully the recon- struction of the navy on modern lines. Taking into account the condition of his own party in the Senate, Mr. Cleveland assumed a great risk in draw- GROVER CLEVELAND 79 ing three men from that body. This was especially true of Thomas F. Bayard, and I have recorded fully in this volume the opinions of each other held by these two men thus brought into close association. Augustus H. Garland came to the front after the war, as Governor of the State of Arkansas, from which he passed into the Senate. Perhaps in no State had plunder run riot with less fear of punishment than had been the case in Arkansas. It was, however, practically the first in the South to regain full control of its own affairs, a success which was due to the wisdom and the ability of Mr. Garland, who, as its first Democratic Governor, grappled so successfully with the serious con- ditions there that he not only redeemed his own State, but set an example that other States were quick to follow. The other man transferred from the Senate to the Cabinet, as Secretary of the Interior, was L. Q. C. Lamar of Mississippi, who had borne a leading and honorable part in the ill-starred effort to establish the Confederacy, and had been sent back to the lower house of Congress the moment his people had regained control of their State. He bore himself with quiet dignity, taking little part in discussion until, in 1875, after the death of Charles Sumner, he delivered, in the House of Representatives, a eulogy which at once carried him to the front as an orator and stamped him as a man of large mind and distinguished ability. The transition to the Senate was natural and easy, and there he soon showed his independence by refusing to follow the in- structions adopted by the Legislature of his State in favor of the greenback and silver heresies. In every place he proved himself a patriotic public servant, a man of deep sentiment and of poetic instincts. Few men came closer to Mr. Cleveland, personally, than did Mr. Lamar, 8o RECOLLECTIONS OF and it was with satisfaction that, in the face of many dif- ficulties, he appointed him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States only a year before the expiration of his first term as President. VI For Postmaster-General, Mr. Cleveland chose William F. Vilas of Wisconsin. He was a young lawyer en- gaged in the practice of his profession in Madison, Wis- consin, and little known outside his own State until, at a banquet given in Chicago to General Grant after his return from his famous tour around the world, the new Postmaster-General had sprung at once to the front as a finished orator. In 1884, he had presided over the National Convention which nominated Mr. Cleveland. A lawyer in successful practice, with whom politics was merely an incident, he proved himself capable of close and continuous attention to the detail work of the office intrusted to him. In 1888, when Mr. Lamar was appointed Justice of the Supreme Court, Mr. Vilas was transferred to the head of the Department of the Interior. William C. Endicott of Massachusetts, who had made a creditable record on the bench and as the candidate of his party for Governor of that State, became Secre- tary of War, and, though without experience in execu- tive ofiice, he met the modest demands then made upon this official, creditably to himself, to his administration, and to the country. VII The same care was used when dealing with the less dignified offices under the President's gift. He looked w u.LiA.M 1 ki-:i-;man \'i:. :■..-. Postmaster-Cetier.Tl and Secretary of the Interior in the first Cleveland administration GROVER CLEVELAND 8i upon the assistants to the various heads of the depart- ments as scarcely less important than their principals, and many men thus brought to the front in subor- dinate places soon commanded the confidence of the country, and many of them were destined to fill im- portant places in the Federal Government and in their own States. Heads of commissions and bureaus, postmasters of the principal cities, customs officials, were all chosen with special reference to fitness. While Mr. Cleve- land did not interfere with the functions of his Cabinet, all appointments for these places were made in consultation with them. He felt a stronger sense of responsibility in such cases than most men. W'itli him, it was an absolute necessity of the situation because of the long exclusion from power of his party. He fore- saw hostile attacks upon himself and the administration in case he should fill important places with the usual political candidates, and determined to avoid this. In the diplomatic service, which, during the administra- tion of President Arthur, had been growing better as to the ability and character of its members, this ten- dency w^as accentuated under the administration of his successor. Mr. Cleveland used to say that w^henever he felt bound to concede something to the demands of political man- agers, as he did in some States, the result was gen- erally unsatisfactory to himself, or the party, or the service, and he never hesitated to dismiss an unfit ap- pointee of his own with even greater promptness than one belonging to the rival party. He had determined to maintain the highest possible standard, and nothing could turn him from his purpose. I have taken occasion elsewhere in this volume to treat 6 82 GROVER CLEVELAND more fully of the type of men with whom he surrounded himself all along the line of official life. They soon pro- duced a real Cleveland Democracy which was to show its efficiency in later political contests, especially in the assertion of principle above partizanship. CHAPTER VI THE WORK OF ADMINISTRATION 1 SHALL make no attempt to write a chronological re- view of the administration from 1885 to 1889. It will be more satisfactory to treat it topically. I am not attempting to write a complete biography, and am thus freed from the tyranny of details, I hope, how- ever, that a brief sketch on the lines indicated will furnish an idea of the principles upon which the admin- istration was conducted and of the success achieved. While assuming his own responsibility for the acts of his administration, Mr. Cleveland was not one to treat the members of his Cabinet as mere clerks. He left them as free as officials can be when one man must bear the brunt of the work as well as the blame. He had surrounded himself with men who did not need to be coached in order to comprehend and interpret the gen- eral principles of government which they all represented. They were free — developed their own plans and policies — and while he kept in close touch with everything that went on under his own administration, all worked to- gether for a common object. 83 84 RECOLLECTIONS OF II Few foreign complications arose, and these would not perhaps be deemed so vital and important as those under consideration at the present time. In accordance with the traditions of the country— from which, up to that time, there had been no departure — no attempt was made to exploit a foreign policy. Nobody was able to use the Department of State to collect money from friendly, though small, governments, or to settle the affairs of litigants or adventurers with little regard to the justice of their claims. Some of the latter, found in the files of the Department of State when Mr. Bayard took charge, were curtly dismissed. Demands for the protection of American citizens came from Mexico, England, and Turkey. A somewhat ridiculous person named Cutting was arrested for acts committed in this country toward Mexico, a friendly government, and was brought up for trial in the latter country. A protest from the department, really made against its will because of the character of the applicant, was effective, and the offender was released from custody. Some disagreeable complications were raised by natu- ralized American citizens of Irish birth, who had been tried under English laws. Their cases were carefully considered, and friendly representations made to the Government of Great Britain that their release would be agreeable to this country. It appeared, however, that the prisoners had not claimed protection at the time of arraignment and trial, so their belated claim was not recognized. This produced more or less misrepresenta- GROYER CLEVELAND 85 tion and excitement, as was common in the old days, when twisting- the lion's tail was an accepted form of American sport, but these soon passed away, and the in- cidents took their place with a type then well known. A comprehensive treaty with China was negotiated, under which the latter Government agreed to meet the views of the United States on the prevention of further immigration into this country of Chinese laborers. This was the cause of a difference with the Senate, which, desiring to gain partizan advantage, had inserted insig- nificant amendments which the Emperor of China re- fused to ratify or accept. When these friendly efforts failed, more severe laws of exclusion were passed. An unusual complication arose with Austria in 1885, growing out of the sending to that country, as Minis- ter, of a Virginian by the name of Kieley. It developed that, at a public meeting held in 1870, he had made a violent speech against Victor Emmanuel, so that, when ac- credited to Italy, that Government refused to receive him. The new complication arose upon an attempt to provide for him in Austria. He had married a woman of Jewish birth, and as the anti-Semitic agitation was then at its w^orst in all German-speaking countries, the Austrian Government made his withdrawal from Rome a pretext for refusing to receive him in Vienna. No other reasons being available, the fact that his wife be- longed to the race then persecuted was alleged. The Austrian Minister represented to the Secretary of State and the President that no Jewess could be received in social circles in Vienna, so that her husband could not be persona grata in that court. In rebuke to the bigotry which suggested such a course, Mr. Bayard announced that the United States would never recognize such tests, and his despatch in the defense of American toleration 86 RECOLLECTIONS OF .4 and in condemnation of race prejudice has seldom been excelled in our diplomatic correspondence for careful writing, sound views, and loftiness of thought. The President, in his first annual message, also took the same line and added a spirited rebuke to the action of Austria. In 1886, Mr. Phelps, Minister to England, concluded a treaty providing for the extradition of criminals who should escape from the jurisdiction of one country into that of another. \Mien the treaty came from the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, it contained certain offensive words about the use of explosives and was generally resented. Considerable excitement arose from the incident, and the charge was made that the original document had contained this language; but not until after the election of 1888 was the discovery made that the offending words had been inserted by the committee itself. An earnest effort was made to settle the fisheries dif- ficulties by treaty, but the contest with the Senate was too violent to permit that body to accept anything which would serve to give the new Democratic administration credit in the country. Ill When Mr. Manning took charge of the Treasury De- partment on March 6, 1885, he found two great and threatening perils. Most of the debt then due had been paid. As revenue laws which collected a surplus were in effect, nearly a hundred million dollars beyond the demands of legitimate expenditures were drawn yearly from the people. In like manner, all attempts to get silver into circulation had failed, so that it was heaped V GROVER CLEVELAND 87 up in the vaults of the Treasury, where it was idle and useless. It was impossible to procure from Congress laws re- ducing the revenues, so that, early in 1887, the continued drain of money from the people and the opposite policy of locking up the newly coined silver together consti- tuted a serious menace to business interests. The Sec- retary of the Treasury, Charles S. Fairchild, who had succeeded Mr. Manning upon his retirement because of ill heahh, determined that, instead of distributing over the whole fiscal year bond purchases from the sinking fund, he would invest, as rapidly as possible, and at once, the entire amount available. Nearly twenty-eight mil- lion dollars were at once invested in the bonds of the Government. The new policy was successful, and, as the threatened danger was averted, it was pursued in the succeeding year, many of the bonds being bought direct from owners instead of through banks or syndi- cates. These various devices made large savings in interest. Their effect, however, was temporary, and, that the surplus might not be hoarded in the Treasury, a deci- sion was reached to increase the deposits in the national banks. This policy was so encouraging that these de- posits were almost quintupled in a single year, and nearly three times as many banks participated in the distribu- tion of Treasury funds. The money was distributed fairly, with no favoritism and without relation to the politics of the managers of the financial institutions involved. It thus found its way into every part of the country and did much to promote healthful business development. The silver question was so dealt with that the dangers to business were reduced to a minimum. This was effected, in a large measure, by the withdrawal 88 RECOLLECTIONS OF of the small denominations of Treasury notes and the issue in their stead of silver certificates. The reduction of the public debt went steadily forward, the yearly amount being increased considerably over the average of the previous administration. In like manner, there was a constant and wholesome decline in the cost of collecting revenue. In 1885 the average was 3.77 per cent., and this was reduced until, in 1888, it was only 3.20. These reductions were made possible by eHmi- nating useless offices and the adoption of business methods. In like manner, unnecessary expenditures were cut off, and the increase in the number of employees did not keep pace with the growth of business. At the same time, careful plans were worked out by both Mr. Man- ning and Mr. Fairchild, insuring efficiency in the routine work of the department. Exorbitant allowances and salaries were reduced, unnecessary bureaus abolished or consolidated, and the department conducted with much economy. IV One policy to which Mr. Cleveland early devoted his attention was the reconstruction of the navy. Between the time of the election and the inauguration, an effort was made, with small success, to interest Mr. Cleve- land in the scheme for coast fortifications, and his attitude upon this question doubtless confirmed his determination to reconstruct the navy on large, com- prehensive lines. It is, indeed, an oft-told tale, that of the degradation of the United States Navy during the period between 1865 and 1885. In his first annual report as Secretary GROVER CLEVELAND 89 of the Navy, in December of the latter year, W illiam C. Whitney said: The country has expended since July i, 1868, over seventy- five millions of money on the construction, repair, equipment, and ordnance of vessels, which sum, with a very slight excep- tion, has been substantially thrown away, the exception being a few ships now in process of construction. . . . For about seventy of the seventy-five millions expended by the depart- ment for the creation of a navy, we have nothing to show. When Mr. Whitney took charge of the department in March, 1885, the United States did not have a war- vessel which could have kept the seas for a week, while the country was dependent upon foreign manufacturers for gun forgings, armor, and secondary batteries. The President and his Naval Secretary determined to encour- age the home manufacture of armor. In order to pro- mote this object, the policy was adopted in 1886 of con- solidating into a single contract all the armor authorized by Congress. Bidders were allowed the time necessary to erect the buildings, machinery, and plant for mak- ing and handling thi^s new product, with the effect that, two years later, a contract was entered into with the Bethlehem Iron Company providing for the production of armor and gun steel. From that time, the Govern- ment of the United States has been in an independent position, able to construct vessels built entirely from ma- terial, labor, and capital drawn from its own people. It was not alone in the building of new vessels and the adoption of new methods that an advance was made. The management of the department in all its details was revolutionized. This was reached by the re- organization of bureaus and the choice of efficient and honest men. The purchase of supplies was consolidated 90 RECOLLECTIONS OF under a responsible chief, so that, instead of more than fifty per cent, of the suppHes being purchased in the open market, as under the old policy, the proportion declined until, at the close of the Cleveland administration, it had been reduced to less than eleven per cent. These im- provements, even with new vessels built and others under way, and provision made for armor and guns, had en- abled the cost of the department to be reduced. In devising and carrying out these policies, Mr. Cleve- land was powerfully assisted by his Secretary of the Navy. Perhaps no more fortunate choice was ever made for the head of a department in a period of emer- gency. With commanding abilities, a careful training as a lawyer, an expert knowledge of politics and of men, and strongly devoted to whatever he undertook, he was able from the beginning to command Mr. Cleveland's hearty support. He thus had an unusually free hand not only in the initiation of policies, but in routine man- agement. He began at once to eliminate abuses, but his principal work was positive : the building of a new navy on the very best lines then known. How fully he commanded Mr. Cleveland's support was always shown by the latter's uniform recognition of his abilities and devotion. He often repeated the opinion that he had never known a man with Mr. Whit- ney's capacity for work. He was not a man to use his powers in the plodding way that distinguished his chief, but the latter always insisted that, of all the men he had ever known, there was none with such a gift for con- centrating attention upon any large matter upon which he might be engaged at a given time. He told me that there would sometimes be weeks in which, to outward appearances, Mr. W^hitney would seem to be dawdling— although in fact this was not the case. The President, GROVER CLEVELAND 91 with his steady methods, would have the feeliniE^ that when a pohcy requiring the closest attention of the ordi- nary man for many weeks was to he executed, everyhody ought to be working to his full bent. Even then the Secretary would delay the task in- trusted to him. But, in good and sufficient time, before a decision must be reached, he would put everything else aside and throw himself into his task. "I always knew," Mr. Cleveland remarked, "that, when he did this, he could accomplish more in one day than any other man that I ever saw could do in ten. Every power of his mind would be concentrated upon the present duty. Social life, personal business — all were sacrificed, so that he would be fully ready. I have never known any- thing approaching this power of absorption, and I say this in spite of the fact that I have always been thrown into contact with lawyers who, in dealing with important cases, have developed this capacity in a striking way." Illustration of Mr. Whitney's power of concentration is afforded by an anecdote which used to be told in Wash- ington to the effect that, after the policy of naval con- struction had been adopted, it became plain that the head of one of the principal bureaus had no conception of the responsibility incumbent upon him. As he held of- fice for a fixed term, there was no way under the law to get rid of him, so INIr. Whitney conceived the idea that he must convince the man of his own incompetence. Having reached this conclusion, he took up the study of modern naval construction, and mastered the details of every new vessel then in existence, including plans, structure, armor, machinery, power, and operation. This done, he sent for the official and began to cross- examine him about the conditions with which he would be called to deal. Each new question showed the Sec- 92 RECOLLECTIONS OF retary's knowledge, and each answer revealed the other man's ignorance. This process was continued merci- lessly until, when Mr, Whitney finally asked an opinion on certain features of a new British vessel named, the other broke down, owned his incapacity, and tendered his resignation. It was through this devotion to his duties, this un- precedented ability for details, that Mr. Whitney was able, in this case as in others, to clear obstacles from his path and to become the real creator of our new navy. Even in the War Department, which presented few opportunities to make a show or even to display large executive ability, a good deal of work was well done. Early in the administration, upon the initiative of the President, a determination was reached to break up the favoritism which had for so long made that department a nest of petty intrigue, through which officers were ac- customed to obtain assignments to soft places. Under the new regime, these were sent back to their regiments. By reason of the growth of the Western Territories and the success of the peaceful policy so consistently carried out by Mr. Cleveland and his predecessor, there was little Indian fighting for the regular army. Its condition and discipline were, however, constantly im- proved because it was conducted on business principles. There is no doubt that the system, then established, of increasing the discipline of the force had a decided in- fluence in the war that came, greatly to Mr. Cleveland's regret, after his final retirement from office. GROVER CLEVELAND 93 VI The Department of Justice was conducted with little noise or bluster, but with efficiency. In addition to the Attorney-General, the Solicitor-General, the late George A. Jenks of Pennsylvania — upon whom most of the work devolved — achieved a large degree of success both in the courts and in executive management. The President, being a lawyer of wide training and recognized position, conscientiously devoted to his profession, gave much more attention than was usual with an executive to all questions of a legal character. This was made impera- tive by the fact that Congress had then recently enacted many laws imposing additional work upon this depart- ment, so that the number of criminal prosecutions was increased by about one third over a like period in the preceding administration. This was also done at a small expense considering the increased work. The laws were strictly enforced, and no serious scandal at- tached itself to any of the principal officers of the De- partment of Justice. Upon the death of Chief Justice Waite, the Presi- dent appointed as his successor Melville W. Fuller, one of the leaders of his profession in the West. His suc- cess has fully justified Mr. Cleveland's confidence. In like manner, L. Q. C. Lamar, then Secretary of the Interior, was appointed an Associate Justice. One cir- cuit judge and eleven district judges were chosen, and as the President always gave greater attention to ap- pointments dealing with the machinery of the law than to any other department of like size, the far-reaching effects of his policy have been fully justified by the ex- perience of a quarter of a century. 94 RECOLLECTIONS OF VII When Mr. Cleveland came into power the Post-Office was growing with great rapidity. It had already be- come an immense establishment demanding high admin- istrative talent if it was to keep itself in touch wnth the growth of the country. In 1883 the letter-postage rate was reduced from three cents to two, and the weight limit raised from half an ounce to an ounce. During that and the following years marked reductions were made in the rates on matter of the second class — news- papers and periodicals sent direct from the office of pub- lication — and further concessions had been granted in other classes of mail, both as to rate and conditions. Probably as the result of these, as well as from the growth of the country and from the increase in the weight to be carried, the work of transporting and handling them had grown at an unprecedented rate. The business methods upon which Mr. Cleveland always insisted made it possible to conduct this augmented ser- vice without any greatly increased expenditure. De- spite the new privileges allowed by law, each dollar in receipts by the Post-Office Department cost only $1.06 in. 1 888 against $1.17 in 1885. A decided saving in mail transportation was efifected — made possible by economies in star route, steamboat, and railroad charges, by a readjustment of the pay of land-grant roads and the adoption of business methods in the purchase of equipment. These improvements were accompanied by more mail-trains of greater speed ; new parcels post contracts were concluded with Mexico and other American countries; the free delivery ser- vice was enlarged; the money-order system was ex- GROVER CLEVELAND 95 tended to new classes of offices, and improved methods were devised all along the line. No scandals were devel- oped, and the serious abuses that had grown up in the service in previous years were eliminated. VIII The Interior Department had long been a sort of omnium-gatherum for out-of-the-way public govern- ment work for which no other place seemed to have been provided. This made it perhaps the most difficult de- partment in the Government, and it was very fortunate that it fell into the hands of a man of such a keen and unremitting industry and capacity for detail as William F. Vilas. For years there had been a growing demand that the small area of public lands then remaining should be conserved for actual settlers. In spite of the fact, few steps had been taken to wrest from the land-grant roads great areas which, though granted, had not been earned. When the new administration came into office it found tracts of this kind amounting to millions of acres tied up with claims by railroads, and still others used as pas- tures for the herds and flocks of ranchmen — illegally surrounded by fences. Such energy was shown in eliminating the latter abuse that at the end of the sec- ond year steps had been taken which finally led to the correction of the evil. In like manner, areas aggregating something more than a hundred million acres were restored to settle- ment. In this work the President himself showed the deepest interest. In his first annual message he re- viewed the origin of the public domain, and emphasized 96 RECOLLECTIONS OF anew the fact that the lands were originally granted by the States and that they were "encumbered with no con- dition except that they should be held and used 'for the benefit of the United States.' " He insisted that the other lands acquired by purchase were subject to the same conditions, and expressed the opinion that "the policy of many homes rather than large estates was adopted by the Government" in the execution of this trust. The whole policy was well summed up in the following extract from the message just quoted: It is not for the benefit of the United States that a large area of public land should be acquired, directly or through fraud, in the hands of a single individual. The nation's strength is in the people ; the nation's prosperity is in their prosperity; the nation's glory is in the equality of her justice; the nation's perpetuity is in the patriotism of all her people. Hence, as far as practicable, the plan adopted in the disposal of the public lands should have in view the original policy, which encouraged many purchasers of these lands for homes and discouraged the massing of large areas. In no question that came before him did the Presi- dent show himself more deeply interested or more cour- ageous than in the dealings of the Government with its Indian wards. Believing in fair and kind but firm treatment and in the use of civilizing influences, he studied the question attentively from the earliest days of his administration. He chose his agents in every line of this work with perhaps more care, if possible, than that bestowed upon any other department. He and the Secretary of the Interior worked faithfully to abolish favoritism in appointments, and, among other abuses, nepotism was strictly forbidden. This, like every other work, was done at a diminished GROVER CLEVELAND 97 cost. It was a natural result of a policy in which hon- esty and business principles were consistently and firmly applied to the management of Indian affairs. The improvement in this branch of the public service, as in that of many others, dated from the first Cleve- land administration. An illuminating chapter in Mr. Cleveland's published "Writings and Speeches" is that which presents in con- nected form his views on the Indian question. When- ever he found that misapprehensions existed as to the policy of the department, he made it his business to write letters explaining it, thus not only showing his interest in the subject and the knowledge he had gained of it, but setting forth the principles upon which he had con- ducted this branch of the public business. So well sat- isfi-ed was he with his work that, in his fourth annual message in December, 1888, he could declare that "proofs multiply that the transforming change, so much' to be de- sired, which shall substitute for barbarism education and civilizing sentiment, is in favorable progress." IX The Department of Agriculture had long been a bureau which evoked a smile when mentioned. As Mr. Cleve- land, from early association, as well as from lifelong experience, had been interested in farming, he chose as Commissioner Norman J. Colman of Missouri, who was peculiarly fitted for the duties intrusted to him. He was a practical farmer and, in addition, had for many years conducted one of the most successful newspapers devoted to the agricultural interest. He began by forming and cementing close, systematic 98 RECOLLECTIONS OF relations between his department and the agricultural colleges and experiment stations endowed and main- tained by Congress. This was effected by a conference between himself and his staff and the leading men con- nected with these institutions. A policy was then mapped out which had, for its general purpose, work on some system, the prevention of duplication, the ex- change of results, and the establishment of additional stations. He began and carried out a careful investiga- tion of adulterations and imitations — a policy which has had ample results in laws since enacted. In like man- ner, he took vigorous measures to stamp out the contagious diseases of cattle, and conducted various ex- periments which have promoted a great increase in the production of raw sugar. X It does not fall within the purview of this sketch to deal with all the policies ■ of the first administration. Mention may be made, however, of the contest with the Senate over the Tenure of Office Act, which, the Presi- dent insisted, had fallen into "innocuous desuetude." This message is among the most vigorous of his public utterances. In it he met the Senate upon its own ground, setting forth distinctly the questions at issue between the Executive and that body, and positively refusing to comply with the demand for the surrender of letters or documents of a private nature. After the receipt of the message, the discovery was made that public sentiment was strongly with the President, and the contest ended with complete success, so that he w^as no longer hampered in the matter of appointments. Mr. GROVER CLEVELAND 99 Cleveland dealt very fully with this question in one of his lectures at Princeton University, published in his book on "Presidential Problems."^ It well deserves study by those interested in the large questions of gov- ernment. It is an interesting fact that a successor, William H. Taft, in his commemorative address (March 18, 1909), pronounced this one of the most important of the services rendered to the country by Mr. Cleveland. Few acts of the first administration attracted wider attention than Mr. Cleveland's attitude upon military pensions. From the beginning he insisted that the pen- sion list should be made and kept "a roll of honor." As- surance of merit on the part of the beneficiary, and not the liberality of the Government, w^hich, because it could collect the money, might be lavish, was with him the test. Consequently, he vetoed private pension bills to the number of more than two hundred and fifty, insist- ing, over and over again, that pensions should only be granted under general laws. This would discourage favoritism and so fix the position of the soldier that he could command a pension as a right to himself and not as a favor. He vetoed the Dependent Pension Bill because, in his view, it made many of the proposed beneficiaries objects of charity. While recognizing to the fullest extent the gratitude due to the soldiers of the Union and manifesting a desire, at every turn, to promote their in- terests, he endeavored to protect them from themselves as well as from their enemies. He saw that the pen- sion system had become full of abuses, and recognized, w^hat has been since admitted, that the bounty of the Government had been paid to men who did not deserve ^Presidential Problems, by Grover Cleveland. New York, the Century Company, 1904. lOO RECOLLECTIONS OF or need it. He further insisted that the demand for additional pension legislation — more than a quarter of a century after the close of the Civil War — was largely artificial, and that it was promoted by a systematic agi- tation on the part of organizations of pension agents and attorneys. In another chapter I have treated at some length Mr. Cleveland's attitude toward Civil Service Reform. He came into office under difficult conditions. For a quar- ter of a century the public service had been under the merciless application of the spoils system. None but members of the majority party had had a chance to obtain important employment in the public service. It was requisite to the success of the law, passed in 1882, that it should have friendly but prudent administration. When he entered office in 1885, he found that less than fourteen thousand employees had passed under the protection of the rules, of whom perhaps no more than ten per cent, had been chosen under the new law or as the result of recognized merit. When he left office at the end of four years more than twenty-seven thousand persons were included in the classified service. He car- ried on this work with such consistency that history, when finally written, must accord him the credit of giv- ing the system a fair trial. He extended its operations into many new departments and afforded an opportunity to many men then excluded from the public service. No act of Mr. Cleveland's first administration was more popular than his marriage on June 2, 1886, to Miss Frances Folsom of Buffalo. He thus introduced into social life a woman who, though young,. has never made a mistake in her dealings with her countrymen. At- tractive in character as in person, domestic in her tastes, devoted to her home, she has shown at every step the I li> r M Krll Slu.lic, \V.ulim|;tc.n. 1). C. FRANCES I OLSOM From a photograph taken at the time of her marriage to Grover Cleveland GROVER CLEVELAND loi highest capabilities of American womanhood. No pub- lic man in all our history ever had a happier domestic life than that which Mr. Cleveland enjoyed as the result of this marriage. Both in and out of office they lived plainly and simply, going about their own concerns so far as public duties would permit, and free from any tendency to display or ostentation. XI During the years 1886 and 1887 ^^^ President made a considerable tour of the country. Taking a well- appointed train and accompanied by his wife and sec- retary and a few friends, they started West, making Indianapolis their first stop. They were greeted al- ways in the most cordial way. The same scenes were witnessed, as to hospitality and enthusiasm, in Chicago, Milwaukee, Madison, St. Paul, Minneapolis, Omaha, St. Louis, Memphis, Nashville, Chattanooga, Atlanta, and Montgomery, from which city they returned home. He was met everywhere by delegations and, when time per- mitted, he generally made a short, apt speech, and gave popular receptions to which all who desired might come. Until he reached Montgomery, Alabama, his last stop, he sedulously avoided politics or public questions. As he saw in the South signs of a restored Union and recog- nized, in a more emphatic way than had been possible earlier, that sectionalism was no longer a force, he felt free to advert to the value of profitable business rela- tions and to express his opinion that in no part of the country would the people willingly permit these to be de- stroyed or endangered by designing demagogues. He condemned, in unsparing terms, the wickedness of those I02 RECOLLECTIONS OF partizans who seek to aid their ambitious schemes by engendering hate among a generous people. The President's bearing on this extended journey, the ease and dignity with w^iich he met his countrymen, his interest in local development, and the impressions gathered of a restored and united country, increased his own familiarity with the needs of the country, promoted his popularity, and helped to complete the harmony of the sections so long divided, first by civil war, and, later, as the result of misgovernment and the acts of interested partizans. He was a conspicuous figure at the centennial of the adoption of the Constitution in Philadelphia in Septem- ber, 1887, making three speeches in his one dTiy's visit there. At all times he showed much interest in the uni- versal evidence of industrial progress. Mr. Cleveland made speeches on many questions dur- ing his term of office, more indeed than many of his pre- decessors. These speeches dealt with a variety of sub- jects and with nearly all the elements in our population. They were always serious, short, pointed, and bright, evincing an intimate knowledge of the questions dis- cussed and a willingness to aid every good cause. Nat- urally averse to speech-making and to show, no man could have submitted with better grace to the ordeal. XII Reference has already been made to the burdens which the revenue laws imposed upon business by exacting great sums beyond the needs of the Government. From the earliest days of the administration and even from those of President Arthur, these were recognized as GROVER CLEVELAND 103 serious menaces to prosperity. In his first annual message the President announced this fact and urged the necessity of revising the tariff laws downward. His reference was brief, not because of a lack of in- terest in the question, which later he was to force so decisively to the front, but because other issues seemed to him dominant. In his annual message of 1886 he gave still greater attention to the tariff, and nothing that he wrote upon it was stronger or more pertinent, or better showed his knowledge of the question, or set forth his conception of the dangers incident to the perpetuation of war taxes in times of peace. During the spring and summer of 1887, the surplus in the Treasury became a menace to the prosperity and stability of the country, and he felt that the time had come when a way of escape must be provided. Through- out this period he and the Secretary of the Treasury were in daily dread of commercial disaster, so that they were compelled to consider, with even more care than before, the ways and means necessary for removing the causes. The conclusion was reached that the only way was to reduce the exorbitant taxes which had produced this plethora. He, therefore, determined to devote the whole of his annual message of 1887 to the discussion of the tariff question. He always insisted that only in this way could the attention of the country be drawn to existing evils and the necessity for a change be enforced. He showed a clear knowledge of the question, and the cour- age which prompted his message, and the patriotism re- vealed in every line, aj)pealed to the imagination of the country with a power seldom surpassed by a Presidential messacre. 104 RECOLLECTIONS OF It would be difficult to overestimate its effect. It at once lifted politics out of the ruts into which it had fallen and gave the country something real to think about. From that time forward, fiscal questions had a standing and could more easily command public inter- est. It was no longer complained that a speech on the tariff was dull or that an exposition of the financial con- dition of the country was necessarily stupid. It is probable that no document of the same length ever had had so wide a reading. It made no pretense of reveal- ing something new, but it massed the then existing facts, showed the courage of his opinion, and his con- viction of the peril into w-hich the country had been drawn by adherence to a dangerous policy. Far beyond these, and more important than any other consideration, it showed that the writer was willing to stake his po- litical fortunes upon the enunciation of this policy. Mr. Cleveland referred often to the criticism that he had delayed this message. In reply he insisted that if he had announced this policy earlier the country would not have been prepared for it. When it came it was really timely, because needed, and he was wholly clear of the charge that he was trying to create unnecessary alarm. While conditions were bad enough in 1885 and 1886, there was little to indicate that the finances of the coun- try were suffering from a single abuse and no more. He said that he had been so engaged in readjusting the executive departments of the Government that he was compelled to gain the confidence of the country before announcing a great and overmastering policy. When the defeat of 1888 came he was not surprised. When preparing his last annual message for the meet- ing of Congress in December, 1888, he sent for the Speaker of the House, Mr. Carlisle, to consult with him GROVER CLEVELAND 105 concerning" his attitude upon the tariff question. Mr. Carlisle told me, in 1890, that in opening- the conversa- tion the President said by way of preface : I have asked you to call and see me, Mr. Speaker, in order that I may get your views about that portion of my message which deals with the tariff question. You know that I have always been willing and anxious to consult the wishes of the leaders of my party on every public question; that I have tried to show that deference to their desires that their posi- tion demanded, and so far as it was consonant with the interest of the country, but I want to tell you now that if every other man in the country abandons this issue I shall stick to it. The policy announced in 1887 and newly emphasized in 1888 was to find partial vindication in the Congres- sional elections of 1890 and full fruition, so far as party initiative was involved, in the Presidential campaign of 1892. The administration, the history of which has been so briefly outlined that I have touched only upon the salient features distinctive of the man, was clean, vigorous, devoted to the rights and interests of the people, and devoid of appeals to prejudice or partizanship. It main- tained at their best the century-old traditions of our in- stitutions and Government, and in dignity, earnestness, and character was an example for coming generations. CHAPTER VII THE CAMPAIGN OF 1 888 A FEW days before the Fourth of July, 1888, I re- ceived, at my home in New York, a telegram from Colonel Daniel S. Lamont, private secretary to the President, asking me to report to him at the Execu- tive Mansion in Washington on the following day, to take up the work of preparing the Campaign Text- Book of the Democratic Party. On hand at the time fixed, I found that the secretary's idea was vague; but it was arranged that I should go back to New York, make my plans, and return to Washington on the fol- lowing Monday, ready to take up my task. He was to procure convenient offices in the town, and to ar- range for the assistants, secretaries, and clerical staff. Early in the day fixed, I reported for duty, and asked for information about the office which I was to occupy during the next few weeks. "Oh, I have not been able," he said, "to get one convenient to the Executive Man- sion and so have concluded to have you work here." Thereupon I was assigned to the large and con- venient bedroom over the portico, from whose window I could look out upon the busy scenes which, in those days, were far more interesting than now, when the GROVER CLEVELAND 107 President, so far as his daily tasks are concerned, has become the head of a government department or a keen business man. surrounded by all the paraphernalia of trade. The uni(|ue surroundings were interesting, but all my dreams about assistants and staff were dissi- pated. One man might be intrusted with the most deli- cate of party tasks and execute it next door to the work- room of the President of the United States, but this could not include the miscellaneous collection of per- sons who must enter into the make-up of a staff. Hence I took up alone the allotted task, and carried it through without the aid of so much as a copyist, or even of a stenographer to conduct the most formal of corre- spondence. II The scheme, as submitted to Colonel Lamont and ap- proved, involved the presentation — as completely as the time available permitted — of the history of the admin- istration then near its close and of the personality, then little understood, that lay behind it. The compilation was to be completed by the first of September, the proofs read, and the book ready for distribution. It was nec- essary to compile a complete history of every depart- ment and independent bureau or division in order to show what it had done and wherein it had adopted improved methods and so corrected abuses. In doing this, it was necessary to see every head of a department, or of bureaus and divisions like the Pensions, the Public Printing, and others which were carrying out, inde- pendently, policies which fitted into the general scheme of administration. io8 RECOLLECTIONS OF I had already a personal acquaintance with the head of every department except the navy and with many independent officials. Elaborate credentials were not necessary. When needed, they were furnished by the following note, without date, written in pencil on a small, narrow envelop : Executive Mansion. I hope it will be possible to see Mr. Parker for one mo- ment as early as possible. D. S. Lamont. Wherever duty might call me, and I was myself un- known, this was an open sesame. I had only to explain what was wanted, to give directions, and the gathering of the necessary information was put under way. Within a week probably a hundred men were devoting their mornings and nights to the work in hand. These had to be visited from time to time in order to give new in- structions, to oversee the work, to suggest revision or addition to matter as it was submitted, to hurry up the laggard or the neglectful— in fact, to supervise by day the execution of the whole scheme, and then at night to edit the resulting material into system and coher- ence. With all, it soon became necessary to meet the daily demands of the printer in Baltimore. Ill My acquaintance with members of Congress, in both Houses, was nothing like so comprehensive as it was in the executive departments: however, as it was necessary to obtain information in that -quarter, my authority was derived from the following open note, also undated and written on a card, to the distinguished COLONEL DANIEL S. LAMONT Private Secretary to I'rcsident Cleveland during his first adniinisttation and Secretarv of War in his second Cabinet GROVER CLEVELAND 109 statesman then Chairman of the Naval Committee of the House, later Secretary of the Navy: Navy Department, Washington. To Hon. H. A. Herbert, No. I B Street, N. W. Introducing Mr. Parker upon confidential business. W. C. Whitney. This served in both Houses of Congress as its prede- cessor had done in department, bureau, and division. IV It may well be believed that this w^ork demanded both devotion and industry. Through those hot weeks of July and August it went forward at varying rates of speed, all of them too slow for personal satisfaction, until Colonel Lamont, to whom I reported progress — late at night, perhaps twice a week — feared lest he had put too much upon me, or had been remiss in not giving me more help. I saw the end from the beginning, recognizing that it was merely a matter of perseverance and patience, and that, with these, I should meet the de- mands upon me. I could not have had a better exemplar of these quali- ties than that in the room next mine immediately across the hall. I soon found myself leaving for my lodgings in the town at about one o'clock in the morning — always with an unfinished task. Gasping for air, in an oppressive atmosphere, when I would step into the hall, during the hours around mid- night, in the hope, generally futile, of catching some stray breath of air, it so happened once that, as I looked no X RECOLLECTIONS OF across the hall to the half-open door turned toward mine, I saw, reflected upon its polished surface, the hand of a man biisily writing. I knew that this door opened into the workroom of Grover Cleveland, President of the United States, whom I had not seen since taking up my hard task inside his official residence. So the habit was formed, when I went early to my daily task, of asking the watchman at what hour the President had knocked off the pre- ceding night. I found that it was generally about three o'clock in the morning; now and then, when he had finished some severe task that he had set himself, he would stop at two o'clock. My only personal know- ledge, of course, was, in general, up to one o'clock. I did keep at it, once or twice, until two, in the hope that I might rival the man next door, of whose greediness for work I had heard and of which I now had abundant knowledge. But as the necessity for rest was strong, I gave up the competition and kept my own hours and not those of another. I COULD but wonder what it was that a man holding the dignified office of President was doing at such hours of the night after he had given a full day to the duties incident to his office. I soon learned that before nine o'clock this marvel of diligence had risen, dressed, breakfasted, and was at his desk, devoting the early hours to correspondence or to business with his secre- tary. Often he had invited some one to breakfast with him in order to discuss some urgent or left-over matter of public concern. When Congress was in session — it sat late in the GROVER CLEVELAND iii year in question — the Senators and Representatives had the right of access to the President between the hours of ten and twelve, except on the regular Cabinet days, Tuesdays and Fridays. He must then listen to mis- cellaneous appeals, generally for favors of some kind, or to party advice, or to remonstrances for some act or refusal to act ; incidentallv, he would often consider the details of that business in which the executive and legis- lative branches of the Government had a common interest. These hours included the visits, with their Senators and Representatives, of almost numberless callers, some, though not many, bent on real public business, more on curiosity, or for that most dismal of all functions, "to pay my respects." In the main, they were either seekers for office, or those who had been fortunate enough to obtain appointments — these carrying out our curious etiquette of coming to thank the President in person. These various processes w^ould end with the luncheon hour, when more business might be transacted with some Cabinet officer, with a knotty problem in policy or patronage, or, if luck favored, opportunity might be found to pass an hour with a valued friend who, in the press of public occupations, had been neg- lected or overlooked. During the afternoon, personal appointments, made by himself or his secretary, would be kept; members of the Cabinet, with overflowing portfolios, w^ould be received and the easiest part of their business disposed of, by w^iich time the dinner hour had arrived. Even here, public affairs could not entirely be put on one side, as some one w^as generally on hand — often another member of the Cabinet — with a different assortment of problems and difficulties. 112 RECOLLECTIONS OF VI In those days at three o'clock, on two afternoons of the week, a reception was held, to which the general public was invited. Promptly on the minute, the President would take his stand in the East Room, where all who came were permitted to shake him by the hand. This now discarded function has been so often described that it is not necessary again to tell the public what it was like. But I soon discovered that it meant more to Mr. Cleveland than to most Presidents. In later years he often spoke of it as one of the characteristic features of our institutions that any per- son, young or old, rich or poor, white or black, known or obscure, could, if even decently clad, not only see the man who, for the time, was at the head of his country's management, but that he could speak to him upon any question in which he had a peculiar interest. He used to delight in the scene when he could look out of the Executive Mansion, in every direction, without seeing a soldier or so much as a policeman. It has been my privilege to see many Presidents in these informal func- tions, but none who was himself so much interested in the crowd about him as really to enjoy this part of his work. On these occasions I have seen him shake hands with four hundred men, women, and children within twenty minutes. In most cases, the American citizen who finds him- self before the President of the United States is, some- how, awed into silence. The fine speeches, imagined or composed, have flown out of the windows. Perhaps one in five has some word for the President's ear, now of suggestion or advice, again an application for some GRO VER CLEVELAND 1 1 3 desired post, but generally a wholesome, hearty greeting of a personal character. In all my experience, no man ever adapted himself better to his visitors. As each greeting might demand, he gave something original in return, the ready wit, the lightness of his character coming out in fitting jest, or his deep, underlying senti- ment finding expression in terms which defined his good will to the person concerned. He would not permit visitors to be crowded or hur- ried, and the attendant who attempted this was sure to find himself baffled by the tact and persistence of the President. Overwhelmed as he was with the serious concerns put into his keeping, neither neglecting nor overlooking anything, he would give this popular cere- monial unremitting attention until the latest comer had been seen and had had his opportunity to see. VII Mr. Cleveland was one of the most popular of the Presidents with the officials and attendants of the Ex- ecutive Mansion. His uniform courtesy, his thought- fulness, his expressed and felt interest in the individual, his refusal to put burdens upon his helpers, made his administration a model in this respect : so that his advent a second time was welcomed. I should doubt whether, during all the years of his Presidency, a clerk or attendant ever heard from him so much as a word of impatience, to say nothing of scolding or reproof. He was generally very well served, but, in spite of this fact, he preferred to do a thing himself rather than to berate some one else for igno- rance or oversight. That he was often imposed upon 114 RECOLLECTIONS OF was one of the incidents of his nature and his position: but with him that was no excuse for crossness or ill temper. It must not, however, be concluded that he was thus easy with responsible offenders in public office. He could be as severe with neglect or infraction of duty as any man. About nine o'clock at night I would see a Cabinet official, or some one representing him, put in an appear- ance by appointment with the President. Generally speaking, within my experience, it was the Secretary of the Treasury, the Postmaster-General, the Secretary of the Interior, or the Attorney-General — the officials with much routine business and the fattest of patronage lists. Thus he would have to deal for hours with complicated public affairs and consider an interminable list of ap- pointments. In many instances these budgets were not disposed of before eleven or twelve o'clock, and often such an official was kept with the President until even a later hour. VIII A STRIKING illustration of his methods during the first administration — and this was typical of his official life — that came to my knowledge during my stay in the room across the hall, was that told me by the Pardon Clerk of the Department of Justice. The incumbent of this office at the time was Alexander R. Boteler, who, upon the wrenching of West Virginia from the Old Dominion, was one of the original United States Sena- tors for the new State. He was a well-trained lawyer of the old school, a conscientious public servant who, long after his retirement from active politics, had found GROVER CLEVELAND 115 refuge in this department, where the work was both con- genial and responsible. During one of my visits to him after the election of 1888, Mr. Boteler said to me: I had been Pardon Clerk for some time under President Arthur, and so I thought I knew some- thing of the way to handle applications for pardons and commutations. In course of time it had devel- oped a routine from which there were few departures. The applications were first taken up in my bureau, where the case was carefully examined, a conclusion reached, a recommendation made, after which a memorandum was prepared and sent to the Attorney- General for his action. This generally meant ap- proval of the work of his department, after which a statement of each case, duly docketed, would go to the President, generally carried by the Pardon Clerk, sometimes, though rarely, by the Attorney- General himself. As the pardons and commutations of sentences passed by the courts were granted in the exercise of pure executive power, the President must sign them. In my earlier experience this had been merely formal: generally the approval of action recom- mended by the department. The first time I had occasion to visit President Cleveland on this official errand, I was sent for at night — this of itself being a departure from traditional methods. However, I assumed that the President would keep me only the usual few minutes necessary to sign the recom- mendations of his chief judicial adviser. When the first case came before him, I found I had made a mistake. He opened the papers, began to read them through from beginning to end, and that, too, in his ii6 RECOLLECTIONS OF slow-moving, deliberate way, and also proceeded to ask questions about the merits of the case itself. As I was taken unawares, naturally I was not pre- pared to answer these pointed inquiries, with the result that the application was referred back to the department, with instructions to get the papers and also to reply to certain questions he had asked. I feared I had made a rather sorry showing at this first important conference with the President, and began to be apprehensive lest my bureau had not, after all, done its full duty and that the credit of the department might suffer in his eyes ; but I was reassured when the President told me that, in his opinion, this particular duty seemed to him quite the most important and solemn which, in the full pleni- tude of his authority and responsibility, he had to deal with. He did not criticize any of his pre- decessors for conducting the business in a way different from his own, but at once made new requirements about the handling of applications for pardons by the department, and especially as to the manner of submission to him. All the illustrating papers were to accompany the recommendations of the department: the petitions, the letters from judges or jurymen; the previous record of the appli- cant; the time that had elapsed between his arrest and conviction; the character of the prisoner and of his work before sentence; his conduct and, in reality, any fact which could, by any possibility, bear upon the case, was to be available, if, in his judgment, it was needed. When this record was made up and submitted, he would still keep me for hours, going over all the features entering into account, with as much care GROVER CLEVELAND 117 as if he was himself trying the accused in a court of original jurisdiction. He was not satisfied even then, but, when a decision was reached, never hur- riedly or formally, he would often prepare the memo- randum to be filed in the department. In the more difficult cases he would take the papers, go over them himself in detail, and so delay his decision until he had thoroughly satisfied himself of the merits of the application. I recall one instance, among many, which illus- trated his method of dealing with pardons and com- mutations, and also showed his sensibility. Out in the Indian Territory an Indian, an idle and, I fear, a very bad one, had killed another of the same general character, in a drunken brawl. The case appeared to be a perfectly straight and clear one, but, when I brought him the papers, I saw that he was inter- ested and that he was not likely to rest satisfied with the department recommendation that the law should take its course. The record was an elaborate one, even as we had prepared it, but it was still in- sufficient to satisfy the President and his scruples. There was none too much time to act, but he delayed the execution, called for the full shorthand report of the trial, and instructed us to procure further letters from the judges, the District Attorney, and the jurors. When they were submitted, he went over all these with the most elaborate and painstaking care, and finally disposed of the case in a memoran- dum of a few words, granting a commutation. While we were investigating this particular case and when he had come to a decision, he said to me: "Boteler, I could not have slept nights if this man had been hanged because of a declination or failure ii8 RECOLLECTIONS OF on my part to look into his case. He is only a poor Indian, but I cannot forget that he has nobody else in the world to look after him and to see that his rights are fully preserved, and I will do it whatever effort it may cost me." At another time there came before him the case of a cashier who, defaulting, had stolen money from a national bank. The strongest pressure was brought to induce the President to pardon him, but when he signed the memorandum of refusal he said to me: "We must not forget that this man has robbed poor men, women, and children. I will not pardon any such man, because his offense endangers the founda- tion of business honor." • I have explained some of his methods at length in order to show why the polished door revealed the shadow of this "moving finger" and why it was often busy writing at two, or three, and sometimes, as I discov- ered later, at four o'clock in the morning. This in- stance was only typical. I found that he took abnormal pains to prevent the success of a fraudulent applica- tion for a pension the amount of which was insignifi- cant ; to investigate a claim ; or to satisfy himself about the small matters entering into account in the routine business of a great government. He simply could not and would not accept the conclusion of any adviser, however dignified or trusted, when a principle was in- volved, unless or until that ofificial had demonstrated his faith by works which proved that he, too, was as careful and as conscientious as his chief. GROVER CLEVELAND 119 IX T FEAR that some of my readers may be reminded, by this long- interruption, of the course of an Eastern tale: but it has seemed to me fitting to tell it here at the very threshold of my story of the twenty years' association which was to bring before me many times these and a thousand like facts and impressions. At that time I had not seen the President, except on official or cere- monious occasions, so that he could have no personal recollection of me. I do not believe that he knew I was working only a few feet from him, until I had the book fairly under way. I had included in it a feature which seemed to me important and informing for the average political orator, for whose instruction such a compilation was prepared and published. This was a formal collection of such of the candidate's speeches and addresses as I could gather, especially those lying outside politics or administration. Within two or three weeks, when I received proofs of this section of the book, I sent him a set of them, and the next day he came to thank me. It so happened that, even thus early, I had found some utterances which he himself had quite forgotten. As in duty and pleasure bound, I continued to send him proofs, and so, from time to time, in the late after- noon, after a public reception, or when he could find a little leisure, he would visit my working-room. T recall that he was keenly interested in the collected histories of the departments, which, by this time, were beginning to come from many dififerent directions. He expressed surprise that it had been possible in a few weeks to make so complete a showing, and he was scarcely less aston- I20 RECOLLECTIONS OF ished that, when massed, it revealed such a creditable record on the part of his administration, in so brief a time as three years. He was interested when I told him that, so far as my knowledge went, this was the first instance in our political history— and I may add that it was perhaps the last— in which an official text-book representing the policy of a great party had been com- piled by one man, with only a single adviser, and with- out the oversight or authority of a committee of some kind. When it appeared, a book of 652 pages, in com- paratively small type, he found that more than a hun- dred volunteers had taken part in its preparation. X As the compilation neared completion the President showed more and more interest in it. "You are certainly making campaigning easy," he said, ''for the average pub- lic speaker. Even a man who keeps in the closest possible touch with politics and is expected to make original con- tributions to its discussion needs the facts and docu- ments thus brought together in order that he may so verify his figures as to clench his arguments." He was convinced, however, that the real benefit of a compila- tion on these lines lay in the fact that the busy country lawyer, or the young man just starting out, was enabled to marshal his facts and conclusions in a way otherwise impossible. The massing of the historical materials relating to four years of actual administration seemed to him more valuable than the conclusions of some one writer who might interpret events in his own way. He feared that the trend of thought was setting in the direction of a GROVER CLEVELAND 121 personal following in politics and that voters were so inclined to run in organized bodies that they would permit a leader, generally in office, to sound the note in public discussion. This did not appear to him whole- some, because, as country must be put above party, so the principles of a party should take precedence of the opinions or interests of the individuals who compose it, whatever their position. XI It has always seemed to me curious that, although I was fairly well known in Washington, I made my daily round through departments and Capitol; associated familiarly with members of Congress, many of them Republicans ; met, day after day and night after night, dozens of Washington correspondents ; and yet the mat- ter was so well concealed that I have never so much as heard even a rumor that I had for more than seven weeks, in 1888, at an office in the White House, prepared the Democratic Campaign Text-Book. It became almost wholly a personal undertaking. I had slipped into Washington one Monday morning; had taken possession of a room across the hall from the workroom of the President of the United States; had gone into the departments, one after another; had seen department, bureau, or division heads ; and, before any- body realized it, the task was done. It would have been impossible if the secret of my errand had not been kept by a hundred discreet men. CHAPTER VIII THE PRESIDENTIAL INTERIM TRANSFERRED from Washington to National Com- mittee headquarters in New York to undertake the task— soon seen to be hopeless— of bringing order out of chaos in the literary branch of its work, with the Text-Book not yet completed, I quit the hard work incident to the White House after seven weeks of occupancy of my room there. It would be idle, at this distance of time, to discuss that ill-starred campaign with its futile^ amateur manage- ment, its wasted effort, its lack of sympathy, either with the candidate or the issue he had raised, and its almost tragic outcome. II Two days before the expiration of his first term, I made a visit to Washington to see the outgoing President, fearful lest no other Democrat might again fill the office in my time. I found him still sternly attached to the issue he had raised, regretful only for its defeat, not for his own, and disdainful of ambition for the future. He manifested no sympathy with the move- GROVER CLEVELAND 123 ment in his favor, which began to take on importance from the moment of his defeat. He foresaw, even then, with great clearness of vision the events of the succeeding four years : the comparative waste of a surpKis collected and preserved, by dint of great effort and under discouraging conditions; the triumph of tariff greed; and the failure to meet the financial situation as represented by the growing de- mand for the free coinage of silver. He told me of his plans for the future, of his desire to escape from tur- moil and misunderstanding, and of his firm belief, often repeated in the future, as the reader will discover, that he had done his real work, incomplete as it was, so far as the Presidency was concerned. When he came to New York for residence and was settled in his office at 45 William Street, I called to see him, after which, while I heard much of his movements through Colonel Lamont and other friends, I seldom saw him during the summer. He was absent a great deal, and when at home was finding some of "the rest so much needed. He was also adjusting him- self to new and strange surroundings. It was his first experience of life in a great city. The whole environ- ment was strange to him, as it remained to the end. He accepted few invitations, made only two or three speeches — mainly in reply to conventional welcomes — and slowly settled down to a new routine. It was not long, however, before a sentiment of regret over his defeat and premature retirement from public life began to manifest itself. Perhaps it was first openly shown at the centennial celebration of the inauguration of Washington, at the close of April after his retire- ment. This was unconsciously promoted by a remark- able sermon preached on that occasion in St. Paul's 124 RECOLLECTIONS OF Chapel by the late Bishop Potter. It was, in every sense, a lofty treatment of the great questions of the day, but, somehow, in the public mind, it was associated with ap- proval of the President who had just retired and with condemnation of his successor. As is often the case with public sentiment, this was an unfair inference, but from it may be dated the feeling in the public mind, fickle as it is, that perhaps an injustice had been done to a man who, after doing commanding service, was still in the prime of life and capable of still higher work. About the middle of the following November, Colonel Lamont said one day: "I wish you would run over and see the President. He is going to make a speech in Boston some time next month, and he needs you. He has not even the smallest idea of how to get it distribu- ted, and so does not know which way to turn. I am too much engaged to help him, and so have told him that I would send you over, and that you would attend to it. At any rate, go and discuss the matter with him." I scarcely felt that my acquaintance with Mr. Cleve- land was close enough to warrant the assumption that I could be of service to him, but, keeping my promise, I went, and this was the real beginning of an interesting relation. Starting with only a bare acquaintance, which itself grew out of a chance meeting over political busi- ness, it developed at once, with new opportunity, into confidence on his part and devotion and interest on my side. Ill This address was the first important one he had made since leaving the Presidency. It was to be delivered before the Merchants' Association of Boston on Decern- GROVER CLEVELAND 125 ber 12 of that year. I found him nervous about it. He had scarcely yet had time to perceive the chang-e in the public temper and was in much trepidation lest he might not be able to do real service to the good causes whose success he wished to promote. Ballot reform was then in its infancy, but he deter- mined to make it the principal topic of his discourse. When I called to see him, the speech had been blocked out, the first or second revision had been made, and it had been read to Colonel Lamont and one or two friends. They had not wholly approved the advanced position he had taken, and had endeavored — and, as was usual wnth them and all others, vainly — to get him to modify it. He read it over to me with that care which ere long I was to understand better. Even then, I made two or three modest suggestions of verbal changes, most of which he adopted ; but when I mentioned anew the objec- tions which, though urged by Colonel Lamont and the others, did not appeal to me, he used very positive lan- guage in deciding that he would never consent to eliminate these sentences. They remained in the speech, and, as often happened, were the most effective parts of it, and more than justified his own judgment. So he made another fair copy, and this was again read aloud for further criticism. It w^as in this way that a new start in Mr. Cleveland's public life — for this was what it really meant — was initiated. It was sent to the printer of the weekly paper of which I was then editor, and the proofs were read with unusual care. As it was my function, primarily, to advise upon the distribution to the press, this question was very fully discussed, with a good many ups and downs. I had not counted upon being asked for an opinion on the merits, the form, or the policy of the address, although, as I 126 RECOLLECTIONS OF learned later, this was one of the features in mind when I was requested to lend my assistance. I did not as- sume to be a judge of these qualities, but I did feel that I knew how best to reach the newspapers with effective- ness. He w^anted to limit the number to about twenty or thirty selected papers; but I stood for a universal distribution to morning newspapers, through the press associations, of which there were then two, with no copies to individual editors or papers, not even as com- pliments to friends. Thus was inaugurated the policy of giving his utterances to the whole country upon a given date, and avoiding any possible charge of favoritism: a policy which was to have far-reaching effects. IV He agreed to this, and so it was arranged that about five hundred copies should be printed ; but there was a marked difference of opinion about the time that the matter should be furnished to the associations for distribution under their system by post. It was before the days of limited fast trains to the Pacific coast, and so I stood for the seven days then necessary to assure their delivery in the remotest parts of the country. He had then, as always before and after, the very strongest distrust of newspaper editors, so that when he finally compromised upon five days, being the most that he would consent to allow, he accompanied this with the final grumble: "You will find yourself betrayed by some one, and I will be speaking an address which has been published some- where." He was not satisfied even when assured that in such a case we should punish the offending papers. Some days after the earlier copies had gone out through GROVER CLEVELAND 127 one of the press associations, an oversight was discov- ered which made it necessary to send out some supple- mentary suppHes. When I notified him of this, he forwarded them, but wrote me, only two days before the delivery of the address in Boston, the following- letter: the first in what was to prove a long series running over the remainder of his life. 45 William Street, New York, December 10, 1889. Dear Mr. Porker: I send the copies of the address as you requested. I am afraid you will be "too previous" if you send to the Pittsburgh papers to-day. I think it would be better to wait to mail them at such a time as will put them in the hands of the editors not earlier than Thursday afternoon. They ought not to be kick- ing about a newspaper office very long before the thing is delivered. Yours very truly, Grover Cleveland. George F. Parker, Esq., 57 Broadway. There was no premature publication; his speech was printed letter-perfect as delivered, in practically every paper in the United States; the suspected editors had had time to study what he said and to comment upon it with intelligence; and he was both pleased and sur- prised at the reception he had commanded in the countr\-. From that time until the end of his life, I handled something like sixty or seventy speeches or letters, and of them all, there was never a single abuse of the privi- lege. To this policy, far more than to anything else, except his own personality, must be attributed his third nomination and his overwhelming election to the Presi- dency for a second term. Although he never lost his 128 RECOLLECTIONS OF suspicion of the individual editor or reporter, it was never necessary, after this first successful experiment, to ask what time he would give for reaching the coun- try. I did as I chose in this respect, and he cared noth- ing about it. Although Mr. Cleveland neither suspected nor in- tended it, this Boston speech of December 12, 1889, was the opening gun in the campaign for his third nomina- tion and second election. His friends, especially those in Boston, had not lost sight of this hope : which was, to them, the logic of his defeat at the preceding election, and the fitting climax to his career. Soon thereafter, probably upon my first long visit to his house — which was early substituted for the office as a place to discuss his new work of dealing with the public — I raised this question of his renomination. He disavowed all idea of a return to public life in any capacity, and concerning a reelection he said: Why should I have any desire or purpose of re- turning to the Presidency? It involves a responsi- bility almost beyond human strength for a man who brings conscience to the discharge of his duties. Besides, I feel somehow that I made a creditable showing during my first term, all things considered, and I might lose whatever of character and reputa- tion are already gained in it. I do not want the office, and, above all, I do not feel that I can take the risk involved in a second term after the interven- tion of one by another man and an opposing party. It would be necessary for me to start new again, and I do not feel equal to it. GROVER CLEVELAND 129 It was useless to urge that, from the signs of the times, he would be able to render a service to the country which, compared with anything in his first term, would be colossal in its proportions, I make no doubt that this colloquy, in virtually identical language, was repeated between us more than a score of times during the two and a half years succeeding the events just narrated. Until within a few months of the Chicago Convention he never failed to insist that he did not want to be a candidate, and, at the very last, he consented with great reluctance. This position did not betoken an undue or mock modesty; it was not because he wanted to be urged, or from a disinclination to yield his own judgment to that of his friends and partizan followers. He had held the office, had tried his own capacities, and had no illusions about either it or himself. Nor was he one to affect an indifference to a lofty ambition like that involved in the Presidency, for, as I shall show hereafter, when the time came for work, he was one of the most ingenious, efficient, and helpful of politicians, whether it involved his own fortunes or those of another. These things were only incidents of a cause to which he was devoted, and he looked upon himself as a soldier enlisted in the volunteer army of good citizenship. Once the way was open in this matter of influencing the country, it became next to impossible to stop. He had no friend anywhere, scarcely an atrquaintance, who was not convinced, after the Merchants' Association address, that his renomination in 1892 was both a patri- otic and a party necessity. But the sentiment lay much deeper than mere friendship or acquaintance. It would be difficult to exaggerate the outburst of feeling that was soon to manifest itself, without the necessity for machinery or organization, from every part of the 130 RECOLLECTIONS OF country, down among the people themselves. Hitherto, in his short public career, he had not had many oppor- tunities to feel the popular pulse so far as speech was concerned. He had not undertaken to interpret his pub- lic acts. He did not give much heed to the swelling tide of approval as it came to him in the press : he was never greatly impressed with this as a form of public sentiment. Now, however, began that flood of private letters which showed, far more conclusively, that he was really in the way to be understood by his countrymen— something far more agreeable to him than distinction or continuance in public office. VI Among other features was the almost overwhelming demand, from every part of the country and from almost every order of serious organization among his country- men, that he should make a speech, deliver an oration, or address a college society. He soon found it difficult even to answer these invitations, to say nothing of ac- cepting them. He disliked public speaking, and it was disagreeable to make the necessary preparation. He would speak only when he felt that he could say some- thing worth while. He felt so deeply on the problems confronting his countrymen, that, if he consented to deal with these at all, he was desirous that his con- tributions should be really helpful, without the slightest regard to himself and his position. It was not long before he found himself writing somewhat elaborate letters of regret— efforts which required nearly as much work in the way of preparation as a speech. As these were nearly always printed in the local press and thus GROVER CLEVELAND 131 gradually found their way into wider circulation, the pressure increased, and he soon found that, whether he wanted it so or not, much of his time had to be given up to the public. During the year that followed the Boston address, he avoided political, and especially party, questions so far as possible. He had to make a great number of speeches, generally in New York itself, or within easy reach, upon religious, philanthropic, literary, profes- sional, and other questions of a social character. Every address, whatever its nature, or however local it might be or seem, was distributed upon the system already described. The exalted position he had held, aided by his new popularity in the country, procured the very widest publicity for everything that he said or wrote. Millions of people who had never known him as other than a political figure found out that he held sensible, rational opinions upon a vast range of topics in connec- tion with which they had never thought of him. His addresses were never so frequent as to pall, and were always so short and fitting as to command publication and attract readers. He did not indulge in the cheap humor then so common, and not yet extinct, so that his character as a man of serious mind never suffered. Never was a better or surer foundation laid for ef- fective political work than this one. It brought little surprise to the public, and much gratification to his friends, to see how fully he met the demands of the one and the solicitations of the other. He thus made a series of efifective speeches on questions of the day, more especially those which he himself had emphasized and brought to the front. From this time forward, the de- mands for such interpretations of his policy came from every part of the country, North or South. 132 RECOLLECTIONS OF VII There was no organization, no plan, no money, for promoting the third nomination, and yet, somehow, the movementbegan to takeon something Hke form— not from any open approval on the part of the man chiefly in- volved, but by the silence which is said to give consent. How it started, or how it was carried on, I could not explain. Prominent men from outside or distant States began to ask whether I thought that Mr. Cleveland would accept an invitation to make a speech at some Democratic celebration or banquet in their neighbor- hood. Others dropped into my office with the request that I should take them over to see Mr. Cleveland, and still others were referred to me by him. I bore no official or personal relation to him and none of any kind beyond that described. Before long, how- ever, I was supposed, in the mind of such persons, to be a sort of assistant or secretary, so that the reputation of managing a campaign for a Presidential nomination was thrust upon me. I had not sought any such posi- tion, nor knowingly accepted it, or counted upon hold- ing it, and as private employments were already exact- ing, no such addition to my burdens had entered into my mind : but the ends thus instinctively aimed at were consonant with my own ideas and desires. So I soon came to enjoy it and, in course of time, adjusted my aifairs to this unexpected interruption. The Congressional elections of 1890 gave an over- mastering impetus to the movement. After the "Old Roman" banquet — which was organized and managed by John J. Lentz, then a rising young politician in Ohio— in honor of Allen G. Thurman, given on November 1 MR. ci.i:vi;lam) at his dusk GROVER CLEVELAND 133 13, 1890— really the first in the series of important party addresses— invitations to speak came to Mr. Cleveland in growing numbers. This interest was intensified by the banquet— which had, perhaps, as far-reaching effects as any ever held in the United States— given by the Reform Club of New York on December 23, 1890. From that time forth there was no such thing as curb- ing party enthusiasm or of even thinking of a candidate for the nomination other than Mr. Cleveland. This dominating afifair, which was suggested and car- ried through by a few men, had many interesting fea- tures in it — some of which were wholly concealed from the public. It was assumed from this time, by the inner circle, which had been enlarged until it included men of commanding party influence in every State of the Union, that it w^as no longer necessary to trouble ourselves about the nomination for President: this was firmly settled in the public mind as well as by party necessity and des- tiny. VIII It was, therefore, proposed to lay lines for the Vice- Presidency, in order to assure a candidate with an ability, standing, and experience that would add strength to the ticket and also bring this office back to the high traditions of earlier days. Among those consulted were two influential leaders from Iowa— the late Moses M. Ham, formerly member of the National Committee, and his successor, Jennis J. Richardson, who were strongly desirous of bringing before the country, in a large way, the name and personality of Horace Boies, then Gov- ernor of that State. They insisted that he should be 134 RECOLLECTIONS OF invited to speak at the banquet upon the relation of the tariff to the Western farmer. AUhough the list of speakers had been made up — containing as it did the strongest possible array of leading men from every section of the country — the toast list was gladly en- larged by the addition of this name. On the day of the banquet Governor Boies came to New York and naturally desired to pay his respects to Mr. Cleveland, who, many years before, had been an ac- quaintance in Buffalo. Formal greetings over, the Gover- nor took occasion to ask his former neighbor whether the absence of a dress-suit would be noticed and also whether reading rather than declaiming his speech would be ac- ceptable. He was reassured on these points, and the speech made by the Governor was well received by his audience, made an impression upon the country, and brought him into greater vogue in his own State. The Governor's friends had not deemed it necessary, at this early stage, to consult him about his Vice-Presi- dential candidacy, and I may here anticipate my story by a few months, and tell the sequel. By the end of the next year, the Governor of Iowa, greatly to the con- sternation and embarrassment of his friends — our asso- ciates and fellow-plotters — had blossomed out as a full- fledged candidate for the Presidency, with the result that when the Cleveland forces arrived in Chicago on June 17, 1892, the noisiest and most persistent of the opposing movements to be encountered was that organ- ized by the supporters of Horace Boies — for whom his State had given binding instructions. Delegations of lowans, to whom even a Democratic Governor was a most unfamiliar sight, had come to town in great force to insist that their candidate could carry Iowa, and that ours could not. GROVER CLEVELAND 135 It caused only annoyance, but it did illustrate how in politics, as otherwheres, The best-laid schemes o' mice and men Gang aft agley. When the Vice-Presidency came up for consideration, the name first in mind among the supporters of the suc- cessful candidate was the Governor of Iowa; but the tender, and with it the Vice-Presidency for four years, were contemptuously cast aside, and the incident took its place among the unexpected humors of politics. IX This movement, thus fairly under way, was nursed in the office of an obscure weekly newspaper in lower Broadway. There were no committees made up of names, whether prominent or aspiring, no secretaries, no machinery, and no money. Mr. Cleveland's invita- tion list greW' apace, until it became necessary for him to arrange acceptances with some regard to system. But, if the movement had no important centre and no head, it had a popular following all over the country. Mr. Cleveland himself was no more a conscious, avowed candidate than he had been at any previous time, and when I would speak to him, now and again, upon the question, I was met uniformly with the answer already recorded. He always believed, up to a period somewhat later than this, that the Cause— as he always termed it— would develop a candidate other than himself. He thus felt free to give any aid in his power without being subject to a charge of promoting his own ambitions, already fully satisfied. 136 RECOLLECTIONS OF Early in 189 1, the pressure from every part of the country, for at least the semblance of an organization, became stronger. Prominent politicians, influential or dominant in their States, came to New York as to a Mecca, while men seldom heard of in such movements also came and added to its strength. No overtures were made to anybody, no support was sought, no ma- chine was devised; but as no efforts were required, within a short time it became necessary for me to put myself into correspondence with one or more trusted men in every State— men who could give information as to the Cleveland sentiment. As I recall, it was possible for me, from my personal acquaintance, to choose these men in something more than thirty States. By this time Mr. Cleveland's cor- respondence had increased to abnormal proportions, and he was engaged in a never-ending struggle to keep pace with it in those innumerable letters in his own hand. When I could think of no suitable man in a given State, I would go to him, and handing me some stray letter, generally written by a stranger to both of us, he would say: "Well, I received this the other day. I don't know the man, but he may be of use to you." In these ways, without calling for help or showing my political cards to any one, the list was completed, and it laid the founda- tion for the far more serious and vital work of the future. It was the oddest of campaigns. Its most curious and .unusual feature was the comparative absence of men close to the party machine. In every State, except Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, our original corre- GROVER CLEVELAND 137 spondents and advisers were men not known in active manag-ement, either then or since. In many States, in fact in most, the machine was a persistent, often a malig-nant, enemy. If there ever was a movement which derived both its origin and its strength from the people, it was this one, with no organization behind it, or any- thing except the personality of a man who, having espoused an idea, thus made real appeal to popular sentiment. Nor was its conduct, so far as correspondence was concerned, anything like so difficult or intricate as might have been supposed. Letters were continually coming in to me making report of local conditions in many States, but it must also be recalled that others were ar- riving in still greater numbers to Mr. Cleveland and that these were common property. He had the keenest appreciation of the value of something written by some one else, but was wholly contemptuous as to the value or forgetful of the existence of a contribution of his own. This fact was effectively illustrated while the Farmers' Alliance movement was reaching its development in the West and South. He had watched this growth with the deepest interest, and, in many respects, with sym- pathy, but he had never dealt with it as a political idea. Early in 1890, just after we had begun to circulate his utterances in a systematic way, the growth of this or- ganization came up one evening in the course of con- versation, when he said: "Parker, I wrote a letter the other day in reply to one which came from somewhere in Ohio, in which I set forth, rather fully, my view of the relation of the farmers to the tariff." As there was need, just then, for such an exposi- tion, I was interested and sought at once to find his cor- respondent and to get his letter. As he kept no copies, 138 RECOLLECTIONS OF he could only give its purport from memory. After a hunt of a day or so, he found the name and address on a used envelop. With no more clue than this, I wrote to the editor of the local Democratic paper, told him of the existence of the letter, suggested its publication, and procured from him a copy, which was distributed in the usual way. Politically speaking, it proved one of the most useful and influential of his productions and ob- tained a wide circulation. XI Once started, the movement ran itself, gathering mo- mentum without concerted effort or central direction. Even the most efficient State boss, if the cooperation of such an one could have been imagined, would have been wholly lost in the overmastering, irresistible pub- lic sentiment to which it was early possible to make appeal. When the movement was fairly under way, three months after the elections of 1890, nothing but Mr. Cleveland's positive and firm refusal to accept, if nominated in the following year, would have had the smallest effect upon the party and its action. Doubt no longer existed or was possible. It was not only pub- lic sentiment to which appeal could be made, but by this time the most effective, because a thoroughly popular, machine had been constructed — exclusively a Cleveland machine, having only the smallest connection with any- thing that was in existence at the close of the first term, or with the official organization of the party in even so much as one State. As this organization grew without the use of money, or the intervention of any recognized leader, new or old, or anything resembling routine or conscious GROVER CLEVELAND 139 management, it becomes, as an historical fact, as spon- taneous, and in its final results and conduct— the management at Headquarters in 1892— perhaps as ar- tistic as any known to American experience. Its motive power was not new: it was merely the applica- tion to the country at large, on modified lines— though without money to sustain or promote it — of the methods so successfully employed in New York a few years earlier by Samuel J. Tilden. Without definite plans to be followed, it brought to the front the best men of the party, who, interested in politics, but more in a man and a cause, without personal ambitions of their own, did their work and passed off the political scene. This was true not only in small communities, but in the whole country. A majority of the workers had never seen Mr. Cleveland, and he probably never heard of one in a hundred, until he received reports about them from his friends. In the beginning they were en- tirely unknown to Mr. Whitney or to any of the man- agers, who came upon the scene when the real work of the campaign was over. They were lawyers, doctors, business men, financiers, farmers, even clergymen. I doubt whether one in five of them had ever voted at a primary or was known to the local management of his party. Only a few of their names came even to Mr. Cleveland and myself— then the only persons who knew the course of matters— for, behind those mentioned, were unnumbered thousands whose very existence was wholly unknown to us. XII In spite of the spontaneity of the movement, it was not without form or void. Almost unconsciously, the men I40 RECOLLECTIONS OF knew each other — as it is said the members of a Vigi- lance Committee instinctively recognize their fellows. In the end, nothing was overlooked, no risks or chances were taken. If a situation in a given State was weak, or had in it doubtful elements, some man within its borders was chosen or volunteered to set it right. If a large city needed attention, it was given; because, in some mysterious way, the right man came to the front and executed the task allotted to him by common consent. A like process adapted itself to conditions in districts and counties. I never heard of jealousies even in a single State. It was natural that new men should push themselves to the front because they were able to do something of interest to themselves and of use to the cause in hand. As they could get quickly under way, they had done their work before the regular political forces woke up, but it would have been easy to compose any difficulties that might present themselves. Our friends were looking for results, not recognition, and willingly retired again to the background when they had gained what they wanted. Perhaps this was best illustrated in California, where the machine was really against us so far as this is pos- sible when public sentiment runs strongly in an oppo- site direction. The man through whom we worked there, from the beginning, was John P. Irish, formerly of Iowa. I had known him since 1868; he had held close relations with Mr. Cleveland, both individually and in politics, and was as effective a stump speaker as his party had. He was a newspaper man of training and experience, though then unattached. He began on his own motion, without money or aid of any kind, the task of influencing public sentiment through the country newspapers to which he found ready access. With the GROVER CLEVELAND 141 local machine he was perhaps the most unpopular man to be found anywhere, a fact which added to his plea- sure in the task he had undertaken. He received no help from New York or elsewhere except interviews or other matter for publication in which the course of public sentiment in the East was set forth. By the end of 1891, he had put his State into the very front rank of Cleveland supporters without, however, making the smallest impression upon the machine. Under such conditions, it was naturally impossible for him to be chosen as a delegate. But he was in the State Convention held at Fresno on May 19, and from his place on the Resolutions Committee he procured the very strongest instructions for Cleveland and for the unit rule. It was possible to count upon nearly half the delegates as friends, and the remainder were open to control by means of' the overwhelming public senti- ment which Mr. Irish had aroused. While an effective orator, he did not know how to spell the word ''discretion" — if this process also in- volved the use of the letters making up the word "sur- render." When the California delegation was ready to start for Chicago, it followed the example formerly set by all representative bodies from that State; i.e., it filled two or three decorated Pullman cars with fruit, wines, flowers, and other characteristic products, and started on its way. Irish traveled in another part of the same train. At a long halt at some mountain station in Nevada, he was strolling up and down the platform, when a number of bystanders who knew him, from his stumping experience in their neighborhood, called upon him for a speech. He declined, saying to the assem- bled crowd, while pointing to the cars covered with flags and bunting: "Why don't you call upon those fellows 142 RECOLLECTIONS OF in there? I am not traveling with this aggregation. My only purpose is to stay close enough to them, both here and in Chicago, to keep them from slipping their handcuffs." It need scarcely be said that with such a watchman there was never the smallest danger that the delegates from California would disobey instruc- tions, although assiduously courted because of their known personal inclinations. XIII I HAVE told this story, somewhat out of its place,, in order to explain the methods of work, the spontaneity of the movement, some of the difficulties involved, the kind of men enlisted in its unselfish and unrequited ser- vice, and also that the public may know and history record that it was no great concerted effort by a party machine, or the fabled work by some Napoleon of man- agement, or the promise or hope of office that brought about the third nomination of Grover Cleveland. Virtually, each State took care of itself. During all this preliminary period which continued until February 22, 1892, no man was asked for money, none was paid for services, and no general conference was either called or held. While thousands of people were engaged, lovingly and devotedly, in this task, and so, from neces- sity, knew what they wanted, they were unaware of what others were doing, there was no commanding gen- eral, and, when it was all over, there was left no dis- tinctively Cleveland machine which could be used again. There were no agents traveling here and there, no cen- tral newspaper dominated for both the profit and the GROVER CLEVELAND 143 glorification of a candidate— there was nothing but at- tachment to a man and a cause. No like campaign had been carried on before, and it is not probable that it belongs to that class of historical events which tend to repeat themselves. CHAPTER IX PREPARATION FOR 1 892 THE work of wider scope of the preliminary cam- paign, which, I find from my correspondence files, was entered upon early in April, 1890, in a purely personal way, and only with the knowledge of Colonel Lamont, lasted, in this form, until about the first of February, 1892. It was not until the National Con- vention call, on January 8, followed by that, issued at unusually short notice, for a State convention to be held at Albany on February 22, to choose delegates, that Mr. Cleveland came consciously to think of himself as a candidate for a third nomination. New York politics had not come distinctly within the scope of the plan. Always difficult and the sport of faction, it was more fraught just then with diffi- culty and division than ever before. From whatever point the question might be viewed, Mr. Cleveland had ceased to represent any one State: he had become a national candidate, so that, if chosen at all, it must be by a popular movement covering the whole country. It would have been a contradiction in terms to con- duct a movement everywhere else without direct refer- ence to the machine and then to rely upon it in New GROVER CLEVELAND 145 York. But the call for the convention, which, under ordinary circumstances, would have passed without notice, at once excited, in every State in the Union, loud and indignant protests. To realize that, with practi- cally no popular sentiment anywhere for any other, there was danger that the leading candidate would be deprived of the support of the delegation from the State of his residence, aroused deep resentment. It was clear, however, that there was both the power and the will to play the game to the end. The so-called Snap Convention ran its predestined course, and the delegation was instructed for David B. Hill. The con- test was then on, but fight in reality there never was after that, because Mr. Cleveland's nomination, which, on the day before, only awaited his consent to assure it, had become, the day after, a necessity, which neither assent nor declination could have affected in the smallest degree. II About the time that the convention call was issued, Mr. Cleveland accepted a long-standing invitation — newly pressed upon him by his friend and former Postmaster- General, Don M. Dickinson — to address the students of the State University of Michigan on Washington's birthday, at the very moment w-hen the convention of his own State would be nominally condemning him. Familiar, since November, 1889, with every step that he had taken in the preparation of more than thirty addresses of every kind, I had never seen him enter with so keen a relish and enjoyment upon any task as upon this one. A reader who will take the trouble to seek out, in his collected works, the address on "Sentiment 10 146 RECOLLECTIONS OF in Our National Life" will discover that, in this, the longest of all his occasional addresses, there is a fervor, an eloquence, an enthusiasm, an interest in his subject, and, at the same time, a pathos, seldom manifested in his utterances. . Unusual care had been taken in the dis- tribution of the printed slips, so that, in addition to the usual morning papers, the afternoon papers in the lead- ing cities, and many religious, agricultural, and mis- cellaneous weeklies, were supplied with advance copies. When, on the following day, the reprint of this address and its accompanying descriptions and incidents and the like reports of the Albany Convention appeared, side by side, it did not need any great prescience to see which was to be the more influential in creating sentiment. Ill When the State Committee had met in New York to issue the convention call, some of the friends of Mr. Cleveland asked to be heard in opposition to the pro- posed action, but their protests were not heeded. At Albany the same people appeared upon the scene and, in like manner, asked to be heard. The request was denied and the program was adopted without serious opposition. From that moment the nomination campaign took on new color, and an activity began which, within a short time, was to involve the entire country. The State of New York, not hitherto looked upon by the Cleveland advocates as an important or calculable element in the contest, became the centre— all aflame with effort and counter-effort. As if by magic, there sprang into being an organization known as the Anti- GROVER CLEVELAND 147 Snappers. Within a week after the adjournment of the convention, the State was aroused. No county was so laggard that it did not take part in a movement which was soon to overwhehn all opposition. All the para- phernalia of State, county, city, and local committees was collected. A State convention was called for the purpose of sending to Chicago a contesting delegation —which, though it did not present its credentials, was, with its accompanying workers, probably quite as in- fluential as any ever seen in our great national gatherings. Money was collected in plenty and with little difficulty, so that it became easy to provide for meetings, speakers, and the news and arguments for newspapers, which were eager for everything that could be compiled. It early ceased to be a fight on the State machine and, in New York as well as the country at large, it was centred upon Tammany, IV The informal organization already described now became an important factor. It was the nucleus of an efficient working body and soon covered the country with its efforts. Hitherto, as already explained, it had played its part without money or even public knowledge of its existence. Of the newspaper men of the country, only Mr. Sereno S. Pratt, then correspondent of the Philadelphia Ledger, now secretary of the New York Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. Thomas F. Meehan, correspondent of the Bal- timore Sun, now one of the editors of the Catholic Encyclopedia, knew of the activities conducted from No. 57 Broadway. They saw Mr. Cleveland occasion- ally during these interim years. The work was either 148 RECOLLECTIONS OF carried on through the press associations or, as became necessary in later days, by direct communication with newspapers. It was early determined that those who had held relations to the work already done should keep them- selves clear of the Anti-Snap 'movement. About the first of March I submitted to its leaders a memorandum setting forth what had been done, describing the machinery ready for operation, and outlining what, in my opinion, it was possible to do. As before, New York was taboo, but the remainder of the country, especially the South, was to be shown— by the Anti- Snappers, working in their own way — that not only could Mr. Cleveland carry his own State at the polls, but that probably no other candidate could do so. The necessary money was furnished, and steps were at once taken to enlarge our activities. Just three months lay before us in which to influence the latest of the State conventions. Within ten days an effective news bureau was in communication with all Democratic newspapers. Among other features sug- gested was one involving the simultaneous publication, in most of the large cities in which we could command the help of friendly newspapers, of local interviews almost wholly with business men— insisting upon the nomination of Mr. Cleveland. Within a week or so of each other, during April, May, and early June, influen- tial, widely circulated papers in Boston, New York, Providence, Springfield, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Wash- ington, Pittsburgh, Louisville, St. Louis, St. Paul, Chi- GROVER CLEVELAND 149 cago, Cleveland, Richmond, Charleston, and New Orleans, gave columns, and in some cases pages, to this feature— making it home news. The note running through these interviews — all outlined from the New York office— was insistence upon the importance of Mr. Cleveland's nomination to the revival of business on large lines, and an expression of the belief that he could carry the State of New York. As for the newspapers, no money was expended and no central management was invoked or employed. They gathered and published the news which, lying about them, would not otherwise have been developed or used. This involved only small efifort in New York and no expense. The plans were outlined through local cor- respondents : leading men living in these cities, and the rest of the work they did without interference from anybody. Nothing was managed centrally that friends on the spot could do better and more quietly in their own neighborhoods. In addition, effective work was done through the same agencies with indifferent or weak-kneed papers in every important State ; but their editors or owners never so much as suspected that they were carrying out a policy suggested to them locally, but really settled in New York. It was interesting to note the enthusiasm shown by the editors and correspondents of influential papers of the best order, who entered into our plans. No credit was claimed by anybody at the centre. Ex- perience proves that, when men can have practical ideas which in time they come to treat as original, and are then left free to carry them out in their own way, it is possible to do effective service — so long as public, not personal, ends are served. I50 RECOLLECTIONS OF VI It would be impossible, in the promotion of any cause, great or small, to receive more wholesome or effective cooperation from the press of this country than we were able to command for more than three years. Hundreds of newspapers of which we never saw a copy, or whose editors neither then nor afterward ever heard of the work, carried forward the movement for Mr. Cleveland's nomination and reelection, wholly without pay or re- ward, or hope or thought of either. One often hears of the pride which comes from the exercise of open power. But no one can exaggerate the pleasure that follows as the effect of working entirely behind the scenes when he finds his devotion to a single object thus eft'ectively promoted by men and influences both unseen and unknown. It is impossible not to recall these demonstrated facts when one hears, now and again, the charge that everything relating to public opinion is false, corrupt, or selfish. I know this is not true and realize that agi- tations become dangerous, so far as the press is con- cerned, only because the agents or representatives of good men, worthy causes, or honest enterprises neglect their duty to themselves and the interests intrusted to them. In most cases they get the reward that neglect, ignorance, or over-confidence deserves. Mr. Cleveland's nomination and election in 1892 had only a small relation to party intrigue and management : they were effected by sensible and persistent appeals to a sane public sentiment which sent bosses and managers about their business, and asserted itself with a force then, as ever, surprising to such men. GROVER CLEVELAND 151 VII Up to this time the late WilHam C. Whitney had taken no open part in the Cleveland movement looking to 1892, He was known to be opposed to the action of the Albany Convention and had made an earnest but vain effort to keep his friend Mr. Croker and Tammany from adopt- ing such an ill-starred and fatuous policy. His loyalty to Mr. Cleveland was never suspected or even doubted, but he had lost some of his influence. When the policy of writing the Ellery Anderson letter of February 10, 1891, was under consideration, few men were taken into counsel. Among them w^re Mr. Anderson himself, Charles S. Fairchild, Colonel Lamont, and Mr. Whitney. Of these, only the latter opposed the attitude assumed by Mr. Cleveland— who was firmly con- vinced of the necessity of taking such a strong position, thus early, so that no man could doubt where he stood. In matters of policy no man enjoyed Mr. Cleveland's confidence more than Mr. Whitney; but, as this was a question of principle, in the decision of which politicians had only the smallest influence with him, the Anderson letter was sent. As first drawn, according to the rough sketch, before me as I write, it entered pretty fully into a discussion of the merits of the question as it then pre- sented itself as a dominating issue. It was written and rewritten until, in its settled, final form, its length had been reduced by three-fourths. In each successive re- vision its tone against free silver became stronger and stronger until the closing sentence of this letter of less than two hundred words ended with bitter denunciation of "the dangerous and reckless experiment of free, un- limited, and independent silver coinage." 152 RECOLLECTIONS OF Notwithstanding his perfect agreement in principle with this declaration, Mr. Whitney believed that it was premature, unnecessary, and impolitic. He declared, with what for him was unusual vehemence, that it would be fatal to Democratic success in 1892, especially to the candidacy of Mr. Cleveland, whether for nomination or election. For a time the storm of denunciation and obloquy, which broke over its writer's head, seemed to justify these fears. Mr. Whitney, once out of the circle, simply kept his own counsel. The relations between the two men never changed as the result of this or any other difference : they were simply out of agreement for a time, upon a political question, and there was no more to be said or done. Public sentiment soon began to veer Mr. Cleveland's way — although this made no difference to him so far as his own attitude was concerned — but I do not recall any occasion during the succeeding year when the advice of Mr. Whitney was asked. The Anti-Snap movement aroused Mr. Whitney anew. He was too loyal to stand by and see his chief thus assailed in his own home. But, in his case, as in that of others who had been close to Mr. Cleveland, it was not deemed politic that he should come into the open. He tried, for a time, to bring about a compromise so that other New York candidates should retire, leaving the delegation free to represent the obvious sentiment of the State ; but, like most compromises, this did not com- mend itself to either side. He had given no sign, although some of the managers of the Anti-Snap movement, never able to account for certain contributions, credited them to Mr. Whitney. Whatever the truth of this, the latter, who still kept silence, sailed for Europe on the 12th of April, leav- ing behind him an interview which put him into the front GROVER CLEVELAND 153 rank of Cleveland advocates and leaders. There was no long-er any doubt as to his position, and, this defined, everybody knew just what he could and would do. VIII The work was everywhere so well under way that, when Mr. Whitney returned on the i8th of May, after an absence of five weeks, the organization throughout the country had been perfected; thousands upon thousands of the best men of the country were enlisted ; the series of newspaper interviews had been printed in many widely distributed newspapers ; and practically all of the routine work had been completed. Thirty-five State and Territorial conventions had been held, of which twenty-four had given binding instructions for Cleve- land; seven were known to favor him, though unin- structed; while only four had either presented other candidates or protested against his nomination. No party manager had done anything to bring about cohesion among these disjointed and independent workers, that is, if Mr. Cleveland himself is thrown out of the account. The Anti-Snappers devoted themselves to New York, but sent agents into States where conven- tions were still to be held in order to carry the assurance that, with Mr. Cleveland as the candidate. New York was safe for the ticket; but, in general, they paid only slight attention to the whole political field. That task was soon undertaken on a broader and more comprehensive scale than had hitherto been possible. All the separate units of the army, organized without his direct aid, were now awaiting their general in the per- son of William C. Whitney. He was particularly fitted 154 RECOLLECTIONS OF for this kind of work. Generally indifferent to details, putting off as long as possible all the larger things which came before him in life, he had the rare gift of doing within a few days the work that would require weeks on the part of the average leader. This marvelous power of concentration, amounting almost to genius, was now devoted to the Cleveland cause. Business, social duties — everything that can en- gage the attention of a man in the prime of life, rich, ambitious, ingenious, active, full of energy when needed —though seldom called out— were put aside for the. duties of the movement. After interviews with Mr. Cleveland and a few leading men hurriedly called from near-by States, within a week he had taken in the situa- tion. There was no longer fear of contagion from as- sociation with Anti-Snappers. He knew something of the work of my little machine: so I was asked to take to his residence my correspondence and budgets of in- formation from every outside State. There I spent hours with him alone, day after day, until, after study- ing what had been done, he had assimilated everything, found out who were the new men of light and leading, and discovered the weak points in the plans already de- vised. He was then ready for the business in hand. IX Thenceforward, without any claim or seeking on his part, many of the things done by others, especially by the Anti-Snappers, were credited to Mr. Whitney. In fact, most of them were suggested by Mr. Cleveland, who always knew ten men engaged in the effective work where one would come to Mr. Whitney's knowledge. GROVER CLEVELAND 155 One had been engaged in two great national campaigns as a candidate for President and, for three years, had known every step taken in a third, while the other had the defects of the training incident to New York politics. This side of Mr. Cleveland's character, so little known, was never fully appreciated. Because he recoiled from the distribution of patronage, it was assumed that he did not know the game of the higher politics. It was, however, mainly because he knew so well the great mass of men who, performing real work, asked for little or nothing in return, while the self-seekers — often doing practically nothing— always pushed for a recognition ^^•hich he knew they did not deserve. He was so accus- tomed to see the larger features of life that, looking upon politics from this point of view, he often failed, no doubt, to see the small concerns which must, from necessity, be a stock in trade with the State or local manager. But from whomever the impulse came, the Cleveland army now had a commander. Mr. Whitney not only assumed command, but he furnished money to make the collected information available. By the end of May we were able to communicate with our friends everywhere, with some authority, and to let them know just how the contest was going. Even before this, there was never the smallest doubt in the minds of the initiated as to the result of the Chicago Convention. The nomination of Mr. Cleveland was as fully assured on the i8th of May as it was five weeks later, and nothing that was done in the meantime on either side ever made any change in the conditions. The real task was to convince the country of this fact, and so to register this predestined result that the popular imagination should be impressed and thus give a mo- mentum to the electoral campaign which nothing could 156 RECOLLECTIONS OF overcome. The urgent necessity was to elect a Presi- dent on the second Tuesday in November rather than in the closing days of June. Mr. Whitney's work so assured this that, from the day he took hold in earnest, one campaign so merged itself into the other that both became positively artistic in their conduct and ending. Mr. Cleveland had been waiting, rather impatiently, for Mr. Whitney's return, in order to hold a confer- ence of a few of the leading men hitherto engaged in promoting his interests, or rather those surrounding his name and the issues he had raised. I have before me, written in pencil with his own hand, on Mr. Whitney's embossed note-paper, the list of men to be invited. They were picked men asked, by telegraph, to meet at Mr. Whitney's house on a given day. It was the original idea to get representatives from about twenty States, one from each. This was afterward modified, owing to lack of time for reaching New York from the remoter States, and also for the purpose of keeping it as quiet as possible. On the ninth day of June, 1892, trusted men from nine or ten States came to New York, left their hotels, where they had been asked not to register their names, and began early to arrive at Mr. Whitney's house. No. 2 West Fifty-seventh Street.^ It was a terrible day, 1 Among those who attended the Conference were Judge William G. Ewing of Illinois; William F. Harrity of Pennsylvania; Samuel R. Honey of Rhode Island; Bradley B. Smalley of Vermont; Samuel E. Morss of Indiana; Don M. Dickinson of Michigan; William F. Vilas of Wisconsin; William L. Wilson of West Virginia; John E. Russell, Nathan Matthews, and Josiah Quincy of Massachusetts, and Francis Lynde Stetson of New York. Mr. Whitney presided, and George F. Parker was secretary. GROVER CLEVELAND 157 and, looking back upon it, I do not remember another downpour of rain equal to it. The storm continued throughout the entire day, though severest in the morn- ing when the party were gathering. By eleven o'clock all those expected had arrived, and the Conference began, under Mr. Whitney's direction. The men all knew each other and the conditions they had met to discuss : so there was no waste of time. Each man made a report for his own State and for others within his knowledge. All available information was laid freely before the Conference. Thus, there was no concealment, no inside ring, nothing but a desire to get at the real truth of the situation. It was assumed that the organization of the conven- tion which was to meet in Chicago twelve days later was the first business in hand. The make-up of the Com- mittee on Credentials was considered and its constitu- tion settled so far as its dominating members were con- cerned. Then came the Committee on Resolutions, deemed the most vital: the ruling membership of which was not only considered but settled. The same process completed, on the same principles, the constitu- tion of the Committee on Permanent Organization. Naturally, the first contest was certain to be precipitated over the temporary organization, and, in order to deal with this problem, the attitude of the National Com- mittee was thoroughly canvassed. It was then in order to settle upon the Temporary Chairman, about which there was no question. William L. Wilson of West Virginia, himself a member of the Conference, was chosen. When the members sat down to luncheon about one o'clock the question of the Presidency of the conven- tion had been reached. There was no time to sus- 158 RECOLLECTIONS OF pend business, and so the only roll-call of the day came upon this question, at table, when ex-Governor James E. Campbell of Ohio was chosen. The Vice-Presidency was not even so much as men- tioned. This routine disposed of, the really important busi- ness of the day was taken up: that of making the Conference a permanent body until the close of the Chi- cago Convention, or at least until Mr. Cleveland's nom- ination had been assured. In order to effect this object, the roll of the unrepresented States was called. A gen- eral discussion was held about the members who should be added, from unrepresented States, at the next meet- ing of the Conference — already fixed for eight o'clock on June 17, at Mr. Whitney's rooms in the Hotel Richelieu in Chicago. As each new member was chosen, some one in attendance was held responsible for his presence, and this process was continued until all the vacancies were filled. After this the nominating speeches were taken into account, the men who should make them were chosen, arrangements were made for Headquarters in Chicago, and the preliminary Confer- ence was at an end. This important meeting was never heard of by the newspapers either before it took place or afterward. From that day to this I have never seen any notice of its existence — to say nothing of its proceedings. It was a fitting close to a campaign which had been carried on for nearly three years without any of the methods of the brass-band. Both were conducted to promote a result thoroughly understood beforehand and in which per- sonal elements and the ambitions of the individuals en- gaged were negligible quantities. WILLIAM L. WILSON vho for a time was l'ostmastcr-G<;ncr;il under Mr. Cleveland GROVER CLEVELAND 159 XI When the Conference met at the Hotel Richeheu on Friday evening, June 17— after formally opening its rooms at the Palmer House— it had representatives from about twenty States, and, while probably no event was then so fully assured as was Mr. Cleveland's nom- ination, his friends resolved to take up the task of organization just as if they were beginning anew. At the first meeting, Adlai E. Stevenson, soon to be nominated for Vice-President, was Chairman, and George F. Parker was Secretary throughout with power to name an assistant, for which place Edward J. McDermott of Kentucky was chosen. The roll of States was called; each man present reported upon the conditions in his jurisdiction, and, if asked, did the same for neighboring States which had no representative present. No conjectures were taken, no surmises or guesses would pass muster, and no stump speeches were made. When the evening's session was over, it dis- closed about three hundred sure delegates for Cleveland in less than half the States. Arrangements were then made for bringing to the next meeting men from still other States : but it was done with system. No element of the haphazard played a part in it. All the participants, as well as any others known to be safe, were assigned specific work for the next day. By their own desire, none of the Anti- Snapper delegates was invited to the Conference, but report was made about their work among the State delegations. The next evening the Conference met with repre- sentatives from probably ten more States. When the i6o RECOLLECTIONS OF roll was called, no attention was paid to the results re- corded at the preceding meeting, but account was taken of all changes, whether favorable or unfavorable. It was then that Mr. Whitney— in that positive way he had when all his powers were enlisted — began to enforce with rigor the necessity for absolute certainty. He would have no conjectures or probabilities or perhapses, and the secretaries would record only those about which there was absolute assurance with no chance of change. With this rigorous policy sometimes the weaker, who were also, generally speaking, the more enthusiastic members, would become discouraged, — though all would go to work with renewed determination. At the third meeting, Sunday night, practically every State was represented and Mr. Whitney became more and more insistent upon the rigor of the game, with the result that our numbers showed a reduction in some States, though an increase in the total. The leader, usually the perfection of suavity and good nature, was inclined to be irritable, and many a man of high repu- tation found himself brought to book if he hesitated or speculated. No one seemed to think of expressing an opinion of the final result, although there was none who did not feel perfectly certain of success. This function was Mr. Whitney's, and he was silent and grim, centred upon the work of the moment as if life, reputation, and fortune were at stake. It is seldom that, in one's association with men, he finds such con- centration as Mr. Whitney's, united with a force of character which, for the time, marks the commander dealing with a crisis and compelling obedience from even the strongest and most ambitious. This session was not the most encouraging, so far as enthusiasm went, but it was the most tense and, on the GROVER CLEVELAND i6i whole, the most effective because it showed, at the right time, both the strength and the weakness of our cause, and also brought out more distinctly the strong qualities of the leader who was sitting there without question at the head of a company of leaders. Monday was to be the important day in the history of the Conference. The National Committee was to meet and pass upon the first of the proposals, made in New York, and never again doubted or put to vote : the selection of a Temporary Chairman. After reaching Chicago, virtually no attention had been given to this question. The attitude of the delegates was deemed the one important matter. At the meeting of the Na- tional Committee, Colonel Watterson of Kentucky — one of its members and a delegate-at-large outside the Cleveland lines, distrusted and opposed at every turn by Mr. Whitney and the Conference — proposed for Chairman the name of an unknown Kentucky delegate, and represented that he was the choice of the Cleveland supporters, and the Committee chose him in opposition to Mr. Wilson. There was natural indignation among the members of the Conference and their friends, not because of defeat, but because it had come from a deception known to be deliberate, which, if overlooked, might mean mis- chief : but its real effect was to spur on to renewed effort. When the fourth session met at night, there was a feel- ing in favor of taking the matter into open convention, and this policy was proposed by Mr. Whitney himself. It produced practically the only discussion held during the Chicago meetings of this volunteer body, and it was disposed of through its withdrawal by the proposer him- self. Governor Campbell then declined to have his name presented for the Presidency of the convention, 11 i62 RECOLLECTIONS OF and Mr. Wilson was chosen by the Committee on Perma- nent Organization. At the last meeting the same policy was pursued, ex- cept that as the roll-call proceeded the sentiment of each State delegation was discussed more in detail. When the result was once recorded there was no review of it and no change of votes. Slowly, State by State, the estimate was made, and when, at its close, the figures showed about six hundred votes for Mr. Cleveland on the first ballot, Mr. Whitney threw himself back in his chair and, with obvious relief and satisfaction, said: "Well, that will do. There is no longer any doubt of the result, and no further question in my mind." It was about one o'clock on Tuesday morning when this conclusion was reached, and the long, hard fight was over, so far as the Cleveland Conference was officially concerned. XII During each day the official Cleveland Headquarters were open at the Palmer House from early morning until long after the return of the managing forces from the meetings of the Conference. The leaders were always on hand so that I or my assistant could reach them in the order of their need— Mr. Whitney being held in reserve. However, this often meant that he would see delegates or visitors who merely wanted to pay their respects : anything like seclusion being foreign to him in such an emergency. When I needed supplies I bought them and made requisition upon Mr. Whit- ney's secretary for the money. Among other expendi- tures was $2000 for buttons, badges, flags, and other souvenirs for which we had made no provision. In GROVER CLEVELAND 163 the matter of money for expenses, Mr. Whitney was hberal, and, as he would permit no others to share them, the cost to him of this one week's campaign, going to Chicago, returning, and while there, was about $5000. Apropos of that liberality, verging upon lavishness, which distinguished Mr. Whitney, a story is told that, some years later, he met in Paris a rich man who had been nibbling at the Democratic nomination for Gov- ernor of New York. When his advice was asked he gave it freely: "Why, of course you ought to run. Go ahead, make your preliminary canvass, and when you have put up $200,000 or more, you will have become so much interested that you will go ahead and spend some money." He wanted results and did not care for money except for the pleasure of spending it, and of achieving his objects : but where his money went, his heart, his work, his power of concentration went with it. I never so much as heard him suggest bad or questionable uses of money in politics, but, by throwing himself into the scale, he could do more with one dollar than another man would do with five. This was shown in the result- ing campaign, in which there was a small but effective staff. The trifling amounts spent at Chicago and before going had generated a momentum which no after ex- penditure could create and nothing on the other side could resist. XIII The history of the Convention of 1892 is well known, and I shall not presume to rewrite it. But there is one feature in it to which sufficient attention has never been i64 RECOLLECTIONS OF paid. On Wednesday afternoon and night, that most dreary of all American political proceedings — the speeches naming candidates for the Presidency — went steadily on, one voice after another being lost or drowned in the attempt to make itself heard. The call of States had been completed and the doleful performance seemed to be at an end, in the thunder and lightning incident to a weird storm outside, and in spite of the floods of water that came through the roof of a fragile wigwam. It was thought that everything, pro and con, had been said, when just after midnight there came a shrill cry from the New York delegation, a man — with a real or feigned unwillingness — made his way up the crowded aisles, and amid mingled shouts of approval and de- mands for the roll of States, William Bourke Cockran claimed recognition. A hush fell upon the crowd, and even the swaying storm seemed hushed. The speaker began in a low, clear voice that made itself heard in the remotest limits of the eager crowd. Its first word was a challenge to a body of men who had made up their minds. But, without pause, the orator went on, with wit and pathos, with pleading and prediction, with sar- casm and irony — never with abuse or denunciation — with the utmost audacity, but always in taste, now with a rising inflection, then with a low, almost piteous appeal, until, when the clock had nearly marked half- past one in the morning, he concluded and walked to his seat on the floor. It was without doubt one of those masterful dis- plays of sustained elocution sometimes made in a na- tional convention. It was little less than marvelous that such a speech, delivered to 15,000 people of whom ninety-five per cent, were unsympathetic, could com- GROVER CLEVELAND 165 mand a hearing just as the pent-up excitement of a week of bitter contest had reached its highest development. From the floor of the convention a delegate moved the call of States, and, without a word of answer or of protest, the voting began. Thousands kept tally, and it soon became apparent that not a man in the Cleve- land column had wavered. When the vote of the last Territory had been recorded, the tally was made up, and the president of the convention announced that Grover Cleveland had received 61 6>^ votes, oratory had regis- tered the most humiliating failure of our national history. M' CHAPTER X CAMPAIGN MANAGEMENT R. Cleveland was enough of a politician not to neglect his own interests after he had been nominated, and he had too much of this char- acter to be continually interfering with the chosen management. In the essentials, where the ordinary political man- ager fails, he was a leader ; but, when it came to details, to the routine of this or that formal duty, he seldom interfered. He would discuss with his friends who might be or ought to be the chairman of a national com- mittee, or the routine manager of what is known as the Campaign or Executive Committee; but, when the larger ideas were properly dealt with, he did not think that it either became him or was necessary that he should know or care how every petty thing was done. A secretary, or the head of some bureau, important in his own eyes, and perhaps even in those of the manage- ment, was almost certain to be unknown to Mr. Cleve- land for the reason that he did not deem such a post important. In management, as in other great affairs in life, he did not allow the trees to obscure his view of the forest i66 I GROVER CLEVELAND 167 of which they were a part. As he understood the people, he did not think it w^as possible to fool them very long either by names or by any thimblerigging process. He had never been the creature of management, and so he did not permit it to pose as his creator. Reason and experience taught him that, after all, a candidate of dignity and character must go his own way and not put himself unreservedly into the hands of some committee. II In spite of the strong, underlying sentiment which had forced the nomination, the question of management was not entirely free from difficulty. He had been nom- inated without assistance from the machine of his own State, and yet the opposing elements in it had to be con- sidered. As party men, they had acquiesced, but there was an undertone of surliness. Mr. Cleveland would make no overtures, and as for promises or pledges, he w'ould not make these to his friends, much less to those who had opposed him to the bitter end. He could con- ciliate where a principle was involved only by thus con- vincing opposition that compromise, which to his mind was often synonymous with surrender, did not enter into his character. In spite of the impetus it had received, the campaign for the election moved along slowly. The machine was much smaller than usual, so that the Headquarters in Fifth Avenue, with the seventy-five or eighty members of its staff, contrasted strangely with the vast number employed at the Republican Headquarters, and still more so with the three hundred or three hundred and fifty who trod upon each other's heels in the Parker cam- i68 RECOLLECTIONS OF paign twelve years later. Few of the usual political bounders— who, it has seemed to me, must rest for the four years between jobs — were to be found drawing money in 1892. Some petty jealousies at the top were composed by Mr. Cleveland, who was a successful peace- maker in such cases. The State Committee of New York was thought to be more or less backward, and some men distasteful to Mr. Cleveland came to the front. For a time he was critical, but he never interfered, and it must be said that the men whom he most suspected proved efficient in the work of commanding the vote of the State. They were politicians and they wanted fair treatment, and when they had received assurances— which they ought not to have needed — that there were to be no reprisals, they worked with a fidelity which made them in later years such strong* friends and supporters that Mr. Cleveland freely admitted that he had been mistaken. But, after he had eaten his celebrated dinner with the dissatisfied elements at the Victoria Hotel, when, by main force and that positiveness which knew no defeat, he had so conquered as to extort from Richard Croker the confession, 'T think the Old Man is right," every- thing was plain sailing so far as faithful management by the leaders and support by their following were concerned. There were the usual money difficulties at one stage of the campaign, but these were overcome. He did not return to New York until later, but kept in close touch with public sentiment, and also impressed his opinions upon the management through the visits of trusted friends to Buzzard's Bay. The yacht Oneida, Commodore Benedict in command, made many an un- heralded voyage out of New York on Saturdays, and i^i^^SFT*" E. C. BliNHDlCT Owner of the yacht 0?teiJii, and personal friend of Mr. Cleveland GROVER CLEVELAND 169 even the fact that it had found anchorage In Massa- chusetts waters the following morning was not always reported in the newspapers. To a degree far less than usual were the drum and trumpet sounded. Mr. Cleveland made the response to the notification speech, which had then become an impor- tant feature in a Presidential campaign, before a great assembly at Madison Square Garden but no other public appearance. His letter of acceptance and a short letter in which he rebuked, with great severity, a proposed woman's club auxiliary movement, were his only declarations. He issued no pronunciamentos or statements affirming one report or denying another. But that steady stream of letters which had stood him in stead during the Presidential interim never stopped. He probably knew the trend of sentiment better than any member of the National Committee. Ill On the second Saturday before the election, he sent for me to come to his house. I found him deeply interested, and he said : Stevenson has not yet written any letter of accept- tance, and now I have trustworthy information to the efifect that the Republicans are coming out in a great exposure, all along the line, in this coming week, of his supposed record, more than twenty years ago, as a greenbacker. I know how sound his opinions are ; but it is necessary for us to meet this threatened movement by spiking our opponents' guns. Steven- son promised me yesterday that he would write this letter, but he has left town without doing it, and has lyo RECOLLECTIONS OF gone either to Charlestown or to Charleston, West Virginia, I don't know which, to make speeches. Now, I know it is a hard journey, but I want you to find out w^here he is, start this afternoon, and get his letter out at the earliest moment. Perhaps [he said in something of an aside, although we were alone] when you are on the train, in order to save time, it might be well for you to prepare something by way of suggestion ! This errand, although it seemed simple, when I took the earliest train for the capital of West Virginia, involved 1 200 miles of travel. As soon as I was seated in the Pull- man car I bethought me of Mr. Cleveland's suggestion, and, taking out a pad, before reaching Trenton I had written a tentative Vice-Presidential letter of accept- ance. It was strong on sound money and the tariff, with incidental treatment of other questions then cur- rent, and ran, perhaps, to four hundred words. Upon arrival at Charleston the next day about noon, and after further revision of the letter, I was met at the station by the candidate for Vice-President, the Gov- ernor of West Virginia, the chairman of the State Com- mittee, and divers other politicians of position. When, in reply to a question about my errand, I told Mr, Stevenson that I had come for his letter of acceptance, he replied : **Yes, I thought as much." On the way up to his hotel, he took me apart, where it was possible to speak, and asked: "Did you happen to think of writing anything on the way down?" With some verbal changes suggested by myself, the draft was accepted. Dovetailed with it as a conclusion was an extract from one of the candidate's recent speeches on the Force Rill. In this way the letter was made. A type-writer operator GROVER CLEVELAND 171 was found, fair copies were made, and filed by seven o'clock in the evening with the press associations which had received notice at their central offices. The midnight train carried me back to New York, and, by the time of my return, in every newspaper in the United States there had appeared the letter of accept- ance which spiked the Republican guns so completely that the srreenback record never was heard of again. This incident will show how keen Mr. Cleveland was, as a politician, when principle was involved, and how quickly his mind grasped all the necessary details on such occasions. IV On election night, November 8, when both the telegraph companies installed instruments in Mr, Cleveland's house, 12 West Fifty-first Street, all the officers of the committee resorted thither, so that the regular Head- quarters were left in due time to minor employees and their friends. As the returns came in, favorably from beginning to end, the number of friends increased with each succeeding hour. About twelve o'clock, the clam- orous, swaying crowd of people outside made it de- sirable that Mr. Cleveland should say a few words to dismiss them for the night. This was done with a dignity, an impressiveness, a seriousness, and, with all, a readiness which showed his ability to speak well with- out preparation. More and more of those who had borne the heat and burden of the day kept coming to the house, so that until perhaps three o'clock the dining-room was kept open for a final reunion. Mr. Cleveland's manner was grave, thoughtful, and silent. He was no doubt turn- 172 RECOLLECTIONS OF ing over in his mind that saying of his so often used as an answer to those who, not knowing him well", were wont to express at odd times and places, the hope that he would accept a third nomination : "Sir, it is a solemn thing to be President of the United States." As the party broke up, one friend or associate after another left with regret, until, when Colonel Lamont had gone, Mr. Cleveland and I were left alone. Then at four o'clock in the morning his parting word at the door was : "Well, Parker, none of these men or all of them together know or realize as you and I do how this thing has been done." Thus there closed, in victory at every point— in con- ventions. State and national, in elections, in States never before carried for the Democratic party, but, best of all, in a friendly and responsive public sentiment every- where—perhaps the most remarkable of all the personal campaigns ever conducted under the workings of free government. The work had been done in behalf of a man — without the magnetism supposed to be a neces- sity — who was indifferent to his own promotion or advancement, with an individual ambition already satis- fied, and with little of that love of power for its own sake which so often moves men. My own position was never personal, was accidental in its opportunity, which, as it had come without thought or seeking;, must be met without ambition or aspiration for recognition or individual preferment. It was a work of love, without requital or the thought of pos- sibility of it. For more than two years of its course, GROVER CLEVELAND 173 it was without even so much as the contribution of a postage-stamp to the small expenses incurred. When mentioned for this place or that, on the National Com- mittee or in the management, or when tenders were made of such places, they were persistently declined because they would have interfered with the task in hand by arousing animosities as well as by reducing the abil- ity to keep down jealousy or competition. When it was all over, Mr. Cleveland had perhaps paid out about $125— the cost of printing the slips of his speeches — and my own money outlay had probably amounted to $40 or $50 for postage and other petty expenses. At the end of that time, when the uncertain little rill of public favor had become a resistless torrent, it could be said that we had hit no foul blow; had made no claims that were not fully justified ; no demagogic word or sentence had been spoken ; no abuse of opponents or neglect of friends could be imputed; idea and principle had been' behind every policy or movement ; no concep- tion of debauching the suffrage had even found sug- gestion or thought; while no bitter enmities had been aroused and no serious jealousies encountered. After these three years of effort, the President-elect could come to his high office without an unpaid obliga- tion and with the assurance that he had always given more than he had taken. Is there any cause for wonder that he became President for the second time on March 4, 1893, the- most loftily independent man whose for- tune it has been, thus far in our annals, to deliver an inaugural address in the open air at the east front of the Capitol ? Or is there any more reason, on the other hand, for surprise that henceforward, during four years of anxiety and dread, he should have been the most lonely figure in our history? CHAPTER XI MAKING THE SECOND CABINET WHEN the election was over, I had thought to drop out of poHtical work. It was both un- congenial and unprofitable. But my release was not yet to come. At once the task of forming a Cabinet was taken up: in fact, the time for doing this is always comparatively short, everything considered. The same old difficulty of dealing with the press came up for settlement. Mr. Cleveland simply would not con- sent to see representatives of the newspapers or press associations, day by day, and to tell them what he had done or had in mind. So it came back to the old plan of asking Colonel Lamont's advice. At his suggestion and with the ready assent of the President-elect, it was arranged that I should form a news-syndicate, so that each day, when there was anything to publish, it would be given out to my papers with authority. It was interesting and remunerative, but it made me, for the time, an unpopular and reprobated person in newspaper offices other than the few whose editors had made arrangements to get the news. It had the com- pensation, however, of putting me into even closer and more continuous association than before with Mr. Cleveland. Every day, Sundays excepted, I went to his PhutugrajjhrJ bj JOHN CRIMIN CAKLISLK Secretary of the Treasury. Marcli, 1893-1897 GROVER CLEVELAND 175 house and reviewed the situation in its changes or de- velopments. With the exception of two, no man's name was considered for a Cabinet place who had not come before us during the preceding three years. Most of them had served in our little improvised volunteer army. II Three days after the election I spent the whole after- noon with ]\Ir. Cleveland going over the field and dis- cussing the foundations, not yet laid, of the Cabinet. He had evidently reached a decision in only a single case. He had made up his mind to tender the Treasury De- partment to John G. Carlisle, then Senator from Ken- tucky, for whom his admiration was unusually strong. On this occasion he said : I believe that this is not only the very best selection that could be made for this office at such a vital time, but in this one instance I am willing to look ahead. You know me well enough to know that I care noth- ing for the perpetuation of personal power and do not often think of it; but our party has just come back with a striking victory, as the result of which it ought to maintain its hold for many years to come. It cannot do this if it enters upon its new duties in a haphazard sort of way. So, in thinking the matter over, I have reached the conclusion that it would be a wonderful thing if we could look forward to Mr. Carlisle as successor to the Presidency in the term to follow mine. I realize how dangerous this is, and that both history and precedent are against its suc- cess, but as T look at it now it seems to be a thing that ought to be kept in mind. 176 RECOLLECTIONS OF The intention was noble and the motive patriotic, but as one looks back over the history of the period which has intervened, the result of the failure of those plans and the substitution of a policy of ruin is more than pa- thetic—it is pitiable, as Mr. Cleveland often had occa- sion to say in referring to it in later years. Ill At this interview, I had occasion to bring forward and to discuss the names of five men fitted to become Mr. Cleveland's advisers. Of these, two declined appoint- ment, and the remainder were sworn into his Cabinet after his second inauguration. Naturally, these sugges- tions were not made at random. As the conclusion had been reached that no responsible officials in the pre- vious administration should be preferred for the same posts in the second, a good many obvious men were eliminated at once. Only two men, other than Mr. Cleveland, had been voted for in the National Conven- tion, and one of these was on my list as rejecting the tender of office ; the other, David B. Hill, was just enter- ing the United States Senate. This served to increase the keenness of my interest in Cabinet candidates. I was attached first to Mr. Cleve- land's personal friends — of whom the late Wilson S. Bissell, standing out from all others, was one of the three to whom allusion has been made— and then to the men who had been most useful in the delicate and per- sistent campaign of the preceding three years. One of these had suggested it originally, advised in its various steps for the first two years, and had only dropped out because of ill health, which made it necessary for him to go abroad. GROVER CLEVELAND 177 When I suggested the name of Daniel S. Lamont for appointment as Secretary of War, I could see that Mr. Cleveland had not thought of it, so that it came to him as a genuine surprise. "Why," he replied, "the Colonel would command more influence in his old place as private secretary than he could possibly have in the Cabinet." As, personally, I was deeply interested in my suggestion because, of my own knowledge, I knew that Colonel Lamont would take nothing below a Cabinet office and that he was averse even to that, I replied that while this judgment was highly complimentary, there was such a thing in politics as promotion. Mr. Cleveland said he had not thought of this phase. The subject was never again mentioned, but it was less than a week until the tender was made of this office. The third name was that of Hoke Smith of Georgia, a stranger to Mr. Cleveland, but one of the most efficient workers in the renomination campaign. In this case, I was enlisted both personally and politically, believing that this recognition of the younger men of the South was no more than just and that the appointment would fully justify itself and satisfy many party and patriotic forces. In my zeal, I visited Justice Lamar in Wash- ington, only a few weeks before his death, and was able to command his hearty cooperation in presenting his friend and fellow-citizen as one of his successors in the office of Secretary of the Interior. When Mr. Smith returned to New York upon a second visit to Mr. Cleve- land, he was tendered a place in the Cabinet. IV There was a strong desire on Mr. Cleveland's part to get a Secretary of the Navy from New England, 12 1/8 RECOLLECTIONS OF but after three declinations the office was tendered to Colonel Hilary A. Herbert of Alabama, who was orig- inally intended for another post, and the Attorney-Gen- eral, in the person of Mr. Richard Olney, with a strong New York backing, was drawn from New England. The Secretaryship of State, conferred upon Judge Walter Q. Gresham, was the one surprise of the Cabi- net. I have never yet heard of any man to whom Mr. Cleveland had spoken about this office in connection with the appointee, and nobody was ever able to ex- plain how or why he was chosen. The President-elect had found it difficult to get the right man. He was so sorely tempted that, making an exception to his rule, he tendered the place to Mr. Bayard, who strongly advised against his own appointment and declined. The President had done this against his own judgment and as an evidence of his despair. He was really most de- sirous that the former Secretary of State should become the first United States Ambassador, under the law just then enacted. When the time came to choose a Secretary of Agricul- ture, it was found that, instead of being one of the easiest Cabinet places to fill, because it was the newest, it was, in reality, the most difficult. Almost without notice, it had assumed a political importance not hitherto suspected. The place was tendered to the late John E. Russell of Massachusetts, with whom the President- elect had been brought into congenial touch during his first term and in the interim. Mr. Russell's health was not firm ; so the offer was declined. The next choice was Horace Boies, whose service as Governor of Iowa had just ended. His name had been presented to the Chi- |li;cujks ^vv^^c- Of Nebraska, Secretary of Agriculture, 1893-1897 GROVER CLEVELAND 179 cago Convention a year before, and, besides, he had been an acquaintance of the President-elect in Buffalo many years previously. His age, combined with some political considerations, led him to decline. Both these refusals had been rather anticipated, and so the one name held in reserve was that of J. Sterling Morton of Nebraska, whose enemies were nearly as ac- tive as his friends. As an old friend of Mr. Morton, I was requested to sound certain of the anti-silver Demo- crats of the West, of whom he was a recognized leader. The two men had never met, but it was soon made clear to Mr. Cleveland that he was considering the name of a man who, for the lifetime of a generation, had done yeoman service in the West, both for sound money and for tariff revision along liberal lines. However, in the factional divisions in his State, Mr. Morton had actively opposed Mr. Cleveland's nomination in 1884, uniting with it some personal bitterness. When this was men- tioned to the President, he threw the charge aside with contempt, saying: "We cannot afford, in this crisis, when, if ever, such men are needed, to let personal con- siderations enter into account. Under no circumstances, will I, in this case or any other, allow them to influence my opinion or action." After the appointment had been tendered and ac- cepted, Mr. Morton came to New York, and I had the pleasure of introducing them at the Lakewood cottage in which Mr. Cleveland stayed for a time before going to Washington. The two men were not only associated officially during the second administration, but became intimate friends. No more pertinent illustration than this ever came to my attention of Mr. Cleveland's ability to discard personal prejudice, although there were others like unto it. i8o RECOLLECTIONS OF VI While the work of Cabinet construction was under way, many petitions and letters came to the President- elect in favor of active but little-known men who could hardly be said to have reached the unquestioned rank which would entitle them to consideration. In two or three such instances Mr. Cleveland would say: "Now, if I were only free to tender the Commissionership of Pensions or of Patents, or any important independent office, to this man, what a comfort it would be to me and what a benefit to the public service: but a place in the Cabinet is impossible, and so it is probable that I can- not avail myself of his obvious fitness for some impor- tant office." In one or two cases, notably that of Judge Lochren of Minnesota, he was able to carry this policy into effect ; but when the demand was made for a Cabi- net appointment or nothing, it was, of necessity, the latter. Among the letters received from individuals one of the most interesting, in every way, was from John P. Irish of California, of whom mention has been made in these recollections. It was written on January 30, 1893, and forwarded to me, with directions to present or not, as might seem fitting. After explaining that Democrats in the legislatures of Oregon, Idaho, and Wyoming, on their own motion, had officially indorsed him to Mr. Cleveland for Secretary of the Interior and that those in the California Legislature proposed, with his approval, to do the same, the letter continued : I have declined assent to this, and, as the action taken in other States may reach you, it seems proper to say that I have felt that candidacy, in the current meaning thereof, for a place GROVER CLEVELAND i8i in your official family is not becoming, and that the discussion of my name in that connection by the press here and elsewhere and the other acts, no doubt suggested thereby, are volun- teered entirely ; and, so far as they seem to make me a candi- date, are not in line with my own sense of propriety; though as evidences of confidence, good feeling and friendship they impress me as they should any man who loves appreciation of his efforts for a good cause. Proceeding, the letter paid Mr. Cleveland the follow- ing tribute, which, when read to him, drew tears : Fifty and more years ago, when the Western prairies were untracked, the way across them from one post to another was sometimes marked by a deep furrow, plowed under contract by some stout pioneer. Half a century later, I have found these furrows still plainly marked, and there has risen before me again the team, the plow, and the plowman drawing the guiding mark through a wilderness. After we are all gone, men will pause by the furrow you are to make in the history of our country and will say, "Here the plowman passed, and time toils in vain to conceal his furrow." My friend, you are selecting your team, but you and no other must hold the plow. If I should go into history as one who helped to pull it, I should be glad, but I shall have always the pleasure of believing in the plowman and knowing that the furrow is to endure. VII If I were asked to name the one ptiblic man in whom, of all others outside his official associates, Mr. Cleveland reposed most confidence and for whom he had the deepest admiration, I should have no hesitation. It would be William L. Wilson of West Virginia. Coming into relations with him when the tarifif question was forced to the front in 1887, he recognized at once the comprehensive knowledge of this mountain college pro- i82 RECOLLECTIONS OF fessor, whose most important schooling came from his boyish service in the Confederate army. It would have been impossible for anybody even to meet Mr. Wilson without coming under the spell of that charm which, with all his ability and information, was his distinguishing characteristic. These two men were so widely different in origin, training, and experience that it could only have been the attractive power of opposites that could have drawn them together. In any event, so far as the President was concerned, William L. Wilson was soon added to the intellectual group made up of men in the Cabinet, with John G. Carlisle, Roger Q. Mills, Clifton R. Breckinridge, John E. Russell, William D. Bynum, and others of the same type, who, in both House and Senate, had borne the heat and bur- den of the day in the discussion of the Mills Bill, which was the outcome of the message of 1887, or in the dis- cussion outside both Houses of Congress. During the interim between Presidential terms, when the discussion was going on all over the country, until it assumed the proportions of a great moral agitation, Mr. Cleveland still maintained his relations with Mr. Wilson, so far as was consistent with the separation in- cident to distance. He insisted upon keeping him to the front when great public occasions were under discussion, and his friends, knowing this and sharing his admira- tion, made Wilson the President of the Chicago Con- vention of 1892, in spite of some disinclination on his own part, because of bad health and physical unfitness for a post of such requirements. Just on the eve of his departure for Washington for his second inauguration, Mr. Cleveland, with a suddenness not unusual with him when a new idea came into his mind, said one day : GROVER CLEVELAND 183 "Parker, do you know what I would do with WilHam L. Wilson if I could?" Confessing my ignorance of mind-reading, I naturally replied that, of course, I did not know. "Well, I will tell you," he continued. "I would appoint him Assistant to the President, with a salary of $10,000 a year. As the executive office is now organ- ized it can deal, with a fair amount of efficiency, with the routine affairs of Government; hut if the President has any great policy in mind or on hand he has no one to help him work it out. Yes, I tell you that, while I should hate to take Wilson out of Congress, I would make him my Assistant if I could. I have even half a notion to offer him the place anyhow and pay him out of my own pocket." If the world had known this high esteem of the man there would have been no surprise that Mr. Cleveland was so interested in both the man and the statesman as to pay the last tribute of respect by going a long dis- tance to his funeral and by the activity that he showed in raising money for an appropriate memorial to his friend at Washington and Lee University. On both sides it was one of the most unselfish of the many friend- ships it has been my privilege to observe in a life which has brought me in contact with many hundreds of pub- lic characters. VIII During the protracted consideration of the names pre- sented, from every quarter, for high honors, the Presi- dent-elect would often, in moments of leisure or during a discussion, give me his ideas not only of the qualities necessary for the individual men to be chosen for high 1 84 RECOLLECTIONS OF executive posts, but also, incidentally, of his judgment of the educative power of our institutions. From his various conversations on these subjects I condense the following expression of opinion: While it is an absolute necessity, under our tra- ditions, for a President-elect to take the greatest pains in balancing party position and considerations. State of residence, and to bear in mind that his Cabinet associates must have capacity for executive work, I am not at all sure that these always produce the best results. It strikes the public imagination to choose men who have been governors of their States, or United States Senators, or active in party man- agement; but it often turns out that these men are taken away from something they know, to which they have come by gradual steps, only to discover that it is difficult for them to adjust themselves to those national problems which, although they may not be larger or more important, are, at least, en- tirely different from those to which they have been accustomed. He confidently believed that, if precedent only per- mitted it, and he had the time, he could get a perfectly competent Attorney-General in the county-seat of any county with which he was familiar. "I should not hesi- tate," he added, "in case of necessity, to put myself and the office into the hands of the best country lawyer in these towns. And the same conclusion applies to any other Cabinet department, unless it might be those of the State and Treasury, where some special knowledge and even experience are desirable." At another time, when emphasizing this idea in a way he liked to do, he said : GROVER CLEVELAND 185 To me this is the best possible evidence of the suc- cess of our system of self-government. So long as we can go out and, by seeking, find, almost any- where, men with the fundamental qualities for carry- ing out our political ideas, there is little likelihood that any overmastering man will ever become either a necessity or be able to command sufficient power to make himself a danger to our institutions. It is this sense of individual capacity, verified by its public discovery when needed, that is the sheet-anchor of our safety. It always seemed to me, when listening to these un- usual opinions, that I could read the mind of the speaker and trace their genesis to the modest career of the Buf- falo lawyer who rose in just two years from active pro- fessional work to be President-elect of the United States, which, as I once told him, seemed to me the quickest and most amazing rise to permanent power and influence seen in history. IX The new Cabinet did not strike the public imagination so favorably as that chosen in the first administration. On the whole, it was probably stronger as a body, looked at from the point of view of executive ability. But the Cabinet had so receded in relative importance, in the public mind, that the President had become the one man to whom the country looked. Some of the new men were to demonstrate a breadth of outlook and to gain the confidence both of the President and the country. The series of crises through which the new adminis- tration was to pass, from the first day of its life to the 1 86 GROVER CLEVELAND last, made it impossible for the President to devote that attention to minor affairs which had formerly charac- terized him, and thus compelled him to give larger authority to his chosen advisers. He could no longer either do or supervise all the work. Besides, although the tenure had not been continuous, the second adminis- tration did have the benefit of the precedents estab- lished by the first. In the verdict of history, the latter must take a rank incomparably higher than the former : but this would have been impossible if the first had not set the limits both of the President's policy and of his capacity for work. Every man knew what he must do and that, if he did not, the President himself would undertake and carry it out in some way or other. CHAPTER XII SOME FOREIGN CONDITIONS FROM what I have already said, it will be under- stood that it was no part of my purpose to take a place in the public service under Mr. Cleveland. I was especially determined that under no possible cir- cumstances would I accept anything in Washington; but Colonel Lamont insisted that I should be appointed to some position, and, without my knowledge, so inter- ested himself with the President-elect that, well along towards the Inauguration Day, the latter, in his office one day, said with his usual bluntness: "Parker, the Colonel tells me I ought to tender you some posi- tion. You know my attachment for you, but I do think it is a shame that you should be asked to take an office. The pay is inadequate, the tenure uncertain, and the effect often hurtful to the appointee. Men like you and John P. Irish ought to be editing Democratic newspa- pers somewhere at salaries of $10,000 or $15,000 a year." As I had never brought up the matter and the Presi- dent did not mention it, it was not again referred to until some time after the inauguration. In the mean- time, I had declined three assistant secretaryships, ten- 187 i88 RECOLLECTIONS OF dered by prospective Cabinet officers, and the head of one of the most important bureaus. Colonel Lamont — by this time Secretary of War— had insisted upon my appointment as Consul to Manchester, and the Presi- dent thought he had met his wishes. He was only con- vinced of his mistake when, sending for the official nomination papers, he discovered that I had been ac- credited to Birmingham — a substitution for which I have always thanked the Department of State, because thereby I was enabled to renew some associations of earlier life. Birmingham was an interesting and desirable United States consulate. It was free, then as now, from sailors, tramps, and professional tourists — the three pests of the consular service. Its work was responsible without being arduous, its people were more receptive to American influences of the best type than in most other places in the service, and its relation to the miscel- laneous metal trades gave it a perpetual interest for the student of economic questions. Its social and literary traditions were of a high order and closely related to America, while its kaleidoscopic politics gave it an inter- est which enabled an American to study conditions in England at the most suggestive point. II Although far removed from the President, I did not lose touch with public affairs— not even the attentions of the office-seekers were wanting. When the various campaigns were over, it was easy to foresee that more or less pressure would be brought upon the President through me. So I insisted that under no circumstances GROVER CLEVELAND 189 would I have anything to do with the ever-present pat- ronage. Our relations had enabled him to command all the information in my possession, and so he had no need for my opinion in addition to his own. This view pleased him, because he was always making apology to his real friends when he had occasion to trouble them about the minor offices. In spite of these precautions, many applications came through me; they even followed me to Birmingham by cable. Still, except when my opinion was asked, the agreement was in full force, and it was, perhaps, fortu- nate for my own peace of mind that involuntary exile had been accepted. I maintained relations, by letter, with my leading po- litical associates in about twenty States. I was espe- cially desirous of doing everything possible in the silver crisis, which was always in the President's mind. As an effect, I was able to treat the question in the English papers and thus to contribute something to foreign senti- ment about the changing conditions. T heard directly from the President, oftener than there was any reason to expect, and indirectly through five or six members of his Cabinet. Ill For a wonder — when the explosive character of some of the elements in our population is considered — no sort of debatable question concerning our diplomatic rela- tions with England arose until the administration had run more than half its course. Thomas F. Bayard, our first Ambassador, had, within a year of his arrival at his post, made himself better liked, perhaps, than any other foreigner that England has welcomed in her IQO RECOLLECTIONS OF later history. Even the Prince of Wales, now King, always well liked, was never more cordially popular among any class of his future subjects than was the American Ambassador. His ability and grace fitted so well into the English character that no public occasion was complete without his presence and an address from him. Everywhere he went, it was hands across the sea ; the brotherhood of a common origin, ancestry, and tradi- tions ; and likeness in language, literature, arts, and life —until the air was full of peace and good will. That trouble was brewing was well illustrated by the following letter written to me by Mr. Bayard : 83, Eaton Square, S. W., May 25, 1895. Dear Mr. Parker: I had seen, but not so much in extenso, the outburst of jeal- ous and hostile suspicions of Great Britain in which our friend has just indulged in his excited vaticinations. I must oppose the best opinion I can form, after some years of close and careful consideration — during which I have been largely charged with the relations of our own country towards the outer world — and I can discern no just cause of dissension between the United States and Great Britain, and no intent or purpose of the latter inimical to the happiness, honor, and prosperity of our own. There is no territorial possession of Great Britain in the Western Hemisphere which is not anterior in date to the for- mation of the United States. Halifax, Bermuda, and San Lucia were all earlier, and so of the Spanish Main, in which the three Guianas are included. The increasing and acceler- ated armaments of Europe compel Great Britain to a fearful expenditure upon her navy, and her coaling station at San Lucia is one of the very few defensible sites in the West India Islands. But there is no question now open between the United States and Great Britain that needs any but frank, amicable, and just treatment. GROVER CLEVELAND 191 I deprecate these appeals to excitement and unfounded re- sentments, and I am at a loss to account for them in a quarter I had supposed was wholly friendly to Mr. Cleveland's admin- istration. We have serious problems enoui^h within our bor- ders to spare us the necessity of manufacturing^ others without. Seldom in the world's history has one man been more plainly the instrumentality of great service to his country than Mr. Cleveland. It is difficult to measure the dangers which his sagacious and steadfast courage has averted. Sincerely yours. T. F. Bayard. Hon. Geo. F. Parker, United States Consul, Birmingham. All at once, and without warning, the storm broke. In the middle of December, 1895, the President sent to Congress his message about the boundary lines, long in question, between Venezuela and British Guiana, and announced, in terms neither mild nor inside the language usual to diplomacy, that, without further delay, the whole dispute must be submitted to arbitration. The sentiment— so friendly as to have in it some of the qualities of gush— suddenly changed, and an Ameri- can in England, from the Ambassador down to the hum- blest citizen, found himself in an atmosphere highly charged with suspicion, and, in many cases, with enmity. The press broke forth in denunciation, talk was heard of the necessity for the mobilization of the army and other war preparations, while diplomatic relations were as good as suspended until the passing storm of obloquy and misunderstanding was over. It was soon clear that, even in an official position, quiet and retirement were the best palliatives to an excitement which could not long maintain itself. Within a month, came the 192 RECOLLECTIONS OF telegram of the Emperor William of Germany to Presi- dent Kruger of the Transvaal Republic, and the worst, so far as the United States were concerned, was over, although a good deal of strong feeling still remained. IV There was in Birmingham an organization known as the Dramatic and Literary Club, and one of its princi- pal functions was to celebrate each year the birthday of Shakespeare. Of this body I had been elected presi- dent for the year and had resolved, if possible, to make the annual dinner a conspicuous feature. In November, I had invited Mr. Bayard- as the principal guest of the club, and also to undertake a pilgrimage to Stratford- upon-Avon, which lay within my consular district. In December, the Ambassador was seriously doubtful whether or not the excitement would be sufficiently allayed by the arrival of Shakespeare week in April to justify him in attending as he had agreed to do. This is attested by the following letter : Embassy of the United States, London, December 31, 1895. Dear Mr. Parker: I was out of town when your letter of November 27 arrived. Very soon thereafter a condition of affairs came on which rendered it difficult for me to give you the direct and positive reply to which you were entitled. April 20 was a long way off, and what might occur from day to day it was impossible to foretell. And as matters stand to-day I feel that all plans of enjoyment and pleasant hospitality may be upset and re- placed by very different occupations, therefore I accept your suggestion that no harm can come from postponing until the GROVER CLEVELAND 193 February meeting of your club the formation of plans for my visit to you in April next. By the time February arrives the sky may have cleared and present clouds dispersed, and with more cheerful hearts we may meet and greet our British kindred. I will be most glad to come to Birmingham to view its beau- tiful and varied industries and look in the faces of its citizens, and this I fully expect to do. At the same time, you can com- prehend how much there is to make me feel anxious, for there is too much at stake even in the remote risk of a collision between the nations who are the main guardians under God of the world's civilization. Sincerely yours, T. F. Bayard. Geo. F. Parker, Esq., United States Consul, Birmingham. About this time, an informal conference of leading citizens of Birmingham was held during a large public reception given at the house of Joseph Chamberlain, M.P., well known as a friend of America, in which Sir Benjamin Stone, then, as now, M.P. for one of the local divisions of the city, proposed that, without formal or- ganization or advertisement of its purpose, the occasion should be made a demonstration of the essential and deeply seated friendship between the two countries. Henceforth, all efforts were bent to assure success to this idea, with the result that the annual dinner took on unusual proportions. For the first time, an American presided at a Shakespeare dinner; the Ambassador was at his best; prominent English literary men were among the speakers ; the Lord Mayor was supported by leading men gathered from all over the district ; and, to crown the proceeding, the toast of the President of the United States was given, in response to which I was able to read the following letter: 13 194 RECOLLECTIONS OF Executive Mansion, Washington, March 30, 1896. My dear Mr. Parker: I have received your letter informing me that the Birming- ham Dramatic and Literary Club intend to celebrate the birth- day of Shakespeare on the 21st of April, and extending to me, on behalf of the club, an invitation to be present on that occasion. Everything that tends to keep alive the memory of Shake- speare, and preserves a proper appreciation of his work, chal- lenges my earnest interest and approval ; and though I cannot be with you on the occasion you contemplate, I am glad to know that our American people are to be prominently repre- sented in the celebration. There is much said and written, in these days, concerning the relations that should exist, bound close by the strongest ties, between English-speaking peoples, and concerning the high destiny that awaits them in concerted effort. I hope we shall never know a time when these ennobling sentiments will be less often expressed, or will, in the least, lose their potency and influence. Surely, if English speech supplies the token of united effort for the good of mankind and the impulse of an exalted mis- sion, we do well to fittingly honor the name and memory of William Shakespeare. ^^ 4. 1 *^ Yours very truly, Grover Cleveland, Hon. George F. Parker, President, etc., etc. The newspaper publication and reception were gener- ous and high-minded; Punch joined the chorus with a page cartoon ; public sentiment responded, and it is safe to say that by eliciting the Shakespeare letter written by President Cleveland on March 30, 1896, something was done to lay the ghost of war and misunderstanding raised by the Venezuela message. ./ ^ -^> J ^• y ■ L^ZTy J f /^^ ^ -^ss* ^^^ r .^:^t-»»«' ■•--^'O-' ^^ ^«; VV-^ ^^ .<<^ .^.«^«- rf^^ • ^■^■^fc.^ ^l^A / <~^t.^>^^ -i^I^ /^^ y z: •^— <*-12-t. « _ • / EXECUTIVE MANSION, WASHINGTON, ..^^.i^ ^^ 3 a - y 9 9 ^ v/ ,>* ^S,-*'^ --Xrf^ ^1*^ <^-^ ^^-^,^^^ ^^^ -z:ZI2' 4:2r ^^^^/^ ^- ^ >^ ^ / ^^ ^^'^ ^^ x.'>^ ^ <- .- <: — -r- ' . SIMILE OF A LETTER WRITTEN TO TllK 1-RESIUENT OF THE BIRMINGHAM DRAMATIC ANn LITERARY CLUB GROVER CLEVELAND 195 With the exception of his action in meeting, with unerring foresight and promptness, the Debs riots in Chicago, nothing in all his public life gave Mr. Cleveland more satisfaction than the message and corre- spondence about the Venezuela boundary line. It was these that brought him into such close relations with, and gave him such a comprehensive knowledge of, Richard Olney, the first growing out of his duties as Attorney-General and the second from his administra- tion of the Secretaryship of State. When I returned home in December, 1896, a year after the A'^enezuela episode, the election had been held which marked the defeat, at least for the time, of free silver and all the other financial isms which had raged, almost unchecked, during the period of a whole generation. He was, naturally, thankful that this had come not only in his time, but as the result of his devotion and cour- age ; but the contest had been so long pending, and the relief to his mind was so great, that, as often happens to men in crises, he spoke little of it. He was, however, deeply concerned about the then closed dispute with England, although he refused thus to narrow it. He looked upon it, then as always, not as a foreign, but as the most distinct of home questions. It had reverber- ated seemingly like an earthquake: the natural result of forces long existing. They merely came to the surface in his term, and so he had had to meet and deal with them. 196 RECOLLECTIONS OF VI It would be an insult to his memory to assert that Mr. Cleveland had anything in him of the Jingo : his whole career is an embodied refutation of a charge so idle as this ; but he was essentially American, and he saw that, while we had been talking Monroe Doctrine for more than three quarters of a century, the time had come to act it for at least one representation. He had not been a deep student of foreign opinion, but he did care a great deal for it, and was, not unnaturally, desirous of know- ing how his drastic message was viewed in England, after the excitement over it had died down. He saw clearly, even thus early, that he had forever settled the relations which the United States was to bear both to Europe and to South America. It always seemed to strike him with surprise when, in later years, I told him — apparently in jest, though really in earnest — that he was the father of the spirit of im- perialism which had grown up after the war with Spain. He himself had done so much to avert that foolish, un- necessary, and hurtful conflict, that he could scarcely conceive that what he saw was only the logic of his own acts. Whatever the motive, he did realize that the unity of the Western Hemisphere had been so assured that the diverse elements and peoples of which it was com- posed were certain, thenceforward, to act together with a unity more substantial than any ever known over like areas or among such large and varied populations. He had assured by a single edict, without the intervention of any legislative body, what, at various times in history, during the last thousand years, different governments and peoples in Europe had thought to achieve on the Continent. GROVER CLEVELAND 197 It was the more interesting to me because, in a letter written to him from England early in 1893, after seeing for how little the United States then counted in Europe, the hope was expressed that I might live to see the time when we might command at least as much news space in foreign newspapers as was devoted to the affairs of Turkey or Switzerland. My modest wish had come true in less than three years, and it was due entirely to the far-seeing and courageous act of one man. VII It was also interesting to hear from Mr. Cleveland's own lips some account of the method by which this end had been reached. It is well known that, when the Venezuela crisis was brewing, he went down the coast on a hunting expedition. The despatch from Lord Salis- bury had been received after nearly six months of delay, the whole matter had been carefully gone over, the answer to it decided upon though not written, and the method of its presentation to the country and the world settled. The details were left to the Secretary of State, of whom the President said to me : I had gone away tired out and left the matter wholly in Mr. Olney's hands. I knew how careful and able he was, but I must confess that I was as- tonished, upon my return, to find how completely he had worked out the reply to Lord Salisbury's des- patch. I do not think that, in all my experience, I have ever had to deal with any official document, pre- pared by another, which so entirely satisfied my criti- cal requirements. It had covered every point in the controversy not only completely but temperately and 198 RECOLLECTIONS OF in unquestioned good taste from a diplomatic point of view. It was vigorous, but it caught the national spirit perfectly. I have never been able adequately to express my pleasure and satisfaction over this assertion of our position, and the country has never shown that it fairly understood or recognized the debt it owes to Richard Olney. VIII From other quarters, that is, from personal friends in the Cabinet, I have gathered, in the intervening years, some of the particulars of the consideration of the despatch to Lord Pauncefote in July, 1895. Colonel Hilary A. Herbert, then Secretary of the Navy, tells me that this important document was prepared by Mr. Olney while he and the President were down on the coast of Massachusetts, receiving its final revision at Mr. Cleveland's summer residence at Buzzard's Bay. It was then sent to all the members of the Cabinet, some three or four of whom were still in Washington, for their suggestions. Some were made, but the secret of the despatch was so well kept that the outside world never had even the smallest hint of its existence until it was sent to Congress along with the accompanying message of December 17, 1895. The course of the message itself was entirely differ- ent. The President had gone off on a hunting excur- sion, for rest from exacting labors, but mainly in order to find time to think quietly of the matter under con- sideration. Upon his return he found everything so well prepared that there remained only his part of the work to do, namely, the preparation of the message itself. It KICHAKD ( il.M \ . Attorney-General during; Cleveland's First Adii and Secretarj' of State in his Second Cabinet GROVER CLEVELAND 199 was to be a brief document, but he so realized its impor- tance, as he told me, that he wrote and rewrote it with the greatest care. It may even have been true, as an army officer who accompanied him on the hunting trip says, that the first rough draft was written by Mr. Cleveland with his knee as a table, upon a block of paper which he took from his pocket, while on his hunt- ing trip. When finished, it was approved by the Secretary of State, but was not submitted to the Cabinet as a body, nor was knowledge of it extended beyond the narrowest limits. This secrecy did not arise from any desire to make the matter a mystery, but it was of such transcen- dent importance, from a public and business point of view, that the President, with even more than his usual caution, declined to take any chances of publicity. Just before its transmission— and after the final set- tlement of its form with the official most interested — the President began to read it to a member close to him in personal confidence as well as in direct interest. This was going forward previous to a regular Cabinet meeting, when a second member unexpectedly made his appearance at the door. Thereupon the reading was halted, the manuscript was hurriedly thrust into a drawer, only commonplace topics were discussed, after which the routine matters incident to the meeting were disposed of. These concluded, the message was again taken up, and, without further change or delay, it went to Congress, to produce that electrical eifect, both upon the country and the world, so well known as to require neither emphasis nor description. When the reading was completed, the President turned to his listener and asked: "Now, what do you think of it?" and getting the reply, "It seems to me that, 200 RECOLLECTIONS OF towards the end, it is just a little bit tart," he said quickly, shaking his head as he always did when he wanted to put peculiar emphasis upon anything, "That is just what I intended." IX The original Secretary of the Interior in the second administration, Hoke Smith, in a letter to me under date of April 3, 1909, has confirmed the impression of Mr. Cleveland's opinion which was made upon his friends both at the time and during the remainder of his life, as to the motive guiding him in his action. He says : My recollection of the circumstances connected with Mr. Cleveland's celebrated Venezuelan message is very distinct. He sent it to Congress because he believed that it was the surest way to prevent serious trouble between Great Britain and the United States. Mr. Cleveland earnestly desired peace between all nations, and believed strongly in the adjustment of inter- national disputes by arbitration. The negotiations between Great Britain and the United States with reference to Venezuela had continued for quite a length of time without bringing satisfactory results, and Mr. Cleveland felt sure that a violation of the Monroe Doctrine would precipitate war between the two countries. He believed that it was necessary to present, upon this subject, such an unmistakable declaration by the United States that Great Brit- ain would realize the danger of war if the Monroe Doctrine was disregarded. He desired most sincerely to preserve friendly relations between our country and Great Britain, as he believed in the cooperation of all the civilized races, and especially of the English-speaking races, in behalf of peace and humanity. Nothing was further from his purpose than to bring about a collision between Great Britain and the United States. I heard him refer to this message, shortly after he sent it to GROVER CLEVELAND 201 Congress, as his "peace message," and as "the only way, in his judgment, to prevent a probable collision between the two nations." I have no doubt that he sent the message to Con- gress believing that with it the risk of trouble was far less than if diplomatic negotiations continued in the ordinary way. CHAPTER XIII LATER CAMPAIGNS — BRYAN AND BRYANISM UPON my return in 1904, after eleven years' absence in England, it was to renew associa- tion, in an unexpected way, with Mr. Cleveland. Upon each of the six intervening home visits between 1896 and the opening of the Presidential campaign, I had maintained my relations and always found him ab- sorbed in thought and study of the conditions then sur- rounding our political life. It was only natural that he should be thus troubled over the demoralization of the party to which, through a long life, he had given his allegiance and from which he had received high honors. Considerate of changes in most of the departments of our national life, it was difficult for him to use philosophy upon this, the one nearest his heart. When he saw the party lose its regu- lar or occasional footholds in one State after another, and then in the country, without compensating gain, he was solicitous lest, by omission or commission, he might have been responsible for the lack of cohesion. II But when he looked about him anew, he was consoled by the certainty that this serious condition was the GROVER CLEVELAND 203 natural and inevitable punishment meted out to those abandonments of principle which, to his mind, were nothing less than a breaking of moral laws. He foresaw that this demoralization of one great party covered a state of the public mind, and that the whole of society could not long escape infection. He always insisted that it was fatal to permit special classes to exercise govern- mental powers for their own enrichment. It was sure to generate feelings of class hatred in those who recog- nized the existence of conditions inimical to their own interests. Out of this would grow two types of politi- cians, both harmful: demagogues and opportunists— and with him these were practically synonymous— who would play upon the interests and prejudices of the ig- norant or the confiding, and thus produce a crusade out of which would come infinite harm to morals as well as to industry. With this ingrained feeling, and having time to think, he was deeply interested in the Presidential campaign of 1904. He wanted to do all within his power to promote a return to party sanity in management as well as in principles and candidates. He naturally refused to take any open part in favor of a particular man, but never concealed his belief that Judge George Gray was the logical candidate owing to his many qualities and especially to the fact that he was widely known by rea- son of having kept himself in close touch with events during the years immediately preceding the campaign. Ill Suggestions had been made from time to time, many months before the opening of the campaign, that Mr. 204 RECOLLECTIONS OF Cleveland himself might again accept a nomination. His friends, of course, knew that this was impossible, and yet he did not feel called upon to rush into print every time such a rumor was started. To them he was as frank and communicative as ever. Writing to one of the most intimate of them, Kope Elias of North Caro- lina, he said: Princeton, January 12, 1903. Kope Elias, Esq. My dear Sir: Your exceedingly friendly letter came duly to hand. I want you to understand how fully I appreciate your devotion to me, and the readiness you have always shown in champion- ing my interest. I do not feel as you do, on the subject discussed in your let- ter ; and you must not think it ungracious for me to tell you so. I consider my political life as ended. While I do not feel obliged to tell my thoughts to all who seek to know them, it is only fair and just for me to say, to so good a friend as you, that in present circumstances the idea of another candidacy seems to me to be absolutely out of the question, impossible for every reason, a sufficiently controlling one being the fact that I cannot conceive of a situation which would induce me to accept another nomination. One of the most ardent hopes of my life is to see our grand party regain the confidence of the people, and again win vic- tories ; but my place must hereafter be in the ranks. This letter is for your personal information, to the end that your friendship for me may not lead you into a position of embarrassment. Yours very sincerely, Grover Cleveland. GROVER CLEVELAND 205 IV By the advice of Colonel Lament, who, owing to his railroad affiliations, desired to keep himself in the back- ground, I visited Princeton a few days after landing and went over the situation pretty fully with Mr. Cleveland. Some tentative suggestions were discussed, in accordance with which he should put out a statement of his views, and I offered to have it distributed to the press. When I reported this to some of my friends, they were desirous that he should be induced to give his advice, publicly, especially concerning the importance of a sound plat- form, in which they knew him to be profoundly inter- ested. The wishes of these friends were communicated to him, and I received the following reply : Princeton, April 22, 1904. My dear Mr. Parker: I did not remember that anything was said when you were here looking, in a definite way, toward my making a statement in the shape of an interview touching the political situation. I certainly do not want to do so at present. I am satisfied that in every view my silence is best in present circumstances. If a time should come when I can convince myself that any good purpose would be subserved by a renewed publication of my opinions or sentiments, I certainly would be glad to have your assistance and advice. The situation would not be improved by anything from me now. I have a great disinclination to appearing too frequently in the newspapers in the role of "guide, philosopher, and friend." Yours very sincerely, Grover Clevel.\nd. George F. Parker, Esq., New York. 2o6 RECOLLECTIONS OF Somewhat later, I undertook to sound public sentiment further in respect to the declaration of principles to be made by the St. Louis Convention. There was a general fear that the managers of the movement for the nomi- nation of Judge Parker, in their eagerness to promote the interests of their candidate, might overlook the es- sentials in the making of the platform. So I kept my- self in pretty close relations with Mr. Cleveland, in the hope that he might declare himself upon this question. He was distinctly friendly to Judge Parker, but he was not entirely satisfied with some of the forces behind his can- didacy, and now, as ever, felt that Judge Gray ought to be chosen. In the meantime, there grew up, especially in Georgia and other Southern States, a demand that Mr. Cleveland himself should be nominated, and I was the medium of communicating to him knowledge of this inchoate movement. I was well aware that he would not even consider the suggestion, which, by this time, had ob- tained some publicity. He knew that I would attend the convention and could reach the Southern men in ques- tion, so that I carried with me the following letter, with directions to show it to a few gentlemen if necessary: Princeton, June 26, 1904. My dear Mr. Parker: I leave here for the summer on Tuesday a little after noon ; and I am in a confused stir making preparation. Your letter came yesterday. I have not been able to make out precisely the object of your efforts or the purpose of those acting with you. My idea, however, has been that something of a movement was on foot GROVER CLEVELAND 207 to bring about another nomination than Parker's— though I have not supposed that "another nomination" was related to my candidacy. I cannot beheve now that in the face of all T have written and said, and in view of conditions as palpable to every friend I have in the world as they are to me, there can be an intention in any quarter to attempt, by any means or in any contingency, to compass my nomination : and yet within a day or two I have read and heard some disquieting things. I want to do what I can to avoid a charge of permitting misapprehension of my position ; and so I say to you as plainly as I can that all thought of my candidacy must be abandoned as absolutely and inexorably impossible. Yours sincerely, Grover Cleveland. George F. Parker, Esq., Astor House, New York. VI After the nomination of Judge Parker had been made and a meaningless platform had been supplemented by the Gold Telegram— an act of courage equaled by few in our political history— Mr. Cleveland's hopes were raised anew. Neither he nor the candidate himself, or any other man with a knowledge of conditions, dared to hope for success, much less to expect it: but he especially thought that it might be possible to bring the party back to its old principles and traditions. As the resulting campaign ran its course, he was dis- couraged by the compromises in management offered to what he always termed the "wreckers" of the party, but he was sincerely attached to the candidate and desirous of doing whatever he could to promote his interests and 2o8 RECOLLECTIONS OF the ideas he represented. He consented to make two speeches, and so, recurring to an old habit, I was asked to go to Princeton to listen, as of old, to the reading of the drafts, taking back with me the copy for distri- bution to the press. All his old interest had been revived. He showed himself far more solicitous for the success of another than he had ever been for himself, and his dis- appointment over the crushing defeat was far keener than that of the candidate. I do not believe that, from this time forth, he thought the resuscitation of the party and its return to its old- time principles were among the probabilities of the immediate future. In the hands of demagogues and self-seekers, as he called some of the potent leaders, he feared that it would become a sort of political Cave of Adullam to which would resort "every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented." As each principle or policy for which it had stood was lost sight of, he felt that the shadow would gradually become more vital than the substance, and the machine would simply conceal weak- ness, not denote strength. VII Mr. Cleveland watched with an interest that never waned the rise of the party known as Populist. From its inception he had recognized that its demands were a formulated expression of those vague and impracticable notions which, like driftwood, had been floating upon the surface of the political deep from the beginnings of our government. He resented the fusions made with it in some of the Western States, always insisting that they were both perilous to the Democratic party's future GROVER CLEVELAND 209 and unnecessary even for its temporary success — con- tentions well established by the Presidential election of 1892. He was convinced that this movement would never become dangerous until it attracted to it some leader with the qualities which should at once enable him to present with much oratorical force the questions in- volved in such an agitation and bring to its support the wavering members of some existing party. He believed that William Jennings Bryan was such an apostle and that he would attempt to use the machinery of the Demo- cratic party for promoting his purposes. He said many times over: ''Bryan's mind, training, and imagination all combine to make of him a Populist, pure and simple. He has not even the remotest notion of the principles of Democracy." VIIT Because of his settled, unwavering feeling about the later lack of party leadership and absence of cohesion, this phase of Mr. Cleveland's political career demands adequate treatment. He was uncompromising in his opposition to Bryan and the thing known as Bryanism, because he believed them to be fatal to Democratic principles. No man could question his devotion to the party of his choice. In our whole history it is difficult to find another who had a stronger attachment to its principles and leaders, or one more consistently opposed to its rival and all that it stood for, than Grover Cleveland. None real- ized better than he the difficulties and trials through which it had passed during and after the Civil War and until his own election. He said to me over and over again: 14 2IO RECOLLECTIONS OF Of all the wonders that I have seen during my life, none has quite so impressed me as the reserve power of the Democratic party, which seems to have the elements of earthly immortality. It stood the shocks of civil war, during which it almost disap- peared as a political entity in many of the States of the North and from all those in revolt. In spite of the attempt to discredit its principles, organization, and leaders, it sent into the Union army more men than its rival and furnished nearly all the generals who either organized armies or won victories. It has passed through the heresies of greenbackism and free coinage ; but one was opposed and killed by Democrats in the Senate, and the other by a Demo- cratic President. It has lacked the discipline natural to its rival ; and yet, in spite of this fact, it has since stuck to its principles with such persistence that it has generally held more than a majority of the States, has made a courageous fight in all Presiden- tial contests, and has won in two of them. This remark, in substance, was many times repeated in the earlier years of my acquaintance, and emphasized after his retirement from the Presidency, and was al- ways coupled with the prediction that a party which had withstood such shocks as these would bury Populism so deep that it would be nothing more than an unfragrant political memory. Even in the darkest days, when his attached friends were doubtful of the future of his party, he adhered to this opinion. There were times when he would have blue or despondent spells ; but these would soon pass away, and his confidence in the vitality of settled principles, and, especially, his belief in the good sense of the American people, would quickly re- GROVER CLEVELAND 211 assert themselves, and his forebodings would disappear. He insisted that it might take time but that no other re- sult was possible. Not to believe this would have de- stroyed his faith in the integrity and permanence of American ideas and institutions whose existence, in his opinion, was only possible so long as our people should divide themselves on fixed principles into two parties fairly balanced as to numbers. IX One of Mr. Cleveland's intimate friends tells me that he went to Washington in 1893, at the beginning of the extra session called to repeal the silver-purchase clause of the Sherman Act. He soon became convinced that opposition inside his own party — little short of treachery — was then wide-spread and already beyond control. It was difficult to convince Mr. Cleveland that such a thing was possible. As events slowly developed during the next two years, my friend again went to Washing- ton and still found that the President, in spite of the repeal of the Silver Law, was skeptical about the fear that the Democratic party could be shifted from its moorings as a sound-money organization. He writes : Mr. Cleveland was slow to believe that the party could take such a course. It seemed to him so abhorrent as to be impos- sible. When the blow fell, he met it with his usual splendid courage. His attitude towards Bryan, Senator Vest, and the other misleaders, I can only describe as an exhibition of sor- row, pity, and Christian patience. He looked upon them as one looks upon madmen who endanger themselves while in- juring others. Through it all, he showed the same grim de- termination to hold fast to principle and to look to time for that vindication which came in such ample measure before he 212 RECOLLECTIONS OF passed away. In January, 1896, when I told him that nothing could keep the party from going wrong, he repHed : "Then it will be our duty to stand by our guns and let the party go, if it insists upon abandoning principle for expediency at the risk of the country's ruin." Mr. Cleveland's attitude of doubt, no less than his unwavering confidence in the outcome, was confirmed by the following letter written to a New York friend who, through a newspaper, had reminded the public of the President's 'difficulties and its duty towards him: Executive Mansion, Washington, April 16, 1894. My dear Mr. Wheeler: I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your letter in the Nezv York Times of to-day. It is very refreshing, in the midst of much misconception and prejudice and ignorance and injustice, to know that there are some who are inclined to be just and fair. There never was a man in this high office so surrounded with difficulties and so perplexed, and so treacherously treated, and so abandoned by those whose aid he deserves, as the pres- ent incumbent. But there is a God, and the patriotism of the American peo- ple is not dead ; nor is all truth and virtue and sincerity gone from the Democratic party. The delay may be discouraging and our faith may be sorely tried, but in the end we shall see the light. Yours very sincerely, Grover Cleveland. Everett P. Wheeler, Esq., New York City. GROVER CLEVELAND 213 XI Absence from the country during most of the second administration compelled me to keep in touch with the course of events by correspondence. Upon my arrival in Washington three weeks after the election, I found an invitation to luncheon at the White House on the following day. When Mr. Cleveland saw me, after nearly four years of separation, his greeting was: "Well, you did not forget me even if you were in Eng- land. I read your letters in behalf of the Palmer and Buckner ticket, and they interested me deeply. I knew where you would stand as a matter of principle, but you surprised me by the vigorous blows you struck." It was only natural that, in the next two hours, he should tell me the story of the political part of the administration. This was interesting, but most of it is now a part of our national history, with which I need not concern myself. What most engaged my attention was to hear from him something about the meteoric fig- ure of Bryan, the self-nominated candidate who had, somehow, taken possession of a great party. He was wholly new and had for me the interest inherent in the unknown. I soon found that Mr. Cleveland knew little more about him personally than I did. When the second term began he found Bryan in Washington as a member of Congress from Nebraska, elected in 1890 as a Democrnt and reelected in 1892. In his first session he made one tariff speech which evinced decided oratorical powers, though hardly up to the standard of knowledge set in the discussion of the Mills Bill. In spite of this defect, the President was pleased to find support for Demo- 214 RECOLLECTIONS OF cratic principles in a quarter from which it had been least expected. But his satisfaction was short-lived. It was clear, before long, that, for Mr. Bryan, the tariff was little more than a declamatory expedient. As to what he really and honestly believed in, the President said: "The idea that appealed to his imagination was free silver : the one that I had fought since my entrance into national politics." He continued : In time it was made plain that some of the ex- treme silver advocates in the Senate or House had been busying themselves, even more than the aver- age Congressman, in an effort to obtain offices for their friends. As you know, I refused, at the open- ing of the administration, to discriminate in appoint- ments between the advocates and the opponents of free silver. It was some time before we discovered that, in a large number of the Congressional districts of the middle and further West, some of the most active silver men were getting into post-offices and other places of importance. It took still longer to see that they were obtaining control, here and there, of the party machinery, and that, less considerate than I had been, they were inclined to push aside some of the faithful men who supported the adminis- tration in its coinage policy. It became evident, later, that a plan had been formed to use the patron- age to promote their own ideas, so that the adminis- tration, in addition to business depression, the Chi- cago strike, and an unusual popular unrest, found some of its appointees turned against itself. Among these active men, none was more industrious in seek- ing places for his followers than Mr. Bryan. I dis- GROVER CLEVELAND 215 covered, in due time, that a goodly proportion of these were PopuHsts'in reahty if not in name. XII Prior to the campaign of 1904, when I saw much of Mr. Cleveland, he seldom spoke of Mr. Bryan. The matter never presented itself to him as a personal one. He seemed to think that the party would be able so to reunite its forces and that all candidates and elements would work together. He deprecated some of the con- cessions made to the distinctive Bryan elements in the campaign management, characterizing them as weak- ening, and could never convince himself that Mr. Bryan was sincere in his avowal of support of Judge Parker, afterwards pointing to the returns as proof that his fears and predictions had been fully justified. While consistently refusing to come to the front as a centre around which organization could proceed, he urged the utmost vigilance in holding what had been gained by the campaign of 1904. He was constantly consulted by those who believed that some progress had been made, and always advised fully and freely. As a new Presidential campaign came into view, he insisted that if ]\Ir. Bryan should be again nominated it would be wholly due to neglect of the opportunity that pre- sented itself. He felt sure that the party did not want him, that he could only be chosen by default, and that there was no chance of his election. In June, 1907, on my own motion, I made a hurried political trip through some of the Western States and reported to Mr. Cleveland the result of my inquiries. They were not encouraging, because it was impossible 2i6 RECOLLECTIONS OF to find that anybody had more than a timid, formal in- terest in the result. It appeared to be the general opin- ion that Bryan was inevitable, not because the party wanted him, but for the less creditable reason that it hoped to be finally rid of him by assuring his over- whelming defeat for the third time. Mr. Cleveland could not understand the apathy and indifiference so manifested, in the face of the prospect of success with a solid and acceptable candidate. He had no personal fa- vorite, but firmly refused to believe that party fatuity would go to the length of nominating Bryan for the third time. In September, 1907, for his information, I sent him a letter I had received from one of his old friends. It contained the following reference to politics: I think Mr. Bryan will be a candidate again, and of course I intend to fight him. I see no indications that the Democratic party as you and I knew it is ever to be restored. Under nor- mal conditions a party should arise from the masses of the people to defend the necessary doctrine of strict construction of the Constitution and the use by the coordinate branches of the Federal Government of the powers delegated to them, and no others. But conditions are not as they were when we were young. The press of the country no longer discusses consti- tutional questions ; the spirit of socialism in its many forms is abroad amongst the masses of the people, and any movement arising from them is more likely to carry the doctrines of Karl Marx than those of Jefferson. The next day it was returned with the following note : Princeton, September 2y, 1907. My dear Parker: I am very much obliged to you for the opportunity to read the inclosed. I do not agree with our friend that another dish GROVER CLEVELAND 217 of Bryan will be forced upon our party; but his letter is, after all, like a breath of fresh air in a bad atmosphere. Yours truly, Grover Cleveland. George F. Parker, Esq. New York. XIII As the time approached for the National Convention of 1908, Mr. Cleveland showed the same keen interest in the outcome. His confidence in the good sense and recu- perative power of his party was so strong that he never lost hope. He constantly returned to the question, thus showing that it was never out of mind. He would not listen to suggestions that perhaps it would be just as well to let the nomination go to Mr. Bryan by default. He did not believe this to be either honest, or good politics. He was never heard to discuss the possi- bility of voting for any Republican candidate. He used to say: "I early formed the habit of voting the Democratic ticket and so would not know, how to sup- port any other." He took little interest in the personal side of the Republican National Convention except for its influence upon his own party, and never, even by in- direction, expressed his intention of favoring or sup- porting any Republican for President. All through the last winter of his life, he kept on, in a quiet way, trying to interest the best men in his party in an efifort to stem the Bryan tide. I had a long talk with him in his Madison Avenue offices on March 5, in which it was. difficult to get him to speak of any other question. His attitude was unequivocal, and he empha- sized, with his usual energy, the folly of the party 2i8 RECOLLECTIONS OF leaders, especially in the South. He insisted that only courage and systematic effort were necessary to bring about a result which would insure party harmony. He had ample advices through that corps of correspondents which, for nearly twenty years, had kept him in close touch with real public sentiment. He was convinced that the party was tired of going to defeat, year after year, especially when it had only to pull itself together to achieve notable victories. XIV My last intervrew with Mr. Cleveland was held on the 1 2th of March, 1908, in his up-town offices. I never saw him in a more cheerful mood, nor fuller of mental vigor. I had called upon some business errand — expecting to remain only a few minutes— but this done, he was hun- gry for one of his old-time long talks. More and more the subject of current politics was on his mind, and during the two hours that he kept me, he would speak of little else. In this last conversation there was a sug- gestion of unusual earnestness, especially in deprecation of the weakness of the party and its leaders in not tak- ing steps to uphold its settled principles. He said : This year gives us our chance. The Republicans are torn to pieces by faction, while the country seems ready to return to us if we shall only be true to our- selves. In spite of these favoring influences, we shall throw away our chances for the present, and put them in peril for the future, if Bryan is nomi- nated. The experience of the past twelve years has demonstrated this. In two of the Presidential elec- GROVER CLEVELAND 219 tions held during this period not less than a million solid, old-fashioned Democrats have felt that they could not support the national ticket and have either abstained from voting or have opposed the candidate. This policy has driven our own people away and has repelled the young men upon whom, throughout all the history of our party, we have depended for support and success. Within this period, we have lost control of every State in the North ; we have, I fear, made some of the Southern States Republican ; we have practically lost our Northern representation in the United States Senate; and we no longer have effective recruiting stations for public life in State legislatures and other popular bodies. What is still more vital to us as a party is that we are on the verge, it seems to me, of losing our distinctive issue of tariff reform for which, dur- ing all the chances and changes of the past, we have stood. As I see it, if we fail this year the Republi- cans will take up the question in such a way that we cannot hope to recover our ownership of it. That they will tinker with it, is certain. They have played with the currency problem, but, in doing so, have de- prived us of power to appeal to the country on the large lines inherent in the principles for which our party has always stood. It would be easy to reconstruct the party now; it may be possible to do it in any case; but, if we shall continue much longer to go to predestined defeat, it will require a popular interest and preponderance little less than revolutionary in its character so to bring the party back to principle that it can com- mand the support of the country. 220 RECOLLECTIONS OF XV During the whole of his poHtical Hfe, one of Mr. Cleve- land's trusted friends was Mr. E. Prentiss Bailev, editor of the Utica Observer, who has had the unusual good fortune to be thrown into close political fellowship and personal intimacy with three Democratic leaders : Hora- tio Seymour, Samuel J. Tilden, and Grover Cleveland. He has earned the right to congratulate himself that the wisdom and pure character of the first were his study and guide for thirty years; that Tilden com- manded his enthusiastic and efficient support from the time of becoming a power in New York and during his later career as a national figure; and that, when Cleve- land came upon the stage, there were circumstances that brought him into close relations with the remaining member of this commanding triumvirate. Probably the last political letter written by the ex- President was addressed to Mr. Bailey, two days after the sentiments above reported were expressed to me. By his courtesy, I am permitted to present it herewith : Princeton, N. J., 14 March, 1908. My dear Mr. Bailey: I have read with a great deal of satisfaction your last ex- ceedingly friendly letter. Regarding you as one of my oldest and best personal friends, as well as one of the stanch political comrades still remaining to wage warfare in the Democratic cause, your solicitude concerning my health and the kind ex- pressions contained in your letter are most gratifying. I often recall past political contests and those who were prominent as leaders in days past in winning Democratic vic- tories. I do not know but your thoughts are often led in the same direction, and if they are you must feel the same surprise GROVER CLEVELAND 221 that I do in being able to recall so few who yet survive. It does not seem to me that the successors of these old leaders naturally give rise to great confidence or hope. Still I cannot rid myself of the idea that our party, which has withstood so many clashes with our political opponents, is not doomed at this time to sink to a condition of useless and lasting de- cadence. In my last letter to you I expressed myself as seeing some light ahead for Democracy. I cannot help feeling at this time that the light is still brighter. It does seem to me that move- ments have been set in motion which, though not at the present time of large dimensions, promise final relief from the burden which has so long weighed us down. I have lately come to the conclusion that our best hope rests upon the nomination of Johnson of Minnesota. The prospects to my mind appear as bright with him as our leader as with any other, and whether we meet with success or not, I believe with such a leader we shall take a long step in the way of returning to our old creed and the old policies and the old plans of organization which have heretofore led us to victory. I received a letter a few days ago from Judge Donahue of New York, an old war-horse of Democracy now eighty- four years old, but still active in the practice of Viis profession. He said to me that, though he was by a number of years older than I, he not only hoped but expected to live to see a Democratic President in the White House. I often think that, with my seventy-one years to be completed in four days now, such a hope and expectation on my part can hardly be reasonably entertained ; but I confess that I am somewhat ashamed of such pessimistic feeling when I read' the cheery and confident words contained in this old veteran's letter. I do not want you to suppose that a feeling of pessimism toward political affairs is habitual with me. On the contrary, such a condition of mind is quite infrequent and so temporary that it yields quickly to a better mood and a settled conviction that our party before many years will march from the darkness to the full light of glorious achievement. I, too, have very recently had a letter from our old friend Dr. Miller of Omaha. It is an astonishing thing that at his 222 GROVER CLEVELAND age his vigor is so unimpaired, his mind so clear, and his readi- ness to do pohtical battle so keen. I frequently see General James's letters in the Observer and cannot help congratulating you on the fact that you have a personal friend so charming and one who is so willing to contribute in an exceedingly interesting and instructive way to the columns of your paper. I myself certainly feel very much favored that I have gained his good opinion. I wish there were a few more who, like him, could love their country in an unselfish and disinterested manner and were willing to do something to remind their fellow-countrymen of duty and opportunity. yours very sincerely, Grover Cleveland. E. Prentiss Bailey, Esq., Utica, New York, XVI Nothing in all his career gave Mr. Cleveland more sorrow than this sad condition of his party. Its prin- ciples lay so close to his heart, he believed so firmly in them, was so attached to its history, traditions, and lead- ership, and so impressed with tlie necessity of two great parties, that a failure to maintain its power seemed to him like the loss of some fundamental part of our insti- tutions. He did not question the sincerity of others and only asked that they should have, as well as profess, attach- ment to its established policies and thus keep it from going upon a wild-goose chase in the vain hope of catch- ing voters really hostile to its ideas and aims. He never forgot that he had won his honors through its support, and he requited them with an aflFection, a disinterested- ness, and a devotion seldom seen: but he could only show these efifectively by insisting that it should stand firmly by its principles. CHAPTER XIV THE INSURANCE EPISODE NOTHING in his public career gave Mr. Cleve- land more genuine satisfaction than the relations which he bore, in his closing years, to life-in- surance. The invitation to undertake it came to him without seeking: as a surprise. He was not astonished at the revelations first made in the Hyde-Alexander quarrel and confirmed and increased by the Armstrong Committee. He looked upon them as natural and to be expected. He never exaggerated their extent and, naturally, had no part in the hysteria which seemed, all at once, to seize our people. He was little given to the *T told you so" order of prophecy or activity, as he con- sidered these developments the natural result of govern- ment favoritism. H he had presumed to analyze them in their first and last effect, he would have said that they were the outward sign of an inward condition produced by our system of tariff taxes. But, when the crisis came, there was only one thought in his mind : How shall we get over this exposure, with the least damage to morals and industry, and also use it as a warning for the future? He did not rush into speech or print, into denunciation or apology, but, when 923 224 RECOLLECTIONS OF the time and invitation came, was ready to apply himself to the devising of practical methods. He had never so much as thought of having any personal connection with the matter, in spite of the fact that, among the many ingenious suggestions, was one that he should take the presidency of some one of the three companies involved in the scandal. II It remained for Mr. Thomas Fortune Ryan to think out a practical plan for utilizing Mr. Cleveland's great in- fluence with the public and its confidence in his judg- ment and honesty, for stopping what threatened to be- come an overwhelming panic. Month after month had passed, each more prolific in sensation than the other, and, apparently, no man of position and leading had conceived the idea of doing something constructive. Mr. Ryan did this when he boldly bought outright the controlling stock of the Equitable Life Assurance So- ciety and, with still greater courage and audacity, at once dispossessed himself of both the stock and the con- trol by creating a trust with Grover Cleveland at its head. In our whole history, probably no private individual, without other responsibility than his own idea of what was right and necessary, has performed a business act which appealed more to the public imagination, or was so efifective in curing popular hysteria, as this one was. Its influence was not limited to the particular insurance society nominally interested, but was felt immediately in the remotest limits of the country and in every busi- ness and calling. Accident was to throw me again into intimate asso- GROVER CLEVELAND 225 ciation with Mr. Cleveland— wholly without seeking or even knowledge on my part of such an intention. On the evening of June 9, 1905, when in attendance upon a public dinner, I was called by Mr. Ryan to the telephone. He read me his letter inviting Mr. Cleveland to accept the trust, and I was asked whether or not it would be possible for me to go to Princeton by the earliest train next morning. I requested Mr. Cleveland, both by tele- graph and telephone, not to see anybody or to read any- thing on insurance matters until I could see him, and spent the greater part of the night in making myself entirely familiar with this unexpected call. I reached Westland, Mr. Cleveland's residence, before ten o'clock the next morning. Ill Mr. Ryan's letter was as follows: 38 Nassau Street, New York, June 9. 1905. My dear Mr. Cleveland: You may be aware that a bitter controversy exists regard- ing the management of the Equitable Life Assurance Society and that public confidence has been shaken in the safety of the fund under the control of a single block of stock left by the late Henry B. Hyde. This loss of confidence affects a great public trust of more than $400,000,000, representing the savings of over 600,000 policy-holders, and the present condition amounts to a public misfortune. In the hope of putting an end to this condition and in con- nection with a change of the executive management of the Society. I have, together with other policy-holders, purchased this block of stock and propose to put it into the hands of a board of trustees having no connection with Wall Street, with power to vote it for the election of directors — as to 15 226 RECOLLECTIONS OF twenty-eight of the fifty-two directors in accordance with the instructions of the poHcy-holders of the Society, and as to the remaining twenty-four directors in accordance with the un- controlled judgment of the trustees. This division of twenty- eight and twenty-four is in accordance with a plan of giving substantial control to policy-holders already approved by the Superintendent of Insurance. I beg you to act as one of this board with other gentlemen, who shall be of a character entirely satisfactory to you. I would not venture to ask this of you on any personal grounds; but to restore this great trust, affecting so many people of slender means, to soundness and public confidence would cer- tainly be a great public service, and this view emboldens me to make the request. The duties of the trust would be very light, as in the nature of things, when a satisfactory board is once constituted, there are few changes, and all the clerical and formal work would be done by the office force of the company. I have written similar letters to Justice Morgan J. O'Brien, Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division of our Supreme Court, and to Mr. George Westinghouse of Pittsburgh, two of the largest policy-holders in the Society. Very truly yours, Thomas F. Ryan. Hon. Grover Cleveland, Princeton, New Jersey. Bearing this letter, the matter in hand was at once taken up, its more obvious limitations and requirements discussed and disposed of, the general situation fully explained; after which we were ready to consider the larger features which, from my experience, I knew would be uppermost in Mr. Cleveland's mind. He was fully awake to the importance of the action proposed, but, as usual, doubted, first, whether or not he was the man to take up such an arduous work, and thus virtually with- GROVER CLEVELAND 227 draw from his retirement ; and then whether, conceding this, he either ought or could afiford to undertake a task involving so much risk of reputation. He urged his un- familiarity with practical business, to which the ready and natural answer was that details were only slightly involved, the really important matter in hand being the assertion of broad general principles until such time as the public alarm could be allayed. In this way, the objections based upon expediency and experience were met and disposed of, as was readily apparent, to his satisfaction. There remained another and final one: by far the most serious. This was the unlucky precedent set by one of our ex-Presidents, who, long after the expiration of his Presidential service, had been drawn into a banking connection which proved fatal to fortune, involved his good name for a brief time, and had since been pointed out as one of the perils to be avoided by ex-Presidents. In urging this, I was able, from personal knowledge and by reason of per- sonal relations, to assure Mr, Cleveland that Mr. Ryan had purchased the Equitable stock out of hand, from his own ample resources, and that he sought to avert a great public peril and neither to make a profit nor to exert financial power. IV Convinced of the disinterestedness of all concerned, he consented to accept the trust, and authorized me to telephone his decision to New York. Upon my return to his room the question was raised as to the form which his acceptance should take. He thought nothing more was necessary than a brief, formal note to be carried back as an immediate reply to a business proposal. 228 RECOLLECTIONS OF Here, again, it was represented to him that this afforded him an opportunity to make an appeal to the country, in the form of a letter, which should exercise an influ- ence more extensive than anything else that could be said or done. He assented, and on the same day wrote as follows : Princeton, June lo, 1905. Thomas F. Ryan, Esq. Dear Sir: I have this morning received your letter asking me to act as one of the three trustees to hold the stock of the Equitable Life Assurance Society which has lately been acquired by you and certain associates, and to use the voting power of such stock in the selection of directors of said Society. After a little reflection I have determined I ought to accept this service. I assume this duty upon the express condition that, so far as the trustees are to be vested with discretion in the selection of directors, they are to be absolutely free and undisturbed in the exercise of their judgment, and that, so far as they are to act formally in voting for the directors conceded to policy-holders, a fair and undoubted expression of policy-holding choice will be forthcoming. The very general anxiety aroused by the recent unhappy dissensions in the management of the Equitable Society fur- nishes proof of the near relationship of our people to life- insurance. These dissensions have not only injured the fair fame of the company immediately affected, but have impaired popular faith and confidence in the security of life-insurance itself as a provision for those who in thousands of cases would be otherwise helpless against the afflictive visitations of fate. The character of this business is such that those who man- age and direct it are charged with a grave trust for those who, necessarily, must rely upon their fidelity. In those circum- stances they have no right to regard the places they hold as ornamental, but rather as positions of work and duty and watchfulness. GROVER CLEVELAND 229 Above all things, they have no right to deal with the in- terests intrusted to them in such a way as to subserve or to become confused or complicated with their personal trans- actions or ventures. While the hope that I might aid in improving the plight of the Equitable Society has led me to accept the trusteeship you tender, I cannot rid myself of the belief that what has overtaken this company is liable to happen to other insurance companies and fiduciary organizations as long as lax ideas of responsibility in places of trust are tolerated by our people. The high pressure of speculation, the madness of inordi- nate business scheming, and the chances taken in new and uncertain enterprises, are constantly present temptations, too often successful, in leading managers and directors away from scrupulous loyalty and fidelity to the interests of others confided to their care. We can better afford to slacken our pace than to abandon our old, simple, American standards of honesty; and we shall be safer if we regain our old habit of looking at the appro- priation to personal uses of property and interests held in trust in the same light as other forms of stealing. Yours very truly, Grover Cleveland. The trustees met within a week and completed their or- ganization—the only occasion when Mr. Ryan ever attended — and, accepting the deed of trust, proceeded to the work in hand. Even thus early, the American ca- pacity for seeking places, either of emolument or honor, was freely demonstrated, as the records of the secre- tary contained, within less than two weeks, more than two hundred names of men who had been presented either by themselves or their friends as willing candi- dates for a directorship. These were distributed through 230 RECOLLECTIONS OF every State and drawn from every trade and profession. Perhaps the larger proportion were either agents of the society or candidates pushed by agents. It was easy to eHminate the first division of this class by making a rule that under no circumstances would the name of an agent, either former, present, or prospective, be so much as considered. As to the latter, the confession must be made that some of the most acceptable names were pre- sented by active and enterprising agents, especially in the more remote cities. The trustees found many vacancies awaiting their attention, most of them created by the resignation of some of the leading business men of the country. Per- haps a great concern has never had upon its directorate so many efficient men of high standing as the Equitable when the scandals came. Among a few of the vacancies to be filled were those created by the resignations of Edward H. Harriman, James J. Hill, August Belmont, Henry C. Frick, A. J. Cassatt, and Jacob H. Schiif, while the spirit which had induced these men to retire made others apprehensive about accepting their places. Happily, some associations of policy-holders pre- sented a few excellent men who were chosen at the earliest meetings, but they also raised the insuperable difficulty, in other cases, of putting forward men whom Mr. Cleveland refused even so much as to consider. His well-known dogged firmness made it easier for the trustees to resist such pressure, backers being aware that when he had once made up his mind, nothing would move him. Even with all the volunteers, it became necessary to seek for men of a kind acceptable to the trustees ; so from rolls of policy-holders long lists of names were gathered for consideration, and these were supple- GROVER CLEVELAND 231 mented by those personally known to the members— no outside advice being either sought or acceptable. It was here that Mr. Cleveland's large knowledge of the country became of great service. Although he had then been out of public life for eight years, it was scarcely possible to mention a man of prominence about whom he did not remember at least something, and from this recollection he generally could deduce the character of the man and his fitness for the important position in view. Speculators, members of stock exchanges, and promoters were soon placed in the same category with agents, so that the field from which choice could be made was constantly narrowing, while, owing to addi- tional resignations, the vacancies were increasing rather than diminishing. But in spite of the high standard set, the proportion of exclusions, and the resignations, the board was kept up to its legal strength and the require- ment met that a majority should be citizens of New York. VI In one of the earliest meetings the policy of the trustees was set forth in the following address to policy-holders written by Mr. Cleveland : It shall be onr effort to avail ourselves of all the knowledge and information within our reach, to secure for directors from among policy-holders such persons as are imbued with conservative views of management, and who will regard as distinctly violative of duty the use of the funds of the Society directly or indirectly in the promotion, underwriting, or syn- dicating of new and uncertain enterprises, or the investment of such funds in speculative stocks and securities. The published reports of those who have investigated the past management of the Society and the astounding revela- 2Z2 RECOLLECTIONS OF tions they bring to light have impressed us with the grave responsibiHty resting upon us to prevent, so far as it is in our power, a repetition of a scandalous and tragic chapter in the history of a great life-insurance company. The lessons to be learned from the exposures of these reports are that the men who are more concerned in making money for them- selves than in discharging a sacred trust should not have con- trol of a life-insurance company, and that in the investment of life-insurance funds safety, rather than large profits, should be the rule. The same obligations that rest on the trustees of savings- banks rest on the directors of life-insurance companies — because in more than one sense a life-insurance company is a savings-bank. The same conservative management, the same economy in expenditure, and the same care as to invest- ments, are as necessary in the one case as the other. The his- tory of the savings-banks in the State of New York is most creditable ; and we believe this is due, not alone to the able, honest, and disinterested men who have managed them, but also to the laws which have limited the character of the securities in which they could invest. We feel like saying to you that, notwithstanding the afflic- tions of the Equitable Society, its resources, assets, and sur- plus are too great, and reforms in its management are too promising, to admit of doubt or misgiving on your part con- cerning the safety of your policy investments. . . . We again bespeak your sensible and independent aid, uninfluenced by invidious and suspicious influences; and, in return, we pledge ourselves that, so far as it is given us to see our way, the con- duct of our trust shall be actuated solely by a desire to secure and conserve your interests, and promote the safety and suc- cess of the great life-insurance organization of which you and your families are the promised beneficiaries. VII As was usual with Mr. Cleveland, he showed his thor- ough absorption in the duty that lay next to his hand. GROVER CLEVELAND 233 He used the same care in picking out a director for the Equitable that he had formerly shown in filling his Cabinets, or choosing high officials of the Government, for whose every act he held himself responsible. He took nothing for granted, was considerate of his col- leagues but as critical of their judgment as of his own. There was no give and take among the trustees, no put- ting in men as a compliment to each other, no log- rolling. There were no compromises because there were no dififerences of opinion: from first to last every act was unanimous. The first insistence was that a man chosen should accept subject to the condition that he would then give close attention to his duties. Some idea may be gained of the consistent earnest- ness shown by Mr. Cleveland in this new, voluntary, and unpaid work by some extracts from his correspon- dence, during this first and vital year, with the secre- tary. He spent the summer in New Hampshire, with one or two trips to New York to attend meetings. At the beginning of the second month's history of the trus- tees, when the difficulty in filling vacancies with fitting men was causing a good deal of anxiety, he wrote, on July 16, 1905, from Tamworth: I should be exceedingly pained and disappointed if, with absolute freedom from outside influence and disturbance, we are not able to discharge the duties of our trust in a manner as wise and useful in every direction as the fallibility of human nature will permit. The name of one of Mr. Cleveland's friends had been presented for consideration by one of the trustees, and I had written him something about the matter. In reply, on July 20, he said: 234 RECOLLECTIONS OF I expect you somewhat misunderstood my feeling in regard to Mr. . I have the highest admiration for his business ability and his qualities of heart and conscience. I am per- sonally very fond of him and would trust all I have in his hands. He has been concerned in some underwriting opera- tions; and while I have no idea that these have been in the least questionable, measured by accepted standards, I feel that underwriting just at the present time is, or ought to be, a little out of fashion among Directors of the Equitable Assurance Society. Solely for this reason I have been inclined to allow this otherwise good name to drop out of consideration. VIII By this time he was consulted about the general policy of the society — although it lay entirely outside of his duties or powers. So in the same letter he expressed an opinion upon what was then, as now, a burning question in insurance circles: I cannot rid myself of the idea that "Agencies" and their relationship to the Society should, in their turn, and in a careful manner, challenge an important amount of Mr. Mor- ton's exceedingly promising and encouraging labor of re- habilitation. I have, however, great confidence in the efficiency of his work, so splendidly begun, and I do not believe he will allow himself to be misled by Agency influences. The sense of responsibility grew upon him as he came into closer touch with the dtities of his place. This was shown in the letter next quoted: I am constantly thinking of the responsibility of my Trus- teeship, and I have never been more anxious to do exactly the best thing for the interests legitimately involved. I so fully realize the surroundings of these interests and so fully appreciate Mr. Ryan's encouragement that I shall feel almost GROVER CLEVELAND 235 disgraced if the remainder of the Directors chosen by the Trustees are not exactly the men needed for the emergency. Like expressions appeared in most of the letters from this time forward until the most serious difficulties had been overcome. Some of these follow: July 23, 1905. Somehow I am impatient to be doing something to help the Equitable conditions, but I suppose there is nothing I can do. August 20. At the same time, I regard my Trustee duties as of paramount importance, having the first claim upon my time and attention. October i. Somehow it seems I have an unusual number of things on my mind just now which perplex and embarrass me, but, above all others, I feel that the duties of my Trustee- ship demand my first attention. IX During the succeeding year the work of the trustees continued to be arduous and difficult. The new admin- istration was getting its hand in most successfully. Among other questions demanding close attention was that known as "mutualization"— the only one upon which Mr. Ryan's attitude in buying the majority stock had bound the trustees. He was determined upon this as the proper policy, and so action was taken which anticipated the laws passed at the succeeding session of the Legislature, and to the policy-holders there was sub- mitted the election of directors who should represent them in the board. Accordingly elaborate circulars, very carefully drawn by Mr. Cleveland himself, were sent to more than 350,000 policy-holders of record. These were accompanied by blank ballots and also by 236 RECOLLECTIONS OF proxies of which the trustees were the official com- mittee. The task of communicating with this vast army was, in itself, a difficult one; but it was easy in comparison with that of making them understand what was wanted. When the polls were closed, within a day or so of the annual election in December, returns had been received from 90,000 persons, of whom just over 94 per cent, had sent proxies and the remainder a jumble of ballots. The trustees were thus given absolute authority to rep- resent and vote for the policy-holders. Some curious results were revealed. One candidate in a Southern State, for whom the agents of the society had canvassed in the preceding year with such success that practically every qualified voter of the society within this jurisdiction, some 3,500 or 4,000, had sent a letter or signed a petition, now re- ceived less than fifty votes. The fact that the names of the trustees appeared upon the proxy had convinced practically every interested person that his interests were safe, and hence there was no longer even the smallest concern over the matter. So quickly had the excitement died out when a great commanding charac- ter was put into the forefront of the battle. The work of taking the ballot was greatly increased by Mr. Cleveland's determination that no technicalities should count. Rules had been carefully devised and the clearest of all possible explanations made, but, in spite of all efiforts, many persons did not understand. His insistence upon this care probably rendered it necessary to answer from three hundred to five hundred letters a day by entering more fully into details, so that no ex- cuse would remain for complaint. Many proxies were sent to him in Princeton, and their transmission was GROVER CLEVELAND 237 generally accompanied by instructions of which the fol- lowing is a sample : Princeton, October 23, 1906. My dear Mr. Parker: I enclose another batch of proxies, etc., for your care and attention. I think the proxies sent to me by policy-holders in the "Mutual" or any other Company, except the Equitable, ought to be returned to the senders with the statement that I cannot act for them. I am exceedingly anxious, however, that every policy-holder in the Equitable Society who evinces a desire to vote, either by proxy or personally, should be aided in every possible way ; and to that end I want the utmost care to be exercised in the correction of their mistakes and misapprehensions. You will notice one case in which a policy-holder fears that a proxy is invalid if not made more than two months prior to the day of election. This is a curious interpretation of the "directions," but the matter ought to be explained to the writer. Yours very truly, Grover Cleveland. George F. Parker, Esq. 120 Broadway, New York. X When the organization work of the trustees was fairly imder way— as soon as its effect upon the country and public sentiment could be fairly seen and measured— Mr. Cleveland said to me : On the whole, I have never been so well satisfied with any public service which it has fallen to my lot to render as with what I have been able to do as 238 RECOLLECTIONS OF Trustee of the Equitable. Its results have more than repaid me for the labor done and the anxieties through which I have passed. I can now see that the scandals growing out of the insurance irregu- larities were really serious outward manifestations of popular hysteria. Nothing could have been more fortunate than to have the situation met in the courageous way taken by Mr. Ryan, Looking back, it is next to impossible to imagine what harm might have been done to confidence and credit had not some such action been taken just in the nick of time. There was serious danger lest the whole fabric of industry should be endangered for a time. This expression of opinion was repeated many times and always with thankfulness for any aid which he had been able to extend in averting the worst. In 1907, when the panic was to come in real earnest, he always insisted that if appeal had not been made to conservative and conserving sentiment in good time, the results would have been infinitely more hurtful, for the reason that the public ofiScials who had fanned the flames became, in due time, powerless to do anything effective in check- ing or extinguishing them. This is, perhaps, a proper place to record his opinion of Mr. Ryan, who had been the medium for drawing him into the insurance situation. It was expressed at my last interview with him. about a fortnight before his fatal illness : When I was first asked to do something to allay the excitement accompanying the insurance scan- dals, I hesitated to take part in the movement. It interfered with the quiet which I needed and had GROVER CLEVELAND 239 found. I was also fearful lest I might be drawn into something I did not understand and was too old to learn. I had long known Mr. Ryan, but the fact that he was supposed to bear such close relations to great financial ventures made me doubt whether or not I could have the free hand necessary to do good service, if I was to do it at all. I finally concluded to accept and, as you know better than anybody, without any assurances whatever, for I did not see Mr. Ryan until the formal trust deed was signed. From that dav to this, I have never had from him any request of even the simplest character to do anything in Equitable matters which had the small- est relation to what were supposed to be his interests. I have seen him seldom, at times not for three-months intervals, and I must say that, even when I have felt that I needed his advice and assistance, he has gen- erally declined to express an opinion one way or the other. I shall always have the clearest reasons for holding him in respect. I consider that he has done a great public service and in the most unselfish way. XI For some time Mr. Cleveland had been looking for a favorable opportunity to say these things to the public, and finally, after much solicitation for an interview on politics for a New York paper, he saw one of its re- porters and consented, just before his last birthday, to talk about insurance. Here was his long-sought oppor- tunity, and he spoke both freely and fully. When the interview appeared he had gone to Lakewood, from which he was to return only to die. It was clear at once 240 RECOLLECTIONS OF that some opinions, never held and never expressed, had been interpolated into it. Within an hour of reading I wrote calling his attention to the article and offering to go at once to Lakewood in case he wanted to disavow publicly the sentiments attributed to him— something, by the way, that he seldom did even in the most flagrant cases, because, as he always insisted, the truth would never overtake a lie of this sort. He was then in a very serious condition, and few of his friends believed that he would ever leave Lakewood alive. Nevertheless one of the last letters he wrote was the following: Lakewood, New Jersey, March 24, 1908. My dear Mr. Parker: I do not think it would be at all profitable to follow up by formal denial the misrepresentation that has been allowed to appear in good company, so far as what I said concerning Mr. Ryan. It seems to me easy to discover how much the few words, put in for the purpose of singling them out for edi- torial use, are at variance with the purpose and intent of the interview. I intended to give evidence of Mr. Ryan's useful and disinterested conduct in affairs with which I was familiar — and I certainly had no idea of intimating that in his large affairs he acted without appreciating or caring for the dis- tinction between right and wrong. Nothing I said to the reporter could, with decency, truth, or fairness, be twisted to have any such meaning. . . . Yours truly, Grover Cleveland. George F. Parker, Esq., Equitable Building, New York, GROVER CLEVELAND 241 XII Nothing could have been more fortunate for Mr. Cleve- land than this last excursion into public life. He was in- terested deeply in the work; he was pleased to know that he was again doing good; and, most important of all, he was drawn anew into the large influences and asso- ciations which had become a second nature to him, and that, too, without interfering in the least with the new circle of friends attracted to him on the scenes of his quiet and retirement. He found himself discussing and deciding upon questions scarcely less important to the country than when its destiny was largely in his keeping. He was able, also, to renew acquaintance with friends of earlier years, as they flocked about him in the inter- vals of leisure left him from his serious employments. Taking everything together, one is inclined to agree with his own judgment that nothing in all his life ex- ceeded in importance or usefulness the public service he was enabled to render during the last three years of his life. 16 CHAPTER XV RIVALS — PREDECESSORS AND SUCCESSORS THE Opinions which Mr. Cleveland held about those who came into his life as rivals in con- tests, either for nomination or election, and about his predecessors and successors found free ex- pression and were always interesting. Alonzo B. Cornell. He seemed never to have formed any distinct idea about Alonzo B. Cornell, whom he suc- ceeded as Governor. This was probably due to the fact that, in accordance with the traditions of the office, each man was supposed to initiate his own policy, with only the smallest possible relation to that of his predecessors, whether direct or remote. While, in most States, the retiring Governor sends an annual message to the Legis- lature, reviewing the progress of the year and making recommendations, in New York the incoming Governor performs this function, thus putting each new official upon his mettle. He is compelled to gather the neces- sary information, and so to digest it as to let the people know at once what his policy is to be. It is this custom which gives the Governor of New York a distinct promi- nence. GROVER CLEVELAND 243 II Charles J. Folger. As Mr. Cleveland's active public service receded into the past he fell oftener into a remi- niscent mood concerning the men with whom he had either been associated or who had entered into his life. I do not recall that — in the early years of our associa- tion, close as it was, comprehending in conversations the almost infinite round of questions, interests, and men with which he had had to deal — I heard him speak often of the campaign of 1882, so far as it related to his elec- tion as Governor. But, at Princeton, in November, 1907, the name of Charles J. Folger, the Republican candidate in that year, was brought up by him in some way. He at once manifested unusual interest, and I saw that this name appealed both to his sentimental side and to his inherent idea of fairness. He then said in substance : I do not think I ever saw Mr. Folger, either before or after the election, but, in all my experience, there has been no man for whom I have felt a deeper and more genuine sympathy. Here was a man, dis- tinctly of a legal and judicial mind, who, with a long and successful career as a judge in our courts, was elected finally to serve for many years as the judge of the most dignified tribunal in his State. Unaccustomed to the hurly-burly of politics, he was transferred from this office and became, unwill- ingly, I was always informed. Secretary of the Treasury in Washington, and that, too, at a time and under conditions which made the office a hotbed of party intrigue and ambition. He found an un- familiar atmosphere and unpleasant surroundings, 244 RECOLLECTIONS OF so, while not essentially ambitious, he consented to take the nomination of his party for Governor. Here the conditions were still less familiar and more dis- tasteful. He knew little about party machinery and less about the men who made and ran it, so that he was nominated without effort on his own part and really at the dictation of the Federal administration, which was said to be looking to the practical politics of the future. He was unfitted for such a position. Of quiet, studious tastes, independent, to an unusual degree, he found himself the centre of innumerable movements beyond his ken, and over which, owing to the manner of his nomination, he could have no con- trol. He was denounced as a tool, a mere machine- made product of latter-day political methods, and, as a result, his defeat was the most crushing which, up to that time, had come to any candidate for a State office. To me, it seems the very irony of fate that a man of this type, with a career distinguished by con- spicuous and honorable service, and of such unusual capabilities, well known to the public, should have been defeated by me, then wholly unknown outside my own small community. I must confess that, even now, a quarter of a century after the event, I am not able to understand it. However, as it was to be, nothing has given me more pleasure than to feel that no word, either of mine or of my friends and sup- porters, was ever spoken or written derogatory to the character of a man for whom, then and ever since, I have entertained the most profound respect. I have no doubt, either, that, coming suddenly into the higher public life in this way, I was warned of one of the worst pitfalls to be found there. Even if GROVER CLEVELAND 245 it had been possible for me to use the power of a p^reat office for purely partizan or personal purposes, the effects of such a policy stood out before me so prominently on the very threshold that I could only 'have heeded the warning. I encountered a great deal of abuse when President for my refusal to take part in local politics in my own and other States : to help my friends, as it was sometimes called. If I had ever been tempted to do so, I should only have had to think of the gubernatorial campaign of 1882, and the rebuke then administered to such a policy. Ill James G. Blaine. Mr. Cleveland never spoke much about Mr. Blaine or the personalities incident to the Presidential campaign of 1884. True to his nature and to that inborn spirit of fairness which was one of his strongest characteristics, during that campaign he took the most determined stand upon the policy of retaliation — so far as the private life of his opponent was con- cerned. At one time, one of the leading managers of the national Democratic campaign informed the candi- date that, on the following morning, a very scandalous exposure of his opponent would be published, and that this was to go out with official sanction from the com- mittee. When Mr. Cleveland told me the story, many years later, his strong sense of indignation was still manifest. He said that he told his informant that, if any such publication was made, either with official ap- proval or even with connivance, he would at once resign from the ticket, thus, so far as he was concerned, not only disavowing and disproving his participation in so 246 RECOLLECTIONS OF dastardly an act, but by this effective protest making it impossible to employ such tactics in a political cam- paign. IV Chester A. Arthur. So far as President Arthur was concerned, his successor entertained for him the very highest respect both as to his ability and honesty and to v^hat he called the success of his administration. He could never speak with too great enthusiasm about Mr. Arthur's settled purpose, the depth of his patriotism, or the courage with which he had resisted the financial and demagogic heresies of his time. From the point of view of party management and foresight he professed his inability to understand the fatuity which had denied him the Republican nomination in 1884. He attributed his own success, in a large degree, to what he deemed Republican short-sightedness. No men, so placed, could have held more agreeable relations than those which characterized the two men who, on March 4, 1885, rode from the Executive Man- sion to the Capitol and returned, after having exchanged places. It is a pleasure, after these many years, thus to record the good opinion in which these two men, who had passed through so many strange political vicissi- tudes, held each other. Benjamin Harrison. Of Benjamin Harrison, both a successor and predecessor, he had mixed opinions, and yet all of them were either favorable or apologetic. He CIIESTKK A. AKTIHR Twenty-first President of the United State GROVER CLEVELAND 247 criticized the attitude of his administration on the silver question, and yet, knowing the difficuUies surrounding it and the forces to be deaU with, he reahzcd how strong had been the conflict between pubhc duty and private opinion on the one hand, and the greed of interests and partizan demands on the other. He never entirely for- gave President Harrison for permitting the surplus, carefully built up by himself and bequeathed as a public legacy, to be dissipated by idle and unjust pension laws and by extravagant appropriations, the demand for which he himself had so successfully resisted. But it was in commenting upon the judicial ap- pointments of his successor that he broke into real en- thusiasm. He used to say that no President in the coun- try's history had excelled Benjamin Harrison in the care he showed, in the absolute determination, to get the best men available for filling vacancies or new positions on the bench of the Federal courts. He was especially earnest in his approval of the breadth of view shown in the first appointments to the Circuit Court of Appeals, and each successful assertion of their authority by the new judges was followed by him with interest. He often said, in respect to Harrison's whole iudicial policy: I cannot see how he does it. I thought I realized the importance of the Federal courts, resisting mere party pressure and giving to my appointments the most jealous care, but I must confess that Harrison has beaten me. General Harrison had the reputation of being a cold man, when, in fact, this efifect came largely from shy- ness. Of commanding ability, certainly the greatest lawyer his State has thus far produced, he came slowly 248 RECOLLECTIONS OF and painfully to his own. Few men have done more hard and unrequited work for party and country in their early careers before commanding recognition. If a difficult speaking canvass was to be made or a hopeless candi- dacy was to be accepted, Harrison was sure to be called upon, because nobody else could equally well meet such an emergency. All this, together with his tastes and his retired nature, cut him off from the society of all except a few close friends. When the time for the inauguration of 1889 came around, President Cleveland, who was a stickler for official etiquette and so never overlooked anything that ought to be done, gave special attention to the comfort of his successor and his family. Soon after the two men returned from the Capitol, Harrison, seldom demonstra- tive or enthusiastic, seeing about him all the prepara- tions and evidences of thoughtf ulness, said to a friend : "Well, whatever else may happen, I shall at least know how to go out of office when my time comes." Four years later, to a day, the White House was swept, gar- nished, amply furnished with eatables and drinkables by the man who showed how well he had learned the lesson of how to provide for the advent of the man who had taught it. VI William McKinley. Upon my first visit to Mr. Cleveland in Princeton after the close of the Spanish War, on one of my home-coming trips, he spoke a good deal of President McKinley. During Mr. Cleveland's first administration he had come little into contact with Mr. McKinley in a personal way, and in the second the latter was Governor of Ohio. Naturallv, the two men r.,|,vr,sMI,j I'acli Ilr..lh,-: WILLIAM McKINLKY From a photojjranh taken at Pahn Heach GROVER CLEVELAND 249 were poles apart on the tariff— the one question which so much engaged the attention of both; but this issue had been entirely thrust aside by its necessary aban- donment in the campaign of 1896 and by the result of an election in which both had done what they could to preserve the public credit and thus maintain the na- tional honor. At the time in question and also on sev- eral later occasions, Mr. Cleveland recounted to me the particulars of his last and most striking interview with Mr. McKinley, held when one man was about to lay down the responsibilities of high office which the other was to take up. The incoming President spent the evening with his predecessor at the Executive Man- sion, and of their conversation, of which I made notes at the time, and also when the incident was again de- scribed, ]\Ir. Cleveland said: I was struck by the feeling of sadness which char- acterized this interview on both sides. The one question on Mr. McKinley's mind was the threat- ened war with Spain. He went over with me, care- fully, the steps that I had taken to avert this catas- trophe, emphasized his agreement with the policy adopted, and expressed his determination to carry it out so far as lay in his power. He adverted to the horrors of war, and was intensely saddened by the prospect incident to the loss of life, the de- struction of property, the blows dealt at the higher morality, and the terrible responsibility thrust upon him. In parting he said: "Mr. President, if I can only go out of office, at the end of my term, with the knowledge that I have done what lay in my power to avert this terrible calamity, with the success that has crowned your patience and persistence, I shall be the 250 RECOLLECTIONS OF happiest man in the world." I never saw him again after the inauguration, but of all the interviews I have ever held during the whole of my career, none ever impressed me as being so full of settled sadness and sincerity, and no man ever gave me a stronger idea of his unyielding determination to do his duty when thus confronted by a great crisis. VII Theodore Roosevelt. When I saw Mr. Cleveland for the first time after the accession of Mr. Roosevelt to the Presidency, he spoke with great freedom of his association with him. With many of President Roose- velt's characteristics he was in strong sympathy, but the one fact that struck me during my interview and has since stood out in my memory was his recognition of a quality or gift which it took the American people many years fully to learn and to understand. This point was emphasized by him then and in many subsequent talks, as the trait in question became more and more strongly developed. From them all, I extract the following declaration : Roosevelt is the most perfectly equipped and the most effective politician thus far seen in the Presi- dency. Jackson, Jefferson, and Van Buren were not, for a moment, comparable with him in this re- spect. When I was Governor, he was still a very young man and only a member of the Assembly: but it was clear to me, even thus early, that he was looking to a public career, that he was studying political conditions with a care that I had never GROVER CLEVELAND 251 known any man to show, and that he was firmly convinced that he would some day reach prominence. I must, however, confess that I never supposed that the Presidency would come within the scope of his aspirations so early in life. CHAPTER XVI CIVIL SERVICE REFORM IT is well known that, from the beginning of his public career, Mr. Cleveland took a firm stand in favor of reform in the Civil Service. Although not a mem- ber of the association in Buffalo devoted to the promo- tion of the merit principle, he was in touch with its ac- tive spirits. It was natural that training and ideas as well as common sense should make him friendly to any such movement. His relation to politics before his nomination as Governor in 1882 was local, but he aligned himself with the issue at the earliest oppor- tunity. It has generally been assumed that this alignment was first suggested by the Civil Service Reform Association, and I have before me the original inquiry of this body bearing date October 20, 1882, signed by George Wil- liam Curtis, John Jay, Everett P. Wheeler, and William Potts, as its committee, in which the opinions of the association were emphasized in a neatly engrossed letter of seven pages. Mr. Cleveland replied from Buffalo, under date of October 28, only a few days before the election, repeating the arguments set forth in his letter of acceptance issued three weeks earlier. 35s GROVER CLEVELAND 253 II Among the papers discovered in the house-cleaning pro- cess at No. 816 Madison Avenue, New York City, after his return from the White House, the following corre- spondence was found as well as some others unsus- pected. All of them were turned over to me, at the time, and put away with other Cleveland archives for future use or reference. Among others, we came across a letter of which the following is that portion pertinent to the subject under treatment: Elmira, October 2, 1882. Hon. Grover Cleveland. My dear Sir: I inclose you a letter which I have received from my friend Professor Fiske of Cornell LTniversity. It contains some suggestions which I think should be well considered. He is friendly to both you and me ; and I think it would be well as far as possible to follow his suggestions. I am per- mitted to send you the letter as I shall be unable to see you personally. Professor Fiske can do each of us great good, and I have no doubt will do so in case your letter of acceptance is satisfactory. I remain, Hastily but faithfully yours, David B. Hill. This covered a letter from the late Professor Willard Fiske of Cornell University, which is followed by the suggested draft of a paragraph for the letter of accept- ance : 254 RECOLLECTIONS OF Astor House, New York City, September 23 [1882]. My dear Mr. Hill: I congratulate you upon your nomination, and hope to be able, ten weeks from now, to congratulate you upon your elec- tion. This last can be rendered certain in one very simple way. There are — to put the figures low — twenty thousand voters in the State who are especially interested in the matter of a reform of the national civil service. This is, in fact, just now, their only interest in political matters. If Mr. Cleve- land's letter of acceptance (which, for obvious reasons, I trust will not be made public until after his competitor has com- mitted himself) contains a paragraph like the one I inclose^ (simply as a sample specimen),' you and he will secure not only these twenty thousand votes, but the help of three of the most influential Republican journals in the State. But there must be no mistake in the character of the utter- ances. They must show unmistakable sincerity, and they must show that Mr. Cleveland knows what he is talking about. All the politicians can use the phrase "civil service reform" with admirable glibness, but the twenty thousand reading and thinking men who have given study to this subject, can tell by a single sentence whether the speaker or writer had any honest opinion on the matter or not. There must be no vagueness and no exhibition of ignorance. 1 Suggested Draft of Paragraph for Letter: I am heartily in favor of a most thorough reform in the Nation's admin- istrative service — such a reform as shall give us officials in the civil branches of the government as devoted, as honest, and as well fatted for their duties as are the officers of the military branch. I believe that the lower grades of the civil service should be filled by the most intelligent youth of the land, selected by means of honestly conducted and thorough competitive examinations, which shall be freely open to the sons of all classes of citizens ; that these, as they acquire the necessary training, shall be promoted by merit to the higher grade ; and that the tenure of all such offices as are filled by appointment shall be, as in every other business, during good behavior; so that, in this manner, the service may be speedily purified and rendered efficient. I am unalterably opposed to the system of appointment by favoritism, or through partizan influences, as I also am to the levying of assessments for partizan purposes upon the employees of the government — a body of men whose plain duty is the service of the whole people and not that of any political body. GROVER CLEVELAND 255 This suggestion, if carried out, will not lose you a single vote in the Democratic party. It will gain you, I believe and know, nearer thirty than twenty thousand Republican votes. Very truly yours, W. FiSKE. The Hon. D. B. Hill, etc.. etc., etc. Of course, neither Mr. Hill, the candidate for Lieu- tenant-Governor, nor Professor Fiske then knew that Mr. Cleveland would insist upon framing his own lan- guage, which, in his acceptance letter of October 8, was as follows : Subordinates in public place should be selected and retained for their efficiency, and not because they can be used to ac- complish partizan ends. The people have a right to demand, here, as in cases of private employment, that their money should be paid to those who will render the best service in return and that the appointment and tenure of such places should depend upon ability and merit. The system of levying assessments, for partizan purposes, on those holding office or place, cannot be too strongly con- demned. Through the thin disguise of voluntary contribu- tions, this is seen to be naked extortion, reducing the com- pensation which should be honestly earned and swelling a fund used to debauch the people and defeat the popular will. After more than a quarter of a century's delay, it is interesting to record the fact that Grover Cleveland and David B. Hill were in perfect accord upon the suggestion made by Professor Fiske. It carries with it a sense of doing justice to both. That they should have united in recognizing both the right and policy of Civil Service Reform, and have been among the earliest of the influ- 256 RECOLLECTIONS OF ential members of their party to see its importance, is certainly creditable to them and has had far-reaching results in promoting the idea and the policy behind it. Ill It lies wholly beyond my purpose to deal historically with the purely public record and policy of Mr. Cleveland, as President, so far as the enforcement of the Civil Ser- vice laws is concerned. These are well typified by the removal of an office-holder of the party opposed to him for "ofifensive partizanship" and of one of his own ap- pointees for "pernicious activity"— phrases which have passed into the political nomenclature of the time. His close watch over even the smallest places when they bore a relation to the enforcement of the law, whether in spirit or letter, is no less familiar. Those who came near to him knew that there was no office, within the classified service, so unimportant that he refused to in- vestigate a charge made by a responsible person, or even by a meddling body. His insistence upon the four-year tenure for officials, and also his care in looking after details, are well illus- trated by the following letter : Executive Mansion, Washington. September ii, 1887. Dear Sir: I have examined the papers relating to the Morristown post-office and am glad to see that there is apparent unanimity in support of a good man for the place. On the question of the removal of the present incumbent, I am not so clear. The allegations are quite general in their character, and do not relate very distinctly to such conduct, GROVER CLEVELAND 257 though some things are charged which I hy no means approve. No charge is made impeaching his efficiency or fitness in the discharge of his duty. I mean the mere office work between him and his patrons. He has been there a long time and has been permitted to remain thus far under this administration. His term expires in about four months. I suggest that our good friends be advised not to insist upon a removal in the present condition of the case. Yours very truly, Grover Cleveland. Thomas Spratt, Esq. IV Mr. Valentine P. Snyder, now president of the Na- tional Bank of Commerce in New York, was, during- the first Cleveland administration, one of the confiden- tial associates in Washington of Daniel Manning, Sec- retary of the Treasury, and Conrad N. Jordan, then United States Treasurer. In the course of his work he was assigned by the Secretary to make a careful inves- tigation of the record and character of an official high up in the service and with large responsibility. The case had been put oflf from time to time until Mr. Snyder was finally directed to make the inquiry, and to submit his report, with the assurance that it would be final. As he went deeper and deeper into it, he found that the suspected official had the strongest support from one of the President's most intimate personal friends. When the work was done and the report nearly ready, Mr. Snyder, not knowing the President very well, told the Secretary that he hesitated to go to the extreme lest he might either be offended or disavow the proposed 17 258 RECOLLECTIONS OF action; so, at his own suggestion, he went over to the Executive Mansion to lay the matter before the Presi- dent. The whole situation was carefully explained and all questions answered, when the personal element was finally developed. When doubt was expressed lest this might be permitted to interfere with the action of the department, the President rose to his feet on the other side of the table from Mr. Snyder, and bringing his fist down with all the emphasis of which he was capable, said: Snyder, I want you to understand that you are to pursue this matter to its remotest consequences. If you find that summary dismissal is right and proper, make your report to this efifect, and I will stand by you to the end. No personal interest on my part, or that of anybody else, shall be taken into account when the public service is in question. After this the man at the White House was no longer an enigma at the Treasury Department. In addition to the usual agencies for forming public opinion, there sprang up in the larger cities bodies known as Civil Service Reform Associations. In those days they were composed mainly of rich young men and the college graduates who, in that seemingly remote, primitive period, found this a way to enter what they thought was politics. So they assumed in these cases, as their special function, the execution of the new merit laws, then recently enacted, and to which the two Presidents, Arthur and Cleveland, to whom they owe their faint beginnings and their final success, had GROVER CLEVELAND 259 given the most sympathetic attention. Neither of them ever failed or refused to Hsten to any complaint that might be made. But this did not always satisfy the zeal of the young men in question, to whom the words "mole-hill" and "mountain" were synonyms. No matter how careful an official might be in making removals of offensive parti- zans, or incompetents, or the mere deadwood, from the public service, or how honest he might be in filling their places under the system of examinations, these volun- tary associations— "these fool friends of Civil Service Reform," as Mr. Cleveland sometimes called them— would take up the smallest grievance of some useless person, and give it the public dignity of a formal charge against the responsible official. It was the policy of the President to insist upon an open investigation of these charges, however trifling they might be, by the Civil Service Commission: then, and through his first administration, a body with a Re- publican majority. I cannot recall that any one of these investigations, thus promptly and honestly made, re- sulted in establishing the alleged violations of the law, a fact which, in and of itself, gave the President and his attachment to the principle new strength with the coun- try. In a special way, it brought his appointees much closer to him, because it demonstrated that they had obeyed the law, in the spirit as well as in the letter. It strengthened their hands in their own communities and especially with the President himself. VI Towards the middle of the second administration it was necessary to procure a stenographer and assistant 26o RECOLLECTIONS OF secretary for the Executive Mansion, to take the place of Robert Lincoln O'Brien, who had resigned. He was to be attached to the President, both as stenographer and as a sort of social secretary — one of the most confiden- tial of places. This grade of office having been included in the classified service, it was concluded that instead of a new applicant, a picked man from one of the depart- ments should be found and transferred to the Executive Office. Various names were canvassed and inquiries made as to the fitness of their owners for a post of such delicacy. A near friend of the President, Robert A. Maxwell of New York, who was then Fourth Assistant Postmaster-General, reported that he had in his office a young man of unusual qualities and fitness. He re- ported that he could recommend him thoroughly for the place, and although he would part with his subordinate with great regret, he would let him go if it were deemed a necessity. The name of the young man in question was George Bruce Cortelyou. After the matter had been fully can- vassed by the parties in interest as employers, it was mentioned to the subordinate, so that he might know what was expected of him and also that he might accept or decline, as he saw fit. During the campaign for the nomifiation of a Republican candidate for the Presi- dency before the Minneapolis Convention of 1892, Mr. Cortelyou, on this his first appearance in national poli- tics, was stenographer and secretary to L. T. Michener, formerly Attorney-General of Indiana and the official manager of the interests of President Harrison, who was a successful candidate for renomination. The dis- covery was soon made that the strange young man, al- though new to politics, was watchful in the matters con- fided to him, intelligent in dealing with the missions Confidential Steii GEORGE B. CORTELYOU jrapher to President Cleveland. First Secretarj- of Com, PostmasterGeneral. and Secretary of the Treasury GROVER CLEVELAND 261 upon which he was sent, competent in the discharge of his duties, and, in pohtical management, most vital of all, discreet and close-mouthed. These qualities, united with an intimate association runnins: over a considerable period, made the two men close friends, with the result that the younger man went one day to the older for advice. He told the story already narrated and said that he would probably be called upon, in a few days, to decide whether or not he w^ould accept the transfer to the Executive Mansion as confidential stenographer to the President. "You know, General," he said, "that I have always been a strong Republican, and, as the President is a Democrat, I naturally hesitate to take this place, lest if some impor- tant executive secret should leak out, it might be dis- agreeable for me, in spite of my own innocence and of any precautions that I might take. I should like your advice on this question, which may easily become to me an important, and even a vital, one." General Michener replied: "Well, Cortelyou, I can understand your hesitation, but if I were in your place, I should put it entirely aside. This transfer may be a turning-point in your career. If you go to the White House it will carry with it many unexpected opportuni- ties for contact with public men and events. I '11 tell you what to do. Accept the position thus tendered, and when a convenient opportunity presents itself make the same representations to the President that you have made to me, and leave the decision of the question to him." This advice was followed, and the second or third time that the confidential stenographer found himself seated with the President, ready for his work, he faith- fully repeated to him the speech already rehearsed to 262 RECOLLECTIONS OF his friend and no doubt many times to himself. The President, probably somewhat nettled by the interrup- tion, turned rather sharply and said : 'T don't care any- thing about your politics: all I want is somebody that is honest and competent to do my work." VII As a sequel to this story, to his dying day, Grover Cleveland never failed to recognize and to express the interest and confidence he felt in the young man thus introduced to him and whose rise was to be so rapid. During the exciting campaign of 1904, when the latter was Chairman of the National Republican Committee, and, in this capacity, came in for a great deal of severe criticism, Mr. Cleveland said to me with an evident feel- ing of sadness : "Nobody can ever make me believe that Cortelyou would do anything which was not honorable in the highest degree. Now, you mark my words," he continued, "before two years you will find out that Cortelyou is not the man responsible for the things for which he is now criticized." When the revelations of the insurance investigation came to light, I was repeat- edly reminded by Mr. Cleveland of his earlier predic- tions, couched in the old-fashioned form, "Did n't I tell you so?" At every point in his career, he was the firm sup- porter of the ideas of a reformed Civil Service, and yet he was far from approving the attitude of many of its professed friends. He always insisted that, so long as the system of party government prevailed in local con- cerns, it would not be possible to command the com- plete and perhaps logical merit service known only in GROVER CLEVELAND 263 England. He believed that it was as honorable in a man to aspire to be postmaster of his town as to desire the Presidency, a governorship, or any other office of great dignity. He felt, too, that a true merit system would never be established while one party was kept so long in power that its devotees believed they had a sort of divine right to the offices and that members of the other were really incompetent. For this reason, if for no other, he was confident that his advent to power came at a vital time in the history of the merit movement, and that, in spite of the unjust criticism to which he had been subjected, he had been able to render it great service by breaking up the tradition that only the adherents of one party were fitted to carry on the affairs of Government. VIII In speaking of Mr. Cortelyou and his rapid promotion, there was. in Mr. Cleveland's attitude something more than mere personal admiration. He insisted that this ability to rise from the foot of the Civil Service ladder to almost the highest dignity in our society was the highest tribute that could be paid to the merit system itself, and he was especially proud that it could be so illustrated within a few years after it had been inau- gurated. He was of opinion that it even surpassed the work- ings of the system in England, whence we were sup- posed to have derived it. There the Civil Service, both at home and in the crown colonies and dependencies, was filled, in the lower grades and in the higher respon- sible places of a permanent character, with men who 264 GROVER CLEVELAND had started with only the aid of a competitive examina- tion, but he could not recall, he said, an instance in which men had climbed up, whether rapidly or steadily, from the start until they had reached the highest Cabi- net honors. He argued from this, single example though it was, that we were likely to carry the merit system at least this step higher than i1? had gone in England, and thus demonstrate our ability fully to adjust it to our pecu- liar ideas and institutions and to make it, in its turn, a higher model for adoption or imitation in other coun- tries where the idea has not yet taken firm root. CHAPTER XVII PUBLIC PATRONAGE IN his relations with the members of his Cabinet, dur- ing both administrations, Mr. Cleveland gave that confidence so necessary in order to assure good work. He was thus able to command that respect and especially that frankness without which it was impossible to do anything with or for him — he had a genuine hatred for obsequiousness. No man that I have known had less use for flatterers or flattery. He wanted advice —no man could be more keenly solicitous for it— but it must be honest and open, otherwise it was not worth the giving and certainly not worth the taking. He not only sought this kind of help from individual members of his Cabinets, but he crossed the lines of departments and asked the opinion of one official about the work of the other, but only when it dealt with a gen- eral policy. In the purely local concerns of each de- partment, he never invited or permitted interference, nor did he have to deal with that inter-Cabinet log-roll- ing policy in which Tickle me, Davy, tickle me true, And in my turn I '11 tickle you too 265 266 RECOLLECTIONS OF so tends to become the settled product of many national and State administrations. He kept so close a grip upon all the Federal patronage that any attempts of this kind would surely have been discovered by him. He would often give as much attention and infinitely more time to some insignificant fourth-class post-office — not paying a salary of more than a few hundred dol- lars—than to one in a first-class city or to the most im- portant collectorship of a port. With him, in the matter of patronage, as in everything else, it was the principle involved and not the rank of the place, or the salary it commanded. He was as likely to resent the intrusion of a Senator, or a member of Congress, or a committee- man, in the filling of some apparently insignificant place as in the most important. He insisted that he did this because in the one case he must depend upon one or per- haps two men, while in the other he could get aid or opinion from a hundred different directions. A mis- take, in the one case, would not at once reveal itself, but would produce a dissatisfaction which could but fester or lie dormant for a time, only, in the end, to hurt the government service all the more, while public opin- ion, in respect to the larger place, would find a hundred vents which would be used at once. II Nor did he stand upon rank or dignity in getting in- formation about any question which was before him and deserved his attention. If he found that some assistant, or head of a bureau or division, knew a mat- ter better than his Cabinet adviser, he would cut all red tape and, instead of requesting that such a man write a GROVER CLEVELAND 267 report on the case for submission to him, he would invite him over to the Executive Mansion and thresh it out face to face. Many of the most interesting stories that came to my knowledge while in Washington, as well as from meeting men through the succeeding years, were told me by men of this type. He at once put them at their ease, and showed them that he wanted real help from them, and not mere smooth words which might flatter him or his official advisers. The result of this frankness was that, without going behind anybody, or keeping himself hid away, he was always able to com- mand the advice he needed, and that of the best. Many a man holding a minor position was retained or pro- moted merely because he showed himself really helpful, and no effort of a politician or member of Congress could induce him to remove such an official. Working slowly, but without rest, having a peculiarly retentive memory of those with whom he came in contact, he would make the most careful inquiries in all proposed removals and see to it that men of the type described did not suffer, whatever their politics or however strong the pressure. While the patronage system under which he had to work made it necessary for him to consult thousands of advisers, both official and voluntary, he had a gift, in making appointments, for building up the government service rather than a personal machine for Congress- men or members at whose request the appointment was made. At no time in our recent history, perhaps in none since our earliest days, have so few politicians been able to use the patronage for keeping themselves in power, or some opponent out. In spite of his strong, assertive character, he was a born discourager of fac- tion. Nor would he have been able to learn even the 268 RECOLLECTIONS OF rudiments of how to use the Federal offices for his own purposes. A postmaster or other official might or might not approve his policies— although the natural effect of this indifference and independence was in general to command support, because the whole was based upon devotion to principles rather than to men. Ill Judge Alton B. Parker sends me the following inter- esting story of his own experience with Mr. Cleveland: Early in Mr. Cleveland's first administration as President, he sent for me, and I went post-haste to Washington, going to his office in the morning, where I found him alone and at work. He said : "I have sent for you because I want you to take the position of First Assistant Postmaster-General." I was very much surprised, but, fortified by the rule which I had laid down at the beginning of my professional career not to ac- cept public office outside of the line of my profession, I said to him: "I thank you, Mr. President, but I do not want it." His reply was : "I did not suppose you would want it. I sent for you and asked you to take it because I think you can perform the duties of that office as I would like to have them per- formed and that you will. Perhaps," he continued, "you may not regard the office as of sufficient importance to warrant your acceptance." He then gave me his view of the responsibilities of the posi- tion, and added : "I have been sent here through the party and by the people to render a public service, and the men who con- tributed in sending me here ought to make sacrifices for the purpose of making the administration of affairs under my incumbency all that the people would have." I said to him : "You misunderstand me, Mr. President. You have paid me the greatest compliment of my life, and notwithstanding my rule not to have to do with any public office outside of pro- fessional bounds, I should feel obliged to accept it were it not GROVER CLEVELAND 269 that I have a wife and children dependent upon me. At this time of my hfe I cannot throw up the larger income for the smaller one on their account." At this juncture Postmaster-General Vilas came in, and the President said to him : "Parker won't come." This an- nouncement was gratifying- to the Postmaster-General, whose candidate for the position for some time had been Adlai E. Stevenson, afterwards Vice-President. IV After his second election, which had been achieved as the result of his devotion to sound finance and in spite of the efforts, often personal and malignant, of its op- ponents, he was advised by many friends to adopt the policy of "thorough" in the matter of appointments. Some went so far as to insist that no man with the silver taint, even in its mildest form, should be preferred for so much as the smallest place. He refused even to con- sider such a policy. "What you advise may seem natural enough," he always insisted, "in view of our political history and practice, but its adoption would be fatal. We have suc- ceeded, thus far, because we have made our appeal to an enlightened public sentiment, and we cannot look for the 'permanent advance of sound ideas if we now abandon this policy and attempt to reach our ends by means of spoils. Besides, it would be unjust to thou- sands of men who, believing honestly though mis- takenly, as we are convinced, in free silver, have, never- theless, voted to put us into power again in spite of the avowed opinions of the men for whom they voted. No, if our cause must be maintained or strengthened by means of patronage, somebody else than I will have to do it." 270 RECOLLECTIONS OF Accordingly, he made no inquiries about the financial opinions of those appointed to places in the second ad- ministration. Besides, he gave rather more freedom to members of Congress in the making of appointments than had been the case from 1885 to 1889. This was due, for one reason, to the fact that many of these had been associated with him for a time and were, at least, presumably, more directly identified with his ideas and policies than had been true in the first instance. Then, he was confronted by issues which meant life and death, and so, neither time nor strength permitted him to give that attention to details which had formerly character- ized him. There was no letting up in principle in the matter of the reformed Civil Service, but, from neces- sity, more confidence was reposed in the great mass of men who had come to the front within the intervening eight years. He did not, I feel sure, foresee the temporarily untoward effects of this policy. All through the infected silver areas of the West a considerable number of members of Congress had been returned — carried into place by the Cleveland wave as it swept everything along before it. As the panic of 1893 and its resulting depression began to afifect public sentiment, these new men, many of them ill trained and worse equipped, joined in the wild clamor for free silver. In the meantime, they had filled many offices with their chosen appointees — prac- tically all of them opposed to the financial ideas and policies of the President. By 1895, many of these political accidents had been retired from Congress, so that, from this time forward, GROVER CLEVELAND 271 they became open enemies rather than insincere but pro- fessed supporters. In that year, too, they had strength- ened their hold upon the party machine, which inckided hundreds, perhaps thousands, of the local postmasters and other minor Federal officials. These became the avowed advocates of free silver, with all the isms in- cluded in this policy, and it was they, men appointed to place by Mr. Cleveland, who furnished the dry and plentiful powder set off at Chicago in 1896 by Richard P. Bland and William Jennings Bryan, both of whom, it was generally believed, had, with conscious delibera- tion, used the patronage granted them by a Democratic President for organized opposition to all that he and the traditions of his party meant. Both Mr. Cleveland and Colonel Lamont used to tell how Mr. Bryan haunted the Executive Mansion and the departments in his search for patronage. VI In spite of the untoward results of this experiment, Mr. Cleveland insisted to the end that he had made no mis- take, that his friends were wrong and he was right. He believed that the whole question had to be fought out, that any temporizing with the patronage, or at- tempt to use it, would have either reacted at once upon the country, because opposed to all his professions and those of the administration, or would have promoted a tendency to compromise. In his view, one policy would have been as fatal as the other, while, by standing firmly for all the principles the party had espoused, it was merely a question of time when the country could again be brought to the support of sound, conservative opin- ions and tendencies. 272 RECOLLECTIONS OF When this came, although it had involved temporary defeat, perhaps even the final break-up of a great party, he still believed that even this result was better than for financial ideas to remain crude and dangerous and the country to be put continually into peril from such heresies. In his view, it was far better that this fate should come to a party, for a time, than to have the dial on the clock of progress put back by the entire abandon- ment of the reformed Civil Service, which had made such rapid strides during the preceding quarter of a century. VII His Friends and the Offices. Among those who came nearest to him, Mr. Cleveland had the reputation of disliking applications for places from his friends, and it came to be a sort of understanding, even if not a proverb, that if you wanted anything in the way of favor the very worst way in the world to get it was to do something for the President or to get into close relations with him. He could never get into his mind why the man whose position or outlook in his business or profession was good should ever think, for a moment, of taking a subordinate or appointive office. He was prone to overlook, though he never belittled or forgot, the service which such men might give him as well as the Government. As a result, the chances were that if one of his friends sought a place, or was willing to take one, and there were two or three other candidates, he would prefer one of the latter. It will be recalled that his original Cabinet did not contain a man with whom he was intimate, and of these, all of whom became friends — as did everybody that came into close relations with him — none was pre- GROVER CLEVELAND 273 ferred for appointment into the second Cabinet, and only- one, Mr. Bayard, for a place of any kind. The same was true in respect to the assistant secretaryships, the heads of bureaus and divisions, the law officers and advisers, and officials selected for responsible places in the Custom-House, Internal Revenue, Department of Jus- tice, Post-Office, and all through the Government. In no important instance did he reappoint the man of his first choice to the same place in the second Cabinet, and in only a small number of cases were such men given any official recognition at all. In most instances, how- ever, these men, from Cabinet officers through the whole gamut, were accorded a recognition much higher than new preferment: they became confidential advisers not only about their own successors, but on the patronage policy to be carried out in the States or communities with which they were most familiar. VIII If Mr. Cleveland had in his mind any general principle on these questions, it was this, which condenses many- conversations on the subject : If I have friends and they are real ones, both I and the public service need and will have their assist- ance and advice in a way which will enhance their position in the community in a far greater degree than any official place, where the tendency is to nar- row rather than to extend influence and responsi- bility. He always insisted that, from the personal point of view, the average local office was in no way a real pro- motion for the man who was successfully established 18 274 RECOLLECTIONS OF in profession or business, while, in many cases, it was doing him an injury to prefer him for an appointive office with a short and uncertain tenure. He further emphasized the point, never out of his mind, that, from the pubhc view, he had no right to appoint men to office as a reward for service to him. "By the accident of nomination and election," he would say, ''I am President, but I was first a private citizen, which I shall become again when my term is over, so that it would be an unfair exercise of tempo- rary power for me to use it for such purposes. It would, no doubt, be easier for me, personally, to go along the line of least resistance and ■ choose the men I know, rather than to pass a great number of men through the crucible in order to get one who will represent the best obtainable under perfectly free and fair conditions ; but I simply cannot do a thing merely because it is easier, when it may not represent what I think is right." On a day during the last winter of his life, in his Equitable offices, when in one of his reminiscent moods, he surprised me by saying: Parker, it has always been said that it was some- thing of a drawback to a man, if he wanted anything, to have been one of my friends, and I guess that, in some respects, this judgment was about right. Continuing, he explained: I simply could not bring myself to the point of using the public service, or of being open to the charge of using it, for personal ends. It would, however, be unjust to accuse me of discriminating against my friends, as my record shows, but I should rather a thousand times go to my grave with the GROVER CLEVELAND -/o reputation I have g"ained in this respect than to have had anybody say, with truth, that I had used official patronage for the payment of private debts. IX Of nothing in all his public career, whether in State or nation, was he prouder than of the character of his appointments. The making of them was very disagree- able work: but he never shirked it. He did seriously object to many methods used in seeking places. Of all things, he abhorred delegations, a crowd coming to im- press him with the virtues of a single man who was a candidate for any given office, perhaps one of compara- tive unimportance. He had small sympathy with the method that made a swan out of every neighborhood goose, simply because the goose was to be presented for a public office. He often expressed surprise at the general success of our patronage system, considering the unwonted and unnecessary pressure brought to bear, and always pointed to it as one of the potent illustrations of our sys- tem of society and government that, left to themselves, without fear or favor, men were compelled to work out their own political salvation. While it fell to him to establish the merit system upon enduring lines, both in the Government and in public opinion, he had small use for the men who, holding re- sponsible positions representing the policy of a party or an administration, insisted upon retaining their places when new men with opposing ideas came into power. He generally managed to make short shrift of such applicants for retention when their cases came 276 RECOLLECTIONS OF before him for decision. At the same time, he would take a firm stand in favor of some man in whom recog- nized efficiency and personal modesty stood out as sturdy virtues. In his second administration, he could not move quickly enough to displace some of the men who, as he thought, had used Democratic or personal influence to keep themselves in office under President Harrison. If one did not know and recognize his almost infinite ca- pacity for detail, astonishment would ensue over the fact that he could remember these cases, or that, remem- bering, he would go to the trouble of removing one member of his party, originally chosen by him under a laborious system, when he must undergo the same tire- some process in choosing his successor. But this was his way, not for personal, but for public reasons. Taking it all in all, no President of the United States in our generation gave so much time or conscience to the patronage incident to his office, or hated it more, or, on the whole, was more successful in getting fairly good results. He expected his officials to represent his methods and policies and those of the party behind him — to deal fairly and openly with their part of the public — and yet he refused to use his power even to promote his tariff and financial ideas — a policy which, in the opinion of many of his warmest friends and supporters, was responsible for his own betrayal and the disruption of his party in 1896. The Cleveland Democrats. Few men in political life have shown the intense interest in their own appointees that Mr. Cleveland did during his first term in the GROVER CLEVELAND zyy Presidency, or have lield them to a closer, more clearly understood responsibility. It was seldom, indeed, that an appointment was made without something of a contest. The long exclusion from power of the party whose ideas and policies were again brought to the front had had two effects. In the first place, it had produced a good supply of men firmly convinced of their ability to carry on the duties of an important place, and of the fact that the party and the country were, to a large de- gree, dependent upon them for their success; on the other hand, the members of the party, outside of the South, had had little settled experience in public admin- istration. Where this opportunity had presented itself in a few States, it was fitful and uncertain. These con- ditions made necessary the greatest care, and the new President was so constituted that he could not turn over the patronage in given districts or States, in a wholesale way, to a group of legislators or committeemen. As an effect, there was never any lack of competitors for important places, so that, as the representatives or friends of each came before him, they made a distinct impression upon his mind. He not only watched their official work and kept in touch with their relations to their own communities, but he was continually getting from them information as to public and party sentiment, learning from a brief conversation, or a letter, the writ- ing of w-hich was rather encouraged, or through the medium of his private secretary. Colonel Lamont, what he most wanted to know. XI The fact should not be overlooked that we are here dealing wath a President who was more of a politician 278 RECOLLECTIONS OF than the public has yet realized— one whose hand was always on the pulse of opinion through thousands of voluntary and intelligent agents. He was both suffi- ciently industrious and absorbed in his work and re- sponsibility to learn and know his business in all its details. If a member of Congress or a committeeman of any grade was consulted, he soon found that the friendly or suggested appointee was not his own agent, but that of the Government of the United States first, and then of the party in power, and that the same commanding personality was the head of both. Besides, he had a way of making an appointment to suit himself, and then impressing upon a Senator or Representative the fact that it would perhaps conduce to his peace of mind .if he gave his indorsement to a man of such claims and parts. Even to these men it was vital not to seem to lose influence in their neighbor- hoods. A Senator from Ohio thus found himself giving written indorsements for the appointment of men whom he hated, because, as he well knew, they would oppose his ambitions and weaken his power at every turn. But control over the agents of the Federal power, or watchfulness, did not stop with getting from them ad- vice or help, or knowledge of the conditions by which they were surrounded. The President kept in close touch with their way of wielding the power lodged in their hands. It was only natural that a great party excluded from power and influence, long in control, and having access to the newspapers and all other forms of expressing public opinion, should view with a jealous eye the actions of their rivals, who, as they had been claiming for years, had no capacity for carrying on the affairs of a great and complicated government. GROVER CLEVELAND 279 XII All these influences contributed to give Mr. Cleveland a relation to the public service larger than that of any other President in our history. As a result of the care exercised in selection, and the authority conferred, these men themselves came to occupy, for the time, more than the ordinary prominence incident to their offices. They enjoyed the real support as well as the reflected authority inherent in the highest executive office, and that within their own places, and the Presi- dent treated them with a consideration seldom seen in our political life. They were more than official advisers working at a distance — they occupied a personal relation which made them feel that they were a component part in a great national movement and that, through it, they were contributing to the execution of large policies. When the administration came to an end in 1889, ^^ had, in an official way, drawn together a unique body — men of a type who, distributed throughout the whole country, were moved by the same ideas and inspired by the same purposes. They were not allied to the pro- fessional official class. Few bosses — that is, men with no idea except the use of brute force as the incident of party power — had been developed among them. In the main, they were not looking for reappointment to pub- lic office. W^ithin a year after retirement they had gen- erally come to the front as presidents or directors of banks, trust companies, insurance companies, and in other fiduciary relations, and gradually found their way into railroad companies and the largest business life of the time. Here they found themselves in an enlarged 28o RECOLLECTIONS OF sphere of influence and developed both the willingness and the power to promote the great movement which culminated in the selection of Mr. Cleveland in 1892, and, later, were the very focus and centre of the cata- clysm which, four years later, was to overwhelm and engulf the forces of disorder and the advocates of na- tional dishonor. Never before had so many men, engaged in the na- tional public service, found such appreciation or under- standing by their chief as had these Federal office-holders under the first Cleveland administration. Whoever or wherever they were, they maintained a relation to their head quite as intimate as if they were all still in power and office. In the one case, as in the other, the majority seldom saw Mr. Cleveland, but the mails were always open, and he was constantly in communication with many of them concerning the state of public sentiment on the great questions of the day. He was always show- ing an interest in their personal prosperity as well as in the public work they were doing. A man of prominence from a State or large city could not be with him for a few minutes without finding him- self plied with questions about friends and followers in the neighborhood — those who had been associated with him. It was never the interest of the mere managing politician, seeking to strengthen his own lines, but the friend, really involved from the personal as well as from the comprehensive public point of view. When one of them would come into the public eye as a candi- date for some State office, or for some conspicuous ser- vice in business, or manifested an unusual public spirit, he was very likely to hear from Mr. Cleveland with a short letter of congratulation or thanks. GROVER CLEVELAND 281 The inevitable result was that this man, so deeply interested on the human side, with none of the arts of the demagogue or of the selfish, scheming politician, rapidly built up. all unconsciously to himself, an almost perfect personal influence. It was an exhibition of that gratitude for favors received which gave the lie to the proverbial definition of this quality. When the time came for political action — and it was never absent — it would not have made the least difference, so far as party sentiment was concerned, whether Mr. Cleveland had or had not cared to be again nominated and elected President. It was known that he was more than indif- ferent, that he was even opposed to the plans of his friends, but this could not have been permitted to weigh in the balance when opposed to the wishes, the demands, and the concentrated power of an expanding circle of friends and supporters in every State, county, and city the country over. XIII From this point of view, the second administration can- not be compared with the first. Desirous though the President was to give the same close attention to the personnel of appointments, it was impossible to do so. From its earliest days the administration was confronted with almost every peril that can menace public authority —even to civil and foreign, war. Nothing but the most unremitting attention and the most prompt and cour- ageous action could avert national calamity. It was a period in our history when all the bad ele- ments seemed to be thoroughly in accord. An entailed panic and depression, for which the country had made 282 RECOLLECTIONS OF only the smallest preparation, had produced hardships of the most serious character. It was necessary to in- voke new or unused powers, not for the assertion of the rational authority of the Government, but for putting down real as well as threatened violence. The national credit was to be asserted and maintained, and the public honor preserved. Besides, many other discouraging forces were to be taken into account. Our boasted power of assimilating new and foreign elements was taxed to the limit of its capacity, some developments in the public mind were beginning to exercise an unwhole- some influence upon our population, and the spirit of Jingoism — which may be defined as patriotism run to seed — was to be found among the many new articles of importation from other countries. For these reasons — to which must be added the silver treachery— the personnel of the public service, in the subordinate offices, was not so strong as in the first ad- ministration, nor has it exercised anything like the same influence upon the currents of opinion. One evident rea- son is found in the fact that, even if it had had the same commanding ability and union, the practical dissolution of the Democratic party, at the close of the second ad- ministration, would have weakened its power. When men must kick down the ladders by which they have climbed to power they are not likely to have either dis- position or opportunity to make much of an impression upon the prevailing styles of architecture. It has been the fate of the distinctive Cleveland forces, from the days of 1896 downward, to give their attention to the work of keeping the structure which they had created from falling upon them and their neighbors. The cam- paign of 1904, while it continued, did, indeed, constitute something like a temporary relief, but its untoward result GROVER CLEVELAND 283 only served to show how serious the danger had been and how almost impossible the task of reconstruction seemed to be. XIV But, until the end, Mr. Cleveland manifested the keen- est interest in the great body of men who had followed, with such fidelity and tenacity, the leadership first devel- oped in 1876 and solidified in 1884. He had no doubts, no qualms of conscience, no regrets that he and these men had thus fought faithfully together during all the inter- vening vears. He still congratulated himself that he had represented what he thought to be one of the most ra- tional movements in the history of free government: the preservation of the people from their own excesses; and he often expressed the opinion that men more un- selfishly devoted to the good and wholesome had never been brought together. From a personal point of view, he deemed it the great- est pleasure of his life that, drawing men about him in a purely public way, so many of them had become his intimate friends. To the last, men strange to him in feature and often in name would find welcome at his home or his office simply because they made themselves known to him as faithful and devoted supporters of sound ideas of government. He took little credit to him- self—indeed, nothing like what he deserved— but this was in perfect keeping with his character. He looked upon the revival, at the close of the Civil War, of the party to w^iose principles he w^as so firmly attached, as the work of Horatio Seymour and Samuel J. Tilden ; and he regarded himself as the follower, to whom, in the chances of war and succession, had come the duty of 284 GROVER CLEVELAND taking up their work. So, while the forces and elements here described were known as Cleveland Democrats, it was a name given to a type which, in his opinion, was inherent in our free citizenship and essential, under whatever name or in whatever time they may live, to the maintenance of our institutions. CHAPTER XVIII ECONOMIC QUESTIONS IT was only natural that Mr. Cleveland, after his re- tirement from the Presidency in 1889, should, at the earliest opportunity, turn his attention to the study of questions of economy and finance. He felt the de- ficiencies of his early training in these subjects more keenly than in any other department of government— in reality, he soon saw that they included almost every other question. He was little given to the study of set treatises on any question— he had already reached the epigrammatic conclusion that ''it is a condition which confronts us— not a theory"— but went direct to the writings of the men who, from the earliest days of our history, had administered our fiscal laws. Nor did he set undue store by the experience of other countries, so far as their taxing, or banking and cur- rency, systems were involved. He recognized that, in order to influence our people, it was necessary to narrow the circle, to keep before them, at all times, our own experience. He always held that both the tariff reform battle and the contest against the free coinage of silver had been unnecessarily complicated by reaching out for foreign examples, thus involving the intrusion of wages 28s 286 RECOLLFXTIONS OF and prices, facts which, until we had entered actively into competition in manufactured products, were not wholly germane to the discussion. He believed our own periods of reasonable tariffs had so exemplified the doc- trines for which he contended that arguments drawn from other countries often tended to weaken the cause, by confusing a busy people. In like manner, he held that our own varied experi- ments in discredited paper money and in coins issued at more than their real value were sufficient, without re- quiring our people to take account of like failures in other countries at different periods of history. He was wholly out of sympathy with the doctrine, not even yet wholly abandoned, "What do we care for abroad?" but he felt that, even in our short history, we had committed about all the economic sins and accepted the whole round of fallacies to be found in the history of all the countries from which our people had been drawn. II So when, for the first time, he had comparative leisure on his hands, he began to read the writings and to study the lives of four or five of the men who had carried on our political experiment in the earlier days. He limited himself mainly to Washington, Hamilton, Jefferson. Madison, and Jackson. He did not pursue these studies in an academic way, but for a distinct and settled purpose. He had occasion to study Washington and his civil life because, in the course of the public demands made upon him, he must speak about him. Here, too, was a great personal as well as a public attraction. He had a deeper admiration GROVER CLEVELAND 287 for the first in the Hne of his predecessors than for any other man in history. In hke manner, he was led to the study of Hamilton, although he never made an address devoted to his character and services. To Jefferson he gave close attention for patriotic as well as partizan reasons. He was frequently called upon to make ad- dresses about our third President, and he also wrote a short introduction to his works — still unpublished, be- cause he deemed it inadequate. One of the first demands which I was called upon to meet, in my capacity as book-hunter, was to find for him Madison's "Debates of the Constitutional Convention," of which he made a careful study. As coming nearer to our own times and meeting conditions more nearly mod- ern — so far as fiscal questions were concerned — he was drawn to the actions, more than to the writings, of Jack- son. He returned continually to these statesmen, so that the opening of his second administration found him one of the best equipped of our public men in knowledge of the real fundamentals of political life. Ill It was not alone, however, to a study of the works of these men that this increased knowledge was due. He was continually coming into the closest touch with liv- ing men who had fairly mastered the facts and theories of financial discussion. Everything that was best of current thought, so far as men were concerned, came to him. The leading economists, specialists in their branches of study, were constantly seeking him out, or sending him their contributions, or reaching him. no less effectively, through his personal or political intimates. 288 RECOLLECTIONS OF While in this, as in other questions, he absorbed infor- mation slowly, it found sure lodgment in his capacious mind. He seldom interrupted his chosen studies by attention to extraneous questions. He found little time, during this period, for poetry, or fiction, or even the- ology — for which he had both an inherited and a culti- vated fondness. His lines had been cast for him, and he followed them with a fidelity seldom seen. It was always interesting to see how, without con- scious efifort, he was drawn to the men who had done good service in the maintenance of the gold standard, or of the public credit, and to note his opposition to those who, at any time, had surrendered to the financial delu- sions of the day. Party differences did not enter into account in these attractions and repulsions. Whether Democrats or Republicans , he equally admired those of the one type and distrusted those of the other. He w^as perhaps attracted to Mr. Tilden more by rea- son of his financial opinions and record than for any other cause, because he was rather repelled than at- tracted by some of the associations of this great leader ; but he always admired his consistent and intelligent de- votion to sound principles on the problems which absorbed so much of his thought and inspired so many of his acts. He used to say that the one great loss for w^hich the country had had to pay most dearly in the failure to inaugurate Mr. Tilden was the long time it took to enforce his sound ideas on fiscal questions. He believed that the strength and courage inherent in Mr. Tilden's character, united with his knowledge, would have averted the original silver legislation, and made it possible, as the result of large discussion and of wise, far-seeing measures, virtually to eradicate the greenback or fiat-money heresy, so that our whole financial policy SAMlhl. J. TIl.DliN Governor of New York. 1875-1876 GROVER CLEVELAND 289 would hot have been dictated hv a series of successful appeals to ignorant clamor and to the most dan.c^erous opportunism. In spite of this failure of justice, with its logical consequences, Mr. Cleveland emphasized his opinion that it was due to the teachings of Mr. Tildcn that these dangerous tendencies had finally been checked and the country put into the way of recovery from dan gerous diseases. When he came into public life himself, Mr. Cleveland was naturally drawn to the men who had done their full share of this sound educational and practical work on a vital question. Perhaps the one man whom he most esteemed in this respect was the late Joseph K. McDon- ald, who, in the early days of the first Presidential term, was still Senator from Indiana. Here were two men who, though meeting as strangers, had no difficulty in understanding each other. When most of the influential public men in tlie West, and especially those in Indiana — with the exception of Benjamin Harrison — had bowed down to the false gods of inflation and free silver, Mr. McDonald had never wavered for a moment. If there was anywhere in the land, in either party or in no party, a band of men de- voted to sound finance, Joseph E. McDonald could always be counted with them. He would sacrifice a senatorship, or take one against his own interest and inclination, or make a hopeless run for Governor of his State, or put himself into any other place, if only ho could do something to carry out his ideas. He would oppose any man, whatever his party, his alignment, or his position, or support another, if his opposition, in the one case, or his aid, in the other, would promote what he believed to be right. When, by association. Mr. Cleveland had learned all this, he insisted that, little as 19 290 RECOLLECTIONS OF the forgetful public recognized it, the victory for sound methods in the West was due more to the Indiana states- man than to all the other men of his section together. IV Never distinguished for forming close relations with his associates on the three Presidential tickets of which he was the head, Mr. Cleveland resented Mr. Hen- dricks's former compliant or compromising attitude towards financial heresies more than anything else in his record, and was, I am sure, more apprehensive in 1884 of attack upon the ticket for this delinquency than at any other point. While there was little opportunity, owing to Mr. Hendricks's death so early in the adminis- tration, for the formation of personal intimacies, I have strong doubts, resulting from my close association with both of them, whether or not anything more than the most formal or official relations would have been pos- sible. And this failure would have been due to a natural antagonism on these important questions, which, with Mr. Cleveland, were vital, while, with Mr. Hendricks, no less convinced in principle of their soundness as he was, they were subject to compromise. Personally fond of Allen G. Thurman, Mr. Cleveland could not understand or quite forgive the evasion shown in the celebrated Wooster speech, and he often expressed the belief that it was this which, with all his ability, his long service, and his general attachment to the prin- ciples of his party, had rendered it impossible for him to command either nomination or election as President. I have referred elsewhere to the foresight shown by Mr. Cleveland in overcoming any weakness that might GROVER CLEVELAND 291 have developed in the caiiipaij2:n of 1892 as tlie result of Mr. Stevenson's record on financial (|ucsti()ns in the then remote days of the i^rccnhack aj^^itation. Person- ally, he had an unusual fondness for his associate on tlic ticket of 1892, but this did not deter him for a moment from taking prompt steps to overcome an apprehended weakness on this question. In like manner, through the first administration, so far as its official side is concerned, the men who entered into such intimate personal relations as to become friends were Air. Bayard, Secretary of State, Mr. Lamar, Sec- retary of the Interior, Mr. Fairchild, his second Secre- tary of the Treasury, and Mr. Vilas, Postmaster-Gen- eral, who had never wavered in their attachment to sound, conservative financial ideas. All of these had sacrificed ambition or popularity as the result of their attachment to principle. So, all along down the line of partizan or political activity or interest, the men who had proved themselves faithful to their self-assumed trusts were able to command from the President the con- fidence and favor, not of patronage, but tliose belonging to advisers and friends. It was not alone to the members of his own party that these observations applied. In referring to some party opponent— even one who had fought him most valiantly and persistently— he would often say: ''But we must not forget his services to the cause of honest money." Antipathetic as the two men were. Mr. Cleveland would say this, time after time, when the late Senator Hoar's name would come up iov discussion. Drawn by many 292 RECOLLECTIONS OF qualities to George F. Edmunds — even when referring to their contest over the powers lodged in the Senate and the executive respectively — he would continually emphasize the firm attitude of the Vermont Senator towards the Specie Resumption Act and his unyielding opposition to inflation and free coinage. Perhaps the most conspicuous case of this was his judgment of the late John Sherman. He could never express too positively his opinion of the obligation of the country to the then Senator from Ohio. He once said to me, in about 1890, when the silver agitation was at its hottest — perhaps when the silver-purchase bill was under discussion: No man now in public life, certainly no Republi- can, has rendered a greater service to sound finance than John Sherman. Starting out wrong from every logical or safe point of view, embracing and defend- ing the worst heresies of the greenback agitation, surrendering to the supposed sentiment of the West and of his State, the time came when, by a careful study of the question in all its relations, he discov- ered that he had been misled. He did not hesitate, and so was not afraid to be called inconsistent. He deliberately set himself to undo the damage he had done, although in taking this step he did not, with the usual zeal of the convert, impugn the motives of those with whom he had been associated in belief and action, but went so thoroughly into the question that he could meet all their contentions with arguments based upon history and experience. He was, there- fore, enabled to exercise an influence perhaps all the greater because of his former activity on the other side. GROVER CLEVKLAXl^ 293 At this time and always Mr. Cleveland insisted that the so-called Sherman Law did not represent Mr. Sher- man's opinions. He himself was destined to wipe it off the statute-books, by the' aid of the Senator's vote, at the special session of Congress held early in his second term. When I saw him more than three years later, he said: "I always told you that John Sherman c^ave noth- ing but his name to the silver bill repealed in 1893. You see that I was right." VI So it was throughout Mr. Cleveland's public life. Nomi- nally, the chosen official representative of a party, and that, too, one in which each individual deemed it both a duty and a right to set up for himself, he was always at- tracted to and by the men who believed with him on these deep, underlying questions. It was not only that his own success was based upon devotion to these ideas, but that this attitude was the distinct cause of his success, which, in its turn, was, according to his conception of duty, to be turned to practical use in the greatest political movement carried through during his lifetime. Whatever may belong to him : honesty, earnestness, love for law and its limitations and for discipline — and his attachment in these w^as very deep— his final and greatest claim to fame must be the commanding services rendered to a stable standard of value and a sound currency system. The latter is not yet accomplished, but it will come, and when it does, much of the credit for it will belong to Grover Cleveland. 294 RECOLLECTIONS OF VII In the earlier stages of his public career, as in his life before entering politics, Mr. Cleveland had little oppor- tunity to study our system of general taxation. In his later days, he used to think and talk a good deal about it and lament the difficulties so apparent in our compli- cated political life. While his training, ideas, and in- stinct were strongly opposed to centralization, he was inclined to the belief that a far greater degree of it than we had ever seen, or even deemed possible, was certain to come, not from aggression on the part of some mythi- cal man on horseback, or because such a concentration of power was likely to be a necessity for the preservation of order, but for the far stronger reason that our taxing system was now divided into three parts. Federal, State, and local, and that, more and more, they tended to clash with each other. He was of opinion that, in course of time, the danger of double or treble, and thus of unjust and inequitable, taxation would be one of the incidents of our system. It is known that he was inclined to favor the laying of an income tax, in the fear that, otherwise, certain forms of property might escape their share of taxation, but said he had not considered deeply the claim that this form of tax is, in its practical workings, a burden on capital and thus a discouragement to thrift, rather than a levy upon income, as it purports to be. He signed the Income Tax Law of 1894, less because of his acceptance of the principle underlying it, than from a willingness and desire to have the question finally settled by the Su- preme Court of the United States. GROVER CLEVELAND 295 VIII To him, the question most vital, so far as the incidents of taxation were concerned, was the tendency, under our system of divided authority, to increase exjicnditures and debts beyond the Hmits of safety either to economic development or to public honesty, for, in his mind, a tax that was unnecessary was unjust, no matter liow or by whom levied. As all wealth was earned by tiie indus- try of the individual, and government was only a pr)lice agency, it exceeded its powers and impaired public morals when it raised more than was absolutely neces- sary for carrying on its functions. He often expressed the opinion that, as all our previ- ous contests for the establishment of liberty had re- volved around the levy of taxes, it was probable that the maintenance of this liberty in the future would take the form of questioning or limiting expenditures, and that, in order properly to assert this right, the whole question of taxation ought to be taken up, freed from partizan- ship, as well as from local prejudice or interest, and set- tled on the largest lines. IX Government by Commission. One of the interesting developments which I was privileged to see during my association with Mr. Cleveland was his relation to the Interstate Commerce Law, the appointment of the Com- mission, the workings of the resulting system, and the impressions made by the changes he liad seen in i)ublic sentiment about railroads. The demand for a Federal law regulating railroads had been increasing for many years; but the time was 296 RECOLLECTIONS OF not ripe for final action until the second year of his first administration, when, after a prolonged discussion of a high order in both Houses, the law was passed. All the elements and forces had been so thoroughly considered, that, when the principle had once been asserted, the whole question came before the President in a concrete form, and he was compelled to reach a conclusion upon it. As early in our acquaintance as the year after his first term, he began to express freely his opinion of the law and its workings. In many conversations, he explained the principle upon which he himself had acted. He averred that never in his public life had he felt more keenly the sense of responsibility cast upon him than when the bill enacting this law came before him for con- sideration in 1886. He entertained many doubts, not only about its practical workings, but of its constitu- tionality, apprehending that it might interfere with the rights and powers of the States, to which regulation had been limited. His professional work had made him so familiar with the practical operation of railroads that he realized, from the beginning and to the fullest extent, the tendency of commissions, whether Federal or State, to get away from regulation — always avowed as their sole purpose — into dictation, and thence into what he feared would be their logic, operation. In spite of these drawbacks, he felt that there were abuses and grievances which demanded correction, if they could be so reached that the remedy would not be worse than the disease. "After a careful study of the question," he often re- peated, "and in spite of reservations, I signed the bill. It was my intention to file a memorandum setting forth GROVER CLEVELAND 297 my doubts on constitutional points, and explaining my conception of its limitations. Upon further considera- tion it seemed best to assume responsibility and then to see that the new system started under the most favorable auspices." As he thought that the Commission should be essentially a judicial body, it was essential to find a chairman who would commend himself to the whole country. After canvassing the situation with great care, Judge Thomas M. Cooley of Michigan, who was in the prime of his powers and everywhere recognized not onlv as a wise judge but as a fair man, was chosen. He had the additional merit that he was conspicuously fitted for the post by reason of his knowledge of the questions entering into railroad construction and management. XI To the President's mind it was also vital that the Com- mission should be non-partizan, and that the chairman and his associates should be at once the most efficient and judicial-minded men whose services he could com- mand in such a work. He feared that it might be im- possible to induce Judge Cooley to accept, and he was relieved when he found that his doubts were not justi- fied. He then left the Commission free to inaugurate the system as it might seem best, refusing to interfere with its organization or management. "As a result of this caution," he said, in sul)stance, many times, "but mainly because the organization of the Commission satisfied the public, it started well. Rules were instituted on safe and conservative lines. An earn- est and successful efifort was made to discover the rela- tion of law to railroads and of railroads to law. whether new or old. Its powers were used with a prudence that 298 RECOLLECTIONS OF augured well for the future. It did not clash with the powers of the States; it was not partizan, either in or- ganization or direction; and did not meddle or assert authority not comprehended in its enactment or incon- sistent with the theory and workings of our institutions. It did not check enterprise or initiative, nor was it used by one interest against another." XII During the Presidential interim, Mr. Cleveland watched with interest the workings of the Commission and the principle of Federal regulation. He feared there was a strong tendency to assert an authority neither in- tended nor, in his view, wholesome, and, as vacancies occurred, he thought he saw a drift, perhaps uncon- scious, towards partizanship in the personnel of the body; more than all, he feared that, with a decline in character, the body might fall into the hands of men who could be used by an ambitious President or by the rail- road interests themselves. In his second term, so 'far as in his power, he pursued the original policy. Here, however, as in many other matters, the preservation of the public credit so absorbed his attention that he could not devote to details that at- tention which had so distinguished him from 1885 to 1889. He invoked only the powers granted by the inter- state commerce clause of the Constitution in order to put down threatened insurrection in Colorado and open violence in Chicago, still refusing to enter upon a policy of interference or anything which looked, even in a re- mote degree, to regulation beyond the watching or su- pervisory stage. GROVER CLEVELAND 299 XIII He always felt that the moment politicians or desicrninp: men were able to use the powers of government for llieir own purposes the country was inviting serious perils. To his mind it was very easy to do this under the plea that there is a popular demand for it, and he often ex- pressed the opinion that more harm had i)rohal)ly hccn done to society by men who have posed as "friends of the people" than even that which nuist be laid to avowed tyrants. This was especially the case, in his view, when executive authority was lodged in the hands of commis- sions, so far removed from popular power that their authority might be exercised at elections and through other methods of forming or influencing imblic opin ion. The trend towards government by commission wns a policy which he deplored and opposed— a fact which entered more into account than any other one element in his original fears about the Interstate Commerce Law. From the opening days of his public career, he had emphasized the existence of abuses by combinations of capital as well as by combinations of labor; but he dis- trusted outside bodies, without direct responsn)ility to the people, because they afforded new opportunities for serving the purposes of ambitious executives who might thereby be able to work their will in nominations and elections and thus perpetuate their own power or that of their parties. He did not believe it was ever intended that govern- ment should continually interfere with business. He ridiculed the fear of the traditional man on horseback, but was apprehensive lest the use by independent bodies of the authority of the executive, whether in nation or 300 GROVER CLEVELAND State, should enable them to concentrate into their hands the great enterprises of the country. To him, it was a serious thing that the high tariff system had been fixed upon our people — apparently with little hope of effective relief — and if to this wqvq added oversight and control by government of economic forces entering into pro- duction, exchange, and transportation, the resulting perils would tax to the utmost our patriotism, morality, and power of resistance. CHAPTER XIX WHAT A CLOSED ROOM REVEALED WHEN the first Presidential term ended and Mr. Cleveland went to New York to live, he took the house, No. 8i6 Madison Avenue, into which the family moved somewhat hurriedly. In doing this, the miscellaneous accumulations of four years in the Executive Mansion at Washington were deposited, pell- mell, in a large upper room, which was carefully locked against the time when an opportunity should present it- self for going over its contents, no clear knowledge of them existing except that they were of the most varied character. When, owing to the expiration of the lease, it hecame necessary, in 1892, to prepare for removal to another house, one of the things to be done was to clear this room. This process was dreaded and put off as long as possible, but when there was no chance for further delay I was asked to assist in the task. The family— and all the servants except the butler— were absent, and so Mr. Cleveland and I, beginning on the Monday before Easter, determined to give that week to the matter in hand. We began early, and as there were no union rules to regulate the hours of labor in the fastnesses ot Madison Avenue, the work went on uiuil a late hour. 301 302 RECOLLECTIONS OF At noon we would sally forth for luncheon in a little out- of-the-way restaurant over on Third Avenue, giving to this as little time as possible, because there lay behind us work that was so urgent that it could not be neglected or put off. II Upon unlocking the disused room into which had been thrown thousands of miscellaneous articles — the accu- mulations of all the years of active public life — drawn from every quarter under the sun, there was revealed the most surprising variety. Among them were gifts of a semi-public character, souvenirs of every variety and order — many of them articles voted to the most popular candidate for President at social, church, or charitable fairs. These included everything that human ingenuity could devise. The gold-headed canes, of which there were more than a dozen, were — after a few with personal or friendly associations had been put aside — sent as pres- ents to personal friends, my own share being one from a Masonic festival or like occasion in Kentucky. Then there were theatrical programs ; menus of ban- quets eaten long ago, but in which the President had had no part; music dedicated or sent to him, but probably never played or playable by anybody ; out-of-the-way ob- jects which had been sent either for sale or for begging purposes ; tickets and articles from every order of chari- table undertaking or venture ; itineraries or schemes for entertainment during his tour of the country; photo- graphs of scenery or events; and albums, plush boxes, portfolios, and like objects of great number and variety, all of which passed under our eyes and were disposed of according to the necessities of a private citizen who GROVER CLEVELAND 303 expected to live in an ordinary AnicM-ican house. Some sufficiently valuable were sent to friends, and if hy chance one was found with a sentimental relation to some one Mr. Cleveland knew, a place was made for it in the house. Ill Having dealt thus carefully with the objects furthest from personal interest, we came to the confidential corrc spondence and private papers, both in great variety. Of the former, much of it of historical value, it was impos- sible to rescue from destruction any considerable pn> portion, although several letters from Cabinet officers were handed over to me for the time of need, and have been of distinct use in preparing- these memoirs, not only in themselves, but by revealing the close relations which Mr. Cleveland held with official associates. There were letters from Mr. Bayard, Mr. Whitney, Mr. X'ilas. Mr. Lamar, and Mr. Garland, and I have printed some <>f these because they furnish estimates of my subject nnt otherwise obtainable. Generally speaking, Mr. Cleveland, full of sentiment as he was, did not permit it to operate where he was him- self involved. For instance, nothing in his own hand- writing seemed to have any interest for him, nor could he understand why it should have for anybody else. He consented, however, to let me keep, as a souvenir, the perfected draft, in his handwriting, of his annual me< sage to Congress in 1888, but scores of others, which ought to have gone to libraries and collections, where they would have found both use and esteem, were ruth- lessly destroyed in spite of the pathetic pleadings of his fellow-worker. 304 RECOLLECTIONS OF IV One of the most interesting revelations of the house- clearing process was a document which illustrated not only a phase of history but Mr. Cleveland's way of deal- ing with public concerns. During the first administra- tion, a question had been raised by the relations which Mr. Garland, the Attorney-General, had held, before appointment, to the telephone patents. The newspapers had been filled with it for a time, and, although it proved a mare's nest, the opinion was once prevalent in news- paper circles that it contained at least the potentialities of a real political scandal. When it came up in the Cabi- net, the conclusion was reached that some official expla- nation should be made by Mr. Garland, and it was agreed that he should prepare a statement, in the form of a letter to the President, to be made public as an authorized defense on the part of the administration. This was done, and we unearthed, in the long-locked room, the original of this document in the handwriting of the Attorney-General. But, as was not unusual with Mr. Cleveland, he was not satisfied either with the form or the arguments of the suggested letter. Docketed with it was another draft of the proposed state- ment. This, like the other, was elaborate— each filled from twelve to twenty pages of foolscap — and was in the form of a letter from the Attorney-General ad- dressed, in one case as in the other, to the President. It was in Mr. Cleveland's handwriting, and, even then, was not one of his easily recognized rough drafts, but a fair copy. He had taken up the case in all details, studied them with the same care that he would have given to a law case under his own control, and had then written and addressed to himself the letter which, in other cir- GROVER CLEVELAND 305 cumstances, he would have submitted to a chciit in the form of an opinion. Neither statement was used, and the only copies were destroyed: but the incident showed his way of transact- ing business and furnished a further explanation of the reflected hand, described in an early chapter, which wrote faithfully far into the morning. Another interesting document unearthed from this room was a letter from Joseph Malietoa, King of the Samoan Islands, the relations with which had marked our original venture into colonial government, and also gave some unusual duties to our Alinisters to England and Germany, with whom we had then a limited partner- ship. The* King had already made fervid appeals to the Department of State, no doubt with small encourage- ment. He therefore wrote directly to the President, a pathetic appeal for war-ships, of which the following is the official translation : ^ Tx- T- ,1 Apia, 24 December. 1888. To His Excellency Grover Cleveland, President of the United* States of- America. Your Excellency: I have the honor to inform you that in the last month I wrote a letter to Your Excellency, praying that you with the United States Government would look with compassion on me and the people of this small group of Islands, and devise some plan of mercy that would free us from the hard and cruel rule of the German Consul and Captains of Gentian Men-of-War. And now^ I have again to cry to Your Excellency and the United States Government and pray you to help us. For on the 1 8th of this month the Germans raised war against me in 20 3o6 GROVER CLEVELAND the early morning, before it was daybreak. Many, seeing the force approaching, thought they were the war party of Tamasese, but, as dayhght became stronger, we saw that they were German men-of-war's men, and we stopped the fight, as we never intended to show fight to the Germans from the beginning up to the present day. What brought about this fight with the Germans was from the cruel and heartless con- duct of the German Consul by trying to put Samoa and the Samoans under the rule and control of the German Trader (D. H. & P. Gesellschaft) in Samoa. Your Excellency and the Government of the United States, have love for us and extricate me and Samoa from the anger of the Germans, now and for the future. Oh that you would send men-of-war here with a favorable decision and with strength in order that we might be pro- tected ! Please entertain the desire sent to Your Excellency and the United States Government in the past month ; and this also, and may the United States Government entertain it, then we under the rule will find peace, t May you live! JOSEFO I. MaLIETOA, King of Samoa. VI Taken as a whole, the five days' continuous work, end- ing with Good Friday, 1892— upon the accumulations in the semi-private collections of a Governor of New York and President of the United States— held in it much of personal interest for the two persons engaged in the task, and revealed even more human nature, in both President and people, than is often brought to light within a like period of time. That was certainly a unique experience which enabled one thus to review at first hand, with the principal actor in it, one of the most ex- citing periods in our history. CHAPTER XX THE SOUTH A FTER the great responsibility of taking up the Gov- / \ ernment itself, the question that most interested X jL Mr. Cleveland, when he came to the Presidency in 1885, was the treatment of the South. For the first time since the Civil War, power was to be lodged in a man who had taken no active part in it either on the civil or the military side. In the twenty years that had i)assed since the conflict was over, a new generation had grown up. While he had not been active in national politics, the new President soon showed that he was not ignorant of the conditions then existing in the South, nor of the crisis through which it had passed as the result of con- trol by aliens, whether in the form of strangers or of the race recently emancipated. He had no knowledge of that portion of the country from personal experience: he had never been further South than Washington, and his associates had not been drawn from among the men of that section. But lie knew not only that here was to be found the problem the solution of which was most vital to the success of his work, but that therein lay his first duty. Rven before he began the tedious and difficult work of choosing his Cabinet, he had turned his attention to this cpiestion; his 307 3o8 RECOLLECTIONS OF anxiety over it was very great, and he soon showed that he knew how to begin right. Always strongly averse to receiving formal delegations for any purpose, he in- augurated the policy, always maintained, of sending for the men best fitted to give him information, and whose claims he had under consideration for places in his Cab- inet. II In the first administration he made no tender of appoint- ment to such positions without the most detailed inter- views with the men themselves. No reputation, howeveV great, could induce him, then, to run the risk, either for himself or the statesmen most concerned, of making a mistake. No diplomat, whatever his nature or training, could have given closer attention to the etiquette of his position than did this man who had been called out of inexperience and obscurity to exalted position. As each man came, whether with the idea of the ten- der of a Cabinet position, or merely for advice, this ques- tion of the attitude of Mr. Cleveland's administration towards the South was the matter most often under dis- cussion. It was important, not only because of the ne- cessity for just treatment and due recognition of that section, but for the more vital necessity of discovering what was likely to be the attitude of its people towards the changed conditions with which they were to be con- fronted. Would they insist merely upon the pound of political flesh to which they might deem themselves en- titled by reason of their contributions to party success? Would they use their unquestioned power in the councils of the victorious party for revenge, or for a patriotic rebuilding on safe and sure lines? GROVER CLEVELAND 309 The answer to these questions depended upon the class of men who should be put to the front. If the old-fash- ioned fire-eater should be preferred, the i)arti/an st-nti ment of the North could be appealed lo with sucli force that the new regime would be discredited before it was wtII under way. If men of good character but of independent standing in the country were not chosen for high places, all the chances for striking results would be sacrificed. Neither policy came up for consideration, as the new President took the bold step of drawing Messrs. Bayard, Garland, and Lamar from the United States Senate for Cabinet advisers. They had long exj)erience in public life, and unquestioned character and ability. They had conquered the respect of the whole country by these qualities and by the exhibition of courage and patriotism in trying times. No man of equal prominence or politi- cal standing to any one of these was taken from the North. It would not have been possible to find such men, and yet the charge of undue influence could not be laid against the South, nor, outside the lowest partizan quarters, was this ever alleged. Once more, the dis- tinctions of section, so long potent, had been demolished, never again to be established on the old lines. in With such advisers from the South, there was little danger that any serious mistakes would be made in the distribution of Federal patronage. Everywhere an ef- fort was made to maintain the policy already inaugu- rated and thus to command the services of men whose selection would reflect credit upon themselves and the 3IO ^RECOLLECTIONS OF country. Soon this people, who had been treated hith- erto as outlaws, began to regain their own pride and to feel that at last, after many tribulations, they were really in the Union and an integral part of it. In later life, Mr. Cleveland often referred to those trying days. Nobody could realize more than he the risk he ran in taking out of the Senate three men so well established there as leaders of the minority and thor- oughly in the confidence of the country. But two of them were at once replaced by successors to whom, from the beginning, he gave his full confidence. With one of them, George Gray of Delaware, he formed a close friendship which only ended with his life. As the result of this good fortune the administration commanded the services of its own trusted members and maintained its influence in the Senate, where it most needed support. For a time everything went well. The people of the South, well satisfied with a return to their old traditions, under which the best men among them were preferred for place and power, made no unusual demands, showing a modesty and reserve which struck the imagination of the country. The election of John G. Carlisle as Speaker of the House had strengthened the situation, the attitude of governors and legislatures had been much influenced by the dignity and vigor of the national administration, and it began to look as if the promise for the future of the country lay with the South. IV But as the danger of Federal interference disappeared, as the memory of former wrongs and grievances became dim, and especially as the older conservative figures dis- GROVER CLEVELAND 311 appeared from political life, their successors hQr^:\n to partake of that demoralization which, even then, had clone so much of its work in the North. Wild schemes in which Populism was confused with Democracy he^an to appear. Demagogues were able to command gov- ernorships and began to creep into the LTnited States Senate. The old and staid newspapers which had main tained themselves and their traditions began to change their character, and, in many cases, to disappear. The existence of great and undeveloped natural resources w^as so recognized that, as elsewhere, the strong men found their way into the management of railroads or local corporations, or they became residents of the North, where opportunities promised to be better. As these new political conditions appeared, their ex- ponents began to press for recognition in the distribution of Federal patronage. The conservative holders of these public offices soon found themselves the centre of an opposition wdiich, with its increase in Senators and members of Congress, reflected itself in the attitude towards the administration. The old human problem of benefits forgot began to press for solution, and the South, as an integral part of the L"^nion, came to share in unfavorable as w^ell as in favorable conditions and ten- dencies. No man saw this quicker than the then President of the United States, wdthin whose period of service, and to some extent from his w^ell-meant policies, it had come. The recrudescence of financial ideas, at once discredited and dangerous, alarmed him, less for the future of his party than for the delay of a prosperity which, founded upon sound ideas, should give a promise of stability and permanence. Mr. Cleveland's defeat in i«^88 gave these reactionary forces renewed encouragement, and, for a 312 RECOLLECTIONS OF time, Southern politics took again an introspective turn, so that the interests of the whole country tended to give way to local necessities, while demagogues and agita- tors, who had generally found short shrift in the South, came to the front in increasing numbers. In the pre- nomination campaign of 1892, it was only the swing of the country, and this return to active work of many friends formed during the first administration, that kept a good many of these States in line. In illustration of Mr. Cleveland's sentiment towards the South, an incident which occurred during his second administration in respect to the selection of Colonel Hilary A. Herbert of Alabama, as Secretary of the Navy, is a case in point. Six months after the relation had been formed, he said to the new Secretary: I want to tell you now that I hesitated for a time whether to appoint you. You know, of course, that I never had any difficulty in appointing ex-Confed- erates to office, but it did seem to me doubtful, for a time, whether I could afford to put an ex-Confeder- ate officer in charge of the military branch of the navy, where he would actually command those who had fought against him. I now see that the country is satisfied with you, and that I made no mistake in appointing you. With the 4th of March, 1893, and the rumblings of that terrible, preordained, and invited panic, and its resulting depression, all the unfavorable signs were multiplied, so that the South, for which Mr. Cleveland had done so much and felt so keenly, really added itself to his prob- IIILAK^ A. lIUKlil.Kl Ul Al.AllA.MA Secretary ol the NJvy. Match, 1893-1897 GROVER CLEVELAND 7,11, lems. As if it were the opening of a volcano char^'cfl with every sort of peril, Congress, largely under the control of Southern men, with the weakest Sj)caker of the House seen in that body since the days before the Civil War, with all principle thrown to the winds, ob- livious to all warnings, had, with the greatest difficulty, been forced, in spite of Southern Democratic oppo- sition, and only by reason of Northern Republican sup- port, to repeal the Sherman Silver Purchase Law. On April 17, 1894, only a year after the new adminis- tration had come into power, in the course of a letter written to me, in England, Mr. Thomas F. Ryan, then just gaining for himself the reputation of a captain of industry, long after he had established this character with his friends, said: As to politics, you doubtless keep well posted. Our party is in a deplorable condition, one from which I see no present hope of escape. The South is in the saddle, and but for Mr. Cleveland, there is no knowing where they would lead us. The political ambition of men to whom Mr. Cleveland and the country had a right to look for wise counsel and support has led them to barter principle for hope of office. .Xs it stands to-day, the Democratic party cannot be trusted with the Gov- ernment, Then began in the South a period of calunmy and an opposition to everything for which Mr. Cleveland stood, almost without parallel in the history of our party poli- tics; so that, when his second administration came to an end in 1897, he was, as he afterwards insisted, the most unpopular man whose name could be mentioned there. Nothing in all his public life gave him so much grief. He knew how deeply interested he had been, what thought he had given to this momentous question, with what honesty he had inet every issue as it arose, what 314 RECOLLECTIONS OF risk and pains he had taken, his honest determination to restore the Union in reahty and in truth, his recognition of its best men and his warm personal friendship for them, and then to have this as his reward! This con- tributed so to increase the feehng of sadness which dis- tinguished his later days that neither the consolations of friends nor the conviction that 'he had rendered good service to the country could wholly dispel it. VI His feeling on this question is accurately represented by the following letters, written, at two-year intervals, to his valued friend and supporter, Kope Elias of North Carolina : Gray Gables, Buzzards Bay, Mass., June 20, 1895. My dear Sir: I have read with very great interest and satisfaction the clippings you sent me from the Charlotte Observer. Such able presentations of the arguments against the dangerous and delusive notion of free and unlimited silver coinage can- not fail to arrest the attention of men as intelligent as those making up the population of North Carolina. I look upon those vho take such an active and earnest part as the editor of the Observer in clearing away the fallacies and correcting the misapprehensions so prevalent just at this time and circling about the subject of our currency, as true patriots, who will in due time see with pride and satisfaction the happiest results from their patriotic labors. The American people are still sensible and honest and cannot be misled to their undoing. ,;r ^ 1 ^ Yours truly, GLOVER Cleveland. Hon. Kope Elias. GROVER CLJlVRLAND 315 Clray C'lahlcs, Buzzards Bay, Mass.. August I, 1X97. Dear Sir: I desire to acknowledpfe your recent friendly letter and thank you for it. You say the "advance agent of prosperity has not struck the South." It seems to me that the people of that locality are doing all they can to har the gates to that desirable visitor, as long as they persist in attacking every safeguard of enterprise and business activity. Help may come to the South in spite of false and dangerous theories, but I believe a short and safe road to its prosperity will be found in a return to the solid ground of tried and true Democracy. ,r , , ■^ Yours very truly. Grover Cleveland. Hon. Kope Elias. When the Presidential election of 1896 approached, a series of reports found currency, mainly in two or three papers of the South, that Mr. Cleveland was himself scheming- for a third election. They were so wholly de- void of truth that he could not deny them ; but that he resented them bitterly was well shown by his reference to them, for the third or fourth time, at my last meeting with him : Any man wath even the smallest knowledge of tli<> conditions which surrounded my second administra tion knows that I could not have commanded the support of half a dozen delegates in the whole coun- try. The ])ersistenl misre])rescntali(»ns of ])crsonal enemies, the falsehood and j)artizan denunciations published in the Republican j)ress. betrayal by the advocates of free silver, and resistance to the decla- ration of war wath Spain, had combined to make my 3i6 GROVER CLEVELAND administration one of the most unpopular in our history. He averred that every man intelligent enough to have an opinion knew perfectly well that retirement w^as for him a necessity of health and life as well as of peace of mind, to say nothing of principle and inflexible deter- mination. VII About the year 1904, when the hopes which had cen- tred in this opposition to sound policies had been dis- credited, along with its advocates, the tide of thought in the South began to turn. Never much concerned about the state of public opinion so far as he was personally involved, he did watch this change with an interest I never before knew him to manifest. Newspapers, with kindly notices marked for his attention, began to reach him again, and the immense tide of letters, which had ceased for a time, flowed anew. He soon discovered that his old popularity was coming back, that there did exist, after all, some feeling of attachment for the man who liad tried so hard to do his duty. This tendency was increased when, at the instance of a Southern man, he accepted the trusteeship of the Equitable Life Assurance Society in 1905. It grew steadily, until it was only here and there that some echo of the old period of misunderstanding was to be found. H he could have foreseen the strong outburst of feeling which was to come from all over the South when he died, I am sure that nothing could have contributed so much to his peace of mind and to his satisfaction with the prospect for wholesome development. M' CHAPTER XXI SOME OPINIONS OF MEN R. Cleveland discussed freely the characteristics of the men- with whom he came in contact, ex- pressed his opinions of their achievements, and gave his impressions of their personalities. These were of exceeding interest to those who were so fortu- nate as to hear them. If he hked a man he never tired of talking about him. He would take into account edu- cation, training, environment and the difficulties sur- rounding his life and work, and the character of his ambitions — in short, the human elements. He was ex- acting with men of great gifts and opportunities, but the one quality that distinguished him above all others, in this as in all his judgments, was a strong sense oi justice. He had also some pet aversions among men. but it was seldom he indulged in the expression of them. Per- haps opposition, and even the injustice arising from misrepresentation, have seldom been endured with more patience than by the man who was fated to have so much of them. Occasionally, he was tempted to give public expression to his resentment of such ill treatment, but this was about the only thing in which he could be influenced to suppress his feelings and opinions. 3i8 RECOLLECTIONS OF I had much difficulty, in one case, to deter him from referring, in a pubhc speech, at length and with great bitterness to a man, now dead, who had pursued him with unusual rancor. It took two weeks of patient, unre- mitting effort to secure an abandonment of the offensive passages ; but it w^as successful, and his own later judg- ment justified the policy he had adopted so much against his will. As in all other cases, I made notes and recall with the keenest interest some of the unfavorable opin- ions to which he would give utterance about such men. There were not more than four or five, and as all but two of them are 'dead, it has seemed to me that regard for his memory would best be served by their suppres- sion. In order to present some of his miscellaneous opin- ions in a systematic way, I have massed them in this chapter. II Thomas F. Bayard. When Mr. Cleveland was nomi- nated for President in 1884, his leading competitor in the convention was Thomas F. Bayard, then and for many years before United States Senator from Dela- ware. Through the dark days of reconstruction, in the excitement incident to a disputed election in 1877, and in the discussion of financial and fiscal questions, he had been one of a minority almost insignificant in number. He, or to speak more correctly, his friends for him, had long aspired to be the candidate of his party for Presi- dent. He was little of a politician, while the smallness of his State and the rigidity of his opinions and his plainness of speech on the currency and related questions, united THOMAS I-. BAYARD Secretary of State in the first Cleveland cabinet, lUOs-KWq, and l-i ti) England, 1893-1897 GROVER CLEVELAND 319 with the sudden rise of Mr. Tilden to power and influ- ence, had conspired to prevent liis nomination in 1S76, and the sentimental wave for General Hancock had rendered naus'lit the efforts of his friends in iSSo. As the coast seemed to clear, they felt very confident, early in the contest, that Mr. Bayard's time would come in 1884, but the rise to position in the vital State of New York of another dominating figure could not he fore- seen : so that the well-laid plans were again upset. Mr. Cleveland and Mr. Bayard did not meet until after the election of 1884, when the question of choosing his Cabinet confronted the new President. Only two candidates, other than the successful one. had made any considerable showing in the National Democratic Con- vention of 1884, and, as Mr. Hendricks had been elected Vice-President, the traditions of politics were fully re- spected when Mr. Bayard was tendered and acccjited the office of Secretary of State in the new President's Cabinet. This was the signal for the welding, in almost the shortest time ever known, of one of the many strong personal friendships that have so far distinguished our political life. These men were almost the antipodes of each other. While ]\Ir. Bayard was a well-grounded lawyer, vir- tually all his life— even before he had reached his majority he had made political speeches in his own State— had been passed in that public career which he both inherited and loved. He was a tireless student of the questions of the day, always called upon, by reason of his position, to express an opinion upon them in their various phases. He spoke freely and well, in spite of his then somewhat serious style, wliich fitted well into the Senate of that day. As he soon became the recog- 320 RECOLLECTIONS OE nizecl leader of the small minority, he was always ready to meet and oppose the party in power. On the other hand, Mr. Cleveland was essentially a hard-working, plodding lawyer, little given to speech either in or out of court, active in politics in an effective, though limited, way, interested as a citizen and intel- ligent man in national concerns, but to whom these far-off events in Washington, and in great national conventions, were more an echo, a mere sound, which sometimes dimly reached him in the fastness of his busy life. Despite these essential differences in training, ambi- tion, and opportunity, the men who thus met on the threshold of great responsibility were singularly alike in aim and purpose. Both were inherently conservative and, at the same time, eminently progressive, seeking to preserve or attain the best, whether it was new or old. From the moment of meeting, they understood each other and began together that work and friendship which were never interrupted until death came to the elder. Not only did each know the other, and fit into his plans, but he never failed to impart to common friends the opinion he held. This was well shown by my own experience with both. Whilst absent in Eng- land, during Mr. Bayard's Ambassadorship, in the second administration, when, in the course of conversa- tion, in 1895, the subject of the President's then recent illness came up — the precursor of that which was to cause his death— he said: Mr. Cleveland's death, at the present time, would be more than a personal and public misfortune: it would be a calamity. In the present delicate condi- tion of affairs I do not believe there is a man in the GROVER CLEVELAND 321 United States who could lake up his work and carry it through. Do you know that, lookinj.,^ back over my own career, the one thing that most amazes me is that I should have presumed to let my friends pre- sent my name as a candidate for President before the same National Convention that had Mr. Cleve- land's under consideration? Since I have come to know him T realize my ul-gcncral to Londoa, 1694-1*/; GROVER CLEVELAND 329 met as entire strang^ers, hut the orator in his hhint. straightforward way visited the caiKhdate, then (Gover- nor, at the Capitol. It was only for an li 351 his pen. '*In my blundering way." was one of iiis stock phrases when referring to anything that he liad to write for the pubHc, and it did express a real mental attitude with him. He so dreaded the work of writing anses. Tt follows that, if there are faults in his record in this respect, they were to him the pride of his life, and he firmly helieved that if he had done his country any service it was in rep^is- tering what in many quarters would he deemed dismal failures, though to his mind they were numhered with his consDicuous successes. VII The Judiciary. Eew responsihle men have hecn more strongly attached to the indej^endence of the courts or more solicitous for its maintenance. He said to me within a few months of his death : The most serious difficulty confronting this coun- try is that of maintaining the supremacy of law. and this can only be done by inspiring resj)ect for the judgments of our courts. All the enemies of our society and institutions, and of the dominance in them of the civil power, recognize, as if by instinct, that if they would break them down or undermine them, it can only be done by reducing our courts to impotence. If their decrees are not respected, or the judges who preside over them are not men ot the highest reputation for ability and fairness, then all the forces of chscontent will unite in an assault upon them. To me. nothing can be more deplorable than that open criticism of the decisions of courts which, all at once, has become fashionable on the part of execu- tive officers, whether Presidents, governors, mayors, or whatever the rank or position. Tliey are danger- 366 RECOLLECTIONS OF signals, and failure to see them may introduce prac- tices which will threaten the independence of the courts. VIII He took great pride in his judicial appointments, coupled with regret that the pay of judges was so meagre that he had not always been able to command the services of lawyers of the first reputation in the com- munity. But he persevered until he found men suit- able in both learning arid character and that other qual- ity, the judicial mind, which, he insisted, was, after all, the most vital qualification. When President, he would seldom speak of the judges he had appointed, and as far as seeking, while in ofiice, to discuss with any one of them a case pending in any court, he would as easily have cut ofif his right hand. After his retirement he followed with interest the decisions of the judges of his appointment, and noted their jealous care in uphold- ing the principles for which our English race had con- tended through so many centuries. He overlooked none of the amenities when making appointments to the higher courts, consulting the judges as to the standing of the men whose names were under consideration and ascertaining their acceptance as asso- ciates. He also drew freely upon leading lawyers for advice. He was thus little given to springing surprises in judicial appointments, and that, too, in spite of the fact that in this, as in other forms of patronage, he chose a good many men who had not been persistently pushed upon him. Indeed, he resented pressure more strongly in this field than in any other. When it fell to his lot to appoint a chief justice of the Court of GROVER CLEVELAND 367 Claims he never considered any other name tlian tliat of Charles C. Nott, an associate justice since the organ- ization of the court; ])ut lie did not make this nomination until convinced that no riuestion could jjossihlv arise about the pension when the time for retirement should come. By reason of tiie hif^h standard he had set. no man could have proven more successfully than Mr. C'levelan would have been amply sufficient to produce this eflfect. IX The Chief Justice. In 1890, he said one day: When I had to assume the responsibility of aj)- pointing a chief justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, in succession to Morrison R. Waite. my first impulse, after the post had been declined by John G. Carlisle, then Speaker of the House, was to tender the office to James C. Carter, or some otiu-r eminent advocate or leader of the bar, or to Mr. Phelps, then our Minister to the Court of St. James. L^pon consultation with the associate jus- tices, I found that some elements, generally over- looked, had to be considered. T discovered that tlie Supreme Court, like all others, was accustomed to get so far behind in its business that, in many cases, it took nearly three years to carry important cases to it from the State or lower bVderal courts. 368 GROVER CLEVELAND The justices informed me that, as the court could not be enlarged, because both public and legal opin- ion were opposed to this process, the one thing needed was a chief justice who, in addition to high legal knowledge and the judicial quality, should also be a man of efficiency as a business manager. This put the whole question before me in a new light, and I delayed the nomination for a time until I could look about and find the lawyer who should possess all the usual qualifications and also this new one. This was a determining factor in the choice of Melville W. Fuller, then almost" a stranger. I am glad to know that my judgment has been justified by results. Within a year, under the new management, the business of the court was brought so thoroughly under control that the old-time delays began gradually to disappear, and I have since had the satisfaction of knowing that, while the Chief Justice has shown himself an industrious, safe, and able judge, he has also commended himself as prob- ably the best business manager ever seen at the head of a Federal court. He has been able so to sys- tematize its work as to eliminate the law's delays so far as this is possible. CHAPTER XXV FRIENDSHIPS — RELIGION PERSONAL Friends. In the matter of personal friendships, Mr. Cleveland's life was divided into two parts almost as distinct as those which sepa- rated his early professional and business activities from his better known and shorter public career. Chant^e of scene, change of idea and purpose, and chan^^e of out- look upon the world — all united to make new associa- tions a necessity. He iiever consciously forjc^ot or neglected his old friends for new ones: but the whole process of his life was more nearly allied to a trans- formation than to a mere shifting of position and work. When he became Governor, he did not take with him to Albany one man with whom he had been intimate during the years preceding 1883. His private secretary was strange to him; he had met only in the most casual way his confidential political adviser. lul^ar K. Apgar. No friend from Buffalo or elsewhere was j)ref erred for an influential place— that is, one that brought him near to the Governor or any other. He did take with him. both to Albany and Washington, where he became stew- ard of the White House, William Sinclair, whom he had come to know, in his club, as a trustworthy and etlicienl servant. 24 369 370 RECOLLECTIONS OF No man from Buffalo or from his old home district was even seriously considered when it came to choosing- his first Cabinet, and, in the second, the appointment of Wilson S. Bissell, mainly because he had been an inti- mate of many years' standing, was as distinctly politi- cal as any other then made. Generally speaking, he had a gift for looking past the man of minor importance both in the promotion of his own personal success in the way of commanding a nomination and seeing the real man in power. In New York, this policy had brought him right up to Daniel Manning, so, without asking any questions about the past at home, this was the man put to the front. Every nomination for office had come to him with no seeking by himself, and was so largely the outcome of his own availability for the place to be filled, that his real obligations to associates were always minimized. II He often expressed the opinion that the people of Buf- falo scarcely appreciated the delicacy or the difficulty of his position after he was drafted into the service of the State and the country, believing that, as both Gover- nor and President, he would have been more popular in the city in which he had so long resided if he had never seen it. His real friends were most considerate and brought no severe or undue pressure upon him, but the smaller politicians, the ambitious men, who, though strangers to him, thought that, in the accident of geography, their time had come, and the others who presumed upon a slight acquaintance, flocked to Albany or to Washing- ton, and, when they failed to get what they wanted, by UK. JoShl'H IJ. IIK^ AM Surgcoii-Ceiieral on Governor CIcvclintrs staff, pcrson.il Iricml. iud r«mll) |ih)iK«i GROVER CLl'A'I-.LAXI) 371 way of office or power, tlieir cry of disappointment rent the air. Even he himself chd not, perhai)s. fullv appre- ciate what it all meant. Tie was hnsy with the larjjjcst policies, treatins^ them with the utmost seriousness, while each of these pushinq- persons was concentrating" attention on his own i)et lamh. the little thini^ nearest his mind and heart. His real friends in Buffalo did not press, or misunder stand, or misrepresent him, and never lost his confidence or esteem. Many remained his close advisers on delicate questions, in spite of the fact that their contril)uti(ms to his later success were no douht small, even when mea- sured by their proportion to his personal friends and adherents elsewhere. He did not go to Washinq-ton. the first time, with many new intimate friendships or associations as the result of his two years' active work in the politics of the State of New York. Perhai)s it would be safe to say that there were not more than two of these which grew into anything resembling intimacy: Daniel S. Lamont and Dr. Joseph D. Ikyant, in rela- tion to whom there was neither variableness nor the shadow of turning. Ill Once in Washington, the circle began to enlarge with rapidity. With one exception, every member of Mr. Cleveland's Cabinet was a stranger, but before a year had passed each was more than an associate: all. with- out exception, had become his close friends, and the inti- macy, then cemented, was never broken in a smgle in- stance. It may not be amiss to say, just at this pcn and frank that even when legislators disliked his policy they still admired the man. 374 RECOLLECTIONS OF His public friendships had not the smallest relation to official favors. Nothing repelled him more from men than to find them insatiate in their demands for office for their followers. This was best shown, perhaps, in the case of Samuel J. Randall, with whom he had so many points in common. But the desire for patronage on the part of the ex-Speaker of the House was so strong that he could not restrain himself, and so the President became indifferent rather than friendly. So it was all along down the line. During the same time, he formed friendly relations with many other men, little known to the public, either then or now. I have heard of elaborate correspondence with business men about public conditions especially in the larger lines of commerce as well as politics — men from whom he commanded information otherwise un- obtainable. He especially invited suggestions from these correspondents and was enabled, by their assist- ance, to get a far more intimate idea of conditions than would have been possible in any other way. He did not often see these men, and he seldom spoke of them or their relations to him. Their letters, however, contrib- uted to his knowledge — no doubt much to the surprise of Cabinet officers and others dealing with him offi- cially. These men were seldom known as correspon- dents, still less as intimates or advisers. They were simply drawn into these relations because, in every case, the association was congenial and the men were mutu- ally useful to each other. There was no condescension or patronage on the one side, and no self-seeking on the other. The last-named type was to him impossible as a friend, so that, perhaps, never in our history have there been fewer persons who could pose as the friend of a GROVKR CLF.VKLANn 375 President or an ex-Prcsidenl. He could un[ make him- self cono^enial to anybody of (his type, lie did hate a flunky above all other things. When he came to New York to live— with more leisure on his hands than had been his fortune thitherto— the foundations for his future friendships were i)rettv well laid, and he had only to build upon them with added ma- terial of the same kind. He did not seek out the ji^reat lawyers, or the prominent financiers, or the men at the head of dominatinj^ railroads or other business enter- prises. He became close to some of the members of his law firm, and was drawn, in like manner, to some liter- ary men. He was particularly shy of newspaper men. whether in their collective or individual capacity. He had p^rown to have a strong aversion to them as a class, althoup^ii not, as was generally thought, to individuals among them. From the beginning of his pul)lic career he was unsympathetic with most of the owners of metroj)olitan newspapers — the controlling spirits. As he had had some disagreeable experiences with them, he reached the conclusion that, in the main, they sought to maintain friendly relations in the hope of getting inside informa- tion, or interviews, or news. In like manner, he felt no attraction for the editors of these i)apcrs. Two or three of them pushed themselves upon him with considerable persistence, and, from this, tried to make their public believe that they were close to him. In all my exj)eri- ence with him, I never heard or knew of him asking 376 RECOLLECTIONS OF advice from the proprietor or editor of a New York paper. In one or two cases when he had been drawn into giving an interview with the representative of one paper upon any given question, he would advise with me as to the best means of keeping the news from becoming exclusive, or for arranging that it should be distributed through the press associations or other mediums. For a time I pressed him upon the policy of advising with the owner and editor of a certain paper, who was always trying to reach him in New York, as he had done in Albany and Washington, through correspon- dents and other representatives, none of whom could command even the smallest confidence. He would say: "No, it is no use to talk to me about . I know him and his motives better than you do. He only wants to see me in the hope of getting some exclusive infor- mation. Everything will go on agreeably for a time, but when he finds that some other paper has obtained political or personal news about me or my policies from some other source, all the inherent meanness of his nature will come out, and he will do with me as he has with every one else: betray my confidence and turn upon me." Once when the correspondent of the same paper had approached me during Mr. Cleveland's ab- sence at his country place, and I had again pressed my point of view because I believed it good politics, he peremptorily declined to be convinced or to comply, and wrote : "Besides, I know that will not print any- thing about me that will be any satisfaction to myself or my friends, no matter how much Mr. may attempt to have it so. You will see that I am right in this." And he was. GROVER CLFA'ia.AXI) 7,yj VT To friendships of the kind 1 have described, in the main with the men who liad come into intimate relations with him in pohtics or profession, he .e;-ave the remainder of his Hfe, to which must he added tliose g^rowinu: nut <»f his Princeton residence and activities. He had an unusual capacity for friendship and a need for it. Resourceful in q-eneral, there were times when he had special need for association witii conij^cnial men; but it must be with persons serious-minded as well as congenial. He had little small talk, and althouL^^i few men could be more j^racious to children, he must have been the despair of the li.G:lU. triflinc^ woman, es- pecially of that type whose great desire in life is to boast of being on speaking terms with some celebrity. With sensible, well-balanced women, and especially those of a religious nature, he was most happy and sympathetic. He did not talk shop or politics, but was full of wi^^e observations on questions about which nobody would credit him with either interest or knowledge. He took a keen interest in all struggling persons, and nothing brought him more pleasure than to learn of the success of ambitious, industrious young men or women, or more pain than to hear stories of failure and discour- agement. The death of a friend, or a friend's wife or intimate, was plainly more painful to him than to ahnost any person I have known. He had a horror of death, especially when it came to those in the full strength of years, or in the midst of hitherto unreciuited struggle, although his feeling about it for himself was of the grim, determined character that he showed in his daily struggles. He liked life, but he wanted it in order to complete with credit whatever work might be in liim. 3/8 RECOLLECTIONS OF VTT If I could sum up his character, I should say that, al- though he had this capacity for friendship, he was not greatly attracted by the mere passing or idle acquain- tance. He was genial because he was kindly, and free and thoughtful in the gift of himself, though exacting little from others; he gave his confidence slowly and to few, but with unusual freedom, and he seldom withdrew it ; and used much discretion as to the kind or order of information confided to diflferent persons within his circle. To some — those who knew him best and them- selves had an all-round knowledge — he would give after their kind. With the companions of his sports, who were almost uniformly drawn from the like-minded among the various circles already classified, he would manifest a jollity, a lightness of touch wholly in keeping with the occasion. To some purely social acquaintance, politics — except in its most obvious facts and inferences — would be taboo, while to other friends of a diflferent type little else would enter into account — seldom in its mechanical features, but in the higher ultimate aims and ends. As few men had had larger opportunities to know a variety of characters : so, perhaps, none ever took more advan- tage of them in order that he might make his friend- ships pleasing and profitable to others as well as agree- able to himself. VIII It has never been fully appreciated how closely Mr. Cleveland was drawn, in personal friendship, to those with whom his association was purely political. Evi- GROVICR CLEX'KLAN'O 7^y<) dence of this was furnished hy many letters wliicli came to my attention when the accumulations of the I^xecu- tive Mansion were examined in the early sprinp^ of 1892. Generally speaking-, IVTr. Clevclatid read these letters with care and then ruthlessly destroyed them. But wdien he came to two of them, he handed them to me with the message : The time may come when those will he useful in giving the world some idea of the relations which my official advisers bore to me, in spite of the fact that nearly every one of them was an entire stranger when we came together. These letters have been preserved and arc herewith appended. The first is a birthday greeting from the late William C. Whitney, Secretary of the Navy, written in the year before the end of their official relations. It is as follows, and, coming from a man of a type little given to compliments, will be of interest : March iS. 1888. 1 73 1 1 Street. Dear Mr. President: I wish I had something to send you besides my god.l wishes. but, in the absence of :\Iadame. who is thoughtful. I have n't. T know you don't want anything, but I should hkc to mark the day. I wish you many more anniversaries like this, when you are able to look back upon another year of successful work m the midst of most trying responsibilities. I have never known greater patience than you have, nor greater courtesy in your bearing to those who struggle along with you. and I hope you mav bv and by have your reward m the opportunity to think of yourself and your comfort, and 38o RECOLLECTIONS OF you will then take pleasure in the reflection that you never laid down the banner when it was given you to carry. My best wishes for a successful and a happy future. Yours most sincerely, To W. C. Whitney. The President. The second was written by William F. Vilas, a man of wholly different type, full of the fervor of the orator as well as that of the friend, and was in the nature of a farewell at the close of the first term in the Presi- dency : Department of the Interior, Washington, March i, 1889. My dear Mr. President: With this will go to-morrow my letter of resignation, just written this evening, of the post I hold in your official family, now about breaking up. I can, in admissible propriety I sup- pose, place by it on official record but a brief, though I wish it a clear, testimony of my esteem and devotion. But I will not deny my desire to write more to you upon the occasion of it ; I mean no bubbling of emotion, but thoughts long and often meditated. I was a stranger to you when you were first named to the American people as the candidate of our party to be their President ; and was little less so when, by your generous con- fidence, I was placed in near official relationship to your per- son and duties. Profoundly believing that the safety of our political institutions demanded dislocation of the grasp which the long unchecked dominion of our political enemy had secured upon our government, and having long shared, though in obscure station, the vain struggle of Democracy for relief, it was but natural that my thought was fixed almost wholly upon the chances and the advantage of that success, rather than upon the person through whom it was to be and was GROVER CLEVELAND 381 achieved, and that I saw in you the promising can^ GROVER CLEVELAND ,589 The discussion of Mr. Cleveland's selection of mcni bers of his Cabinet reminds nie of a conversation with Mr. Tilden, which discloses on his part a mistake in judgment. After the election of 1S76. when it was known that he had been fairly chosen as President and had received a popular majority. Mr. Tilden considered the future with great gravity. He said the trouble would be found in the lack of men in the Democratic party fit for Cabinet positions by reason of want of training amongst our public men in executive duties. He said the leaders of the party had had legislative ex- perience only, and that we were entirely safe in having Congressional leadership, and our difficulties would ap- pear through having no men trained in executive func- tions. When Mr. Cleveland was elected he called into his Cabinet men of the greatest experience and highest qualities, who proved to be admirably qualified for executive duties, and our Congressional leadershij^ [aside from William L. Wilson] in both of his terms proved to be such a miserable failure that it became responsible for the permanent wrecking of the party. It turned out that our legislative leaders were so fixed in the habit of opposition that they used it against their own administration and robbed it of its natural and legitimate leadership. It was this that left Mr. Cleveland and his Cabinet standing alone: on one side meeting the natural and legitimate antagonism of the Republican party, and on the other faced by the bitter. foolish, and almost criminal opposition of Democratic leaders in Congress. IV This painful situation, however, was the means of bringing into action the highest qualities in Mr. Cleve- 390 RECOLLECTIONS OF land's character, than which there have been no higher nor greater in the history of our pubhc men. To this he owes his great and unassailable position in the world's history. The American President who bravely meets the great crises of peace, involving the preservation of the public credit and going direct to the material inter- est of every citizen, high and low, executes a more dif- ficult duty than is put upon any President in time of war. In war, the patriotic sentiments and unselfish im- pulses of the people are in high activity, and they are ready without question to back up every position taken by the President, and to make every sacrifice he de- mands of them, and his task is made easy compared with that which was put upon Mr. Cleveland. In his case, it was easy to persuade the people that they were injured in their fortunes by the policy which was their sole defense against wide-spread ruin. It was a policy which maintained the sacredness of con- tracts and stood for honesty in every financial transac- tion, great and small. That policy, indorsed by the elec- tion of 1896, after the greatest campaign of education known in our politics, carried on by our Gold Democracy and the Republican allies, was the foundation of the prosperity which followed, and must be the foundation of any real and general prosperity which the country is to know in the future. II Another man who came into close relations with Mr. Cleveland during the whole of his larger political career, both in the Presidency and out, was the Hon. William GROVKR ri.F.VKI.AXD 391 U. Hcnsel, formerly Atlorney-Gcncral <»f IViinsylvani.-i. When I told him that I was wriliiiq; my rccolkrtioiis of the ex-President, he offered to send me some of his experiences and observations. Among thcin were tlic folllovving: I Among my earliest personal recollections of Mr. Cleve- land is an occasion when I saw him. durini,^ the first of his Presidential campaigns, in r.rooklyn. at a "harhe- cue." Of course a barbecue in lirooklyn is an absurdity. But the Democrats over there had heard much and rear! more of barbecues, and they must make an ox roast. I certainly could not now fix the day when it was held, nor find the place; but I very distinctly remember that many thousands of voters hungered nuich to get a bite of roast ox, and much more to get a sight of the candi- date. He and a score of others, including myself, found escape from the tremendous poj)ular pressure in the second story of a frame building on some sort of an exhibition ground. When he showed himself to the multitude at an upper window, the individuals who com- posed the eager throng packed closer together until there was scarcely anything to be seen except their heads and faces. I do not think that he had ever seen so many people assembled — certainly never so dense a crowd. It affected him very much, and in an almost broken voice he said: "I never before realized what was expressed in the phrase 'a sea of faces' — look at it; as beautiful and yet as terrible as the waves of the ocean." IT After Mr. Cleveland had been duly elected President by the Electoral College and had resigned the uflficc of 392 RECOLLECTIONS OF Governor of New York and retired from the Executive Mansion at Albany to a modest residence on a side street, I was his informal guest at several meetings with the late Edgar K. Apgar, who had his confidence in a large degree. Apgar — with whom I was on terms of close intimacy and had campaigned frequently — once told me that when the Flower-Slocum canvas for Gov- ernor was fairly "on" in 1882, and the late Secretary Manning was much perplexed over it, he (Apgar) be- gan to look over the State for a compromise candidate. His extensive reading of the State newspapers led him to Mayor Cleveland of Buffalo. He had been much im- pressed by Mr. Cleveland's message vetoing a municipal appropriation for the celebration by the G. A. R. of Decoration Day, because, in the expressive language of the late Judge Black, it was "ag'in' the law." When his name was first mentioned by Apgar as an "available" candidate, Mr. Manning, then Chairman of the Democratic State Committee, was so absolutely un- acquainted with him that he asked, "Who 's Grover Cleveland?" But at Mr. Manning's request Apgar in- vestigated the matter quietly and "sized him up," so that in less than a year Mr. Cleveland was Governor of New York, and within three years Mr. Manning was Secre- tary of the Treasury in his Cabinet at Washington. Ill Those nights in the rooms of the President-elect with Apgar were "noctes ambrosianae." I never afterwards, in more than twenty years' acquaintance, saw him with better opportunities to study and know the man Cleve- land. I recall the great quantities of things, mostly trash, sent to him — and of course to every President- elect — by political and personal admirers many of them GROVER CLEVELAND t,()t, most barefaced solicitors of official favor. For instance. "Unknown" — who no doubt intended later to disclose himself— sent a brass-hooi)ed ten--,allon cask of rum. There was a great majolica china DenifKratic rooster from Kansas; a live alli.c^ator from Florida; a stuffed wolf from Dakota; and codfish from ^Lassachusetts. There was the picture of a Western youth with his best girl leaning lovingly on his shoulder, accompanied by a letter declaring that, to complete their hajipiness and assure their marriage, they only needed the cer- tainty of appointment to a designated fourth-class post- mastership. I remember very distinctly Mr. Cleveland's expression of sympathy for the poor girl whose life's hopes hung on that rather nincompoopish lover. The one gift to which he attached significance was from an illiterate, but apparently independent, negro in Atlanta, who sent him "with Gawd's blessin' " a rabbit's left hind foot, with the assurance that the donor had voted for him and had no favors to ask. IV Early in his administration he was influenced to appoint to a prominent Federal office a man who \u his youth had committed a felonious indiscretion and fled from an in- dictment which, during twenty-five years of later up- right life, he foolishly neglected to have disposed of. After his name was sent to the Senate, but before con- firmation, the old scandal was revived, and Cleveland withdrew the nomination, with some indignation at those who had* procured it. I joined them in trying to get him to view the circumstances more leniently, but he had in mind some imposition practised upon him in the West, and he was obdurate. Subsequently the object, first of his official favor and 394 RECOLLECTIONS OF later of his wrath, had the indictment nolle-prossed, but the President would not hear of his reappointment, and he had to submit to a local vindication by triumphant election to an important county office. I mention the in- cident mainly to illustrate Mr. Cleveland's remarkable memory. A few years ago, on a visit to him, at Prince- ton, something suggested this incident of 1885, when he related it in minutest detail and recalled every circum- stance of the offense charged against my friend and his nominee. V During his first term he explained to me on one occa- sion with much detail his views on the executive pre- rogative of his pardoning power, and how, when he became Governor of New York, he had broken up the traditional practice of the executive permitting ''pardon clerks" to brief the papers submitted and to suggest what should be the disposition of the applications. "If there is anything," he said, ''that I understand and that I examine, consider, and determine wholly myself, it is the subject of pardons." Years later, during his second term, I was much interested in the pardon of a Federal convict. It was refused. I found the papers docketed, briefed, negatively recommended, and "O. K.'d" by the President. I went directly to him, and appealed to him on the peculiar circumstances of the case. The only and most affectionate son of an aged mother had gone wrong. He was sentenced to seven years in the penitentiary. She never knew of his guilt or his disgrace, but was under the impression that he was gone on a long jour- ney. After three years' absence she became apprehen- sive she would soon die and begged piteously "to see Tom." I told the President all this, and more, without GROVER CLEVELAND 395 effecting- niuc]i. TMiially 1 appealed to his earlier self- confidence, that he understood pardon cases better than the clerks in the Attorney-Generars oflice, and he ad- mitted that he had refused my applicati(^n somewhat j)cr- functorily and invited me to breakfast with him the next day. After we had ended lie rather abrnptlv said: "That fellow's sentence will be half served in Aui^ust. If you can keep his mother alive until then. I '11 cut his term in two." I was o^lad to accept the conditions. Tom came out of the ])enitentiary in Au,q;ust. and his mother lingered on into September, never suspect ini,'- that her son had been a convict. lie is long since dead, but his saint was always St. Grover. in Colonel Hilary A. Herbert, Secretary of the Navy in the second Cabinet and also close to Mr. Cleveland during the first administration when the naval policy was fixed, has sent me the following recollections and impressions : I When Mr. Cleveland became President in 1S85 just twenty years had elapsed since the close of the Civil War. The battle between the Mcrriuiac and the Moni- tor at Hampton Roads had revolutionized naval war- fare. European nations turned at once to new all-steel vessels. Lnprovements in shii)s and guns were now being made year after year. Our own navy, that had accomplished so much in its battles for the Union, was practically obsolete. Its wooden vessels were rotting. Even its iron monitors were outclassed and of obsolete 396 RECOLLECTIONS OF types. Under President Arthur, Mr, Chandler, as Sec- retary of the Navy, had laid down two steel cruisers and a gunboat now well on toward completion. Two other vessels had been authorized by Congress just before Mr. Arthur went out— altogether, a small but credit- •able beginning of a modern navy for the United States. Mr. Cleveland and his Secretary, Mr. Whitney, in- tended to lay broadly the foundations of this new navy, not only building ships but providing an armor plant and gun plants, so that the United States might in due time take its proper place among the naval powers of the world. All this was accomplished, but at the outset difficulties were presented. First, the Democratic party, lately come into conse- quence in the House of Representatives, had taken a firm stand for economy in all expenditures. It was an opposition party, and had fought vigorously against large appropriations for the navy, especially those called for by Secretary Robeson, for refitting and rebuilding of old ships. This anti-naval bias, really a new feature in Democratic politics, had to be regarded. It was my lot to be made Chairman of the House Com- mittee on Naval Affairs, when the Cleveland idea of rebuilding the navy was to be inaugurated, and to me the whole question was new. Upon my appointment a newspaper "down in Maine" commented, not unfavor- ably in other respects, but called attention to the fact that I had never previously served on the committee of which I was now made the head, adding, with pardonable exag- geration, that "the new Chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs did not know the difference between a man-of-war and a wash-tub"! My task with my own party was not an easy one, and it soon became apparent that to "go sure" it was necessary to "go slow." i GROVER CLEVELAND 397 The first bill reported from the committee carried eleven ships, big and little. The j)ractice then was t() pas? a rule fixing a day to consider an important bill and limiting the time for discussion. When such a rule for the bill was moved, not only did leading Democrats from the West object to the day suggested, as interfer- ing wnth their bills, etc., etc., but it became quite evident that the Republicans, though previously counting them- selves as friends of the navy, were very reluctant to sec Democrats figuring as its champions. Mr. Reed, their leader, objected to taking up the rule for consideration, on the ground that time enough was not allowed in the rule for debate on "so important a bill." So many ob- jections were made from time to time that the com- mittee eventually withdrew the original bill, and re- reported it, leaving off two of the proposed ships. For this bill, which carried nine vessels, big and little, and contained other important provisions, after many cap- tious objections from different quarters, a day was finally fixed, and on July 24, 1886, it came to a vote. Mr. Reed, Mr. Boutelle, and the body of the Republi- cans voted against it, ostensibly because it did not carry all the vessels contained in the original bill, to the rule for considering which Mr. Reed had so strenuously ob- jected. The Democrats mustered strength enough to pass it, but the tribulations thus encountered showed that some easier method of getting up bills for increas- ing the navy was desirable. At the next session, after a consultation between the WTiter and the Speaker, Mr. Carlisle agreed to appoint, to preside over the Committee of the Whole when the Naval Appropriation Bill should come up, some Demo- crat, if one could be found, who agreed with the writer that a provision for new vessels would be in order on 398 RECOLLECTIONS OF the bill. As Mr. McCreary of Kentucky concurred in this view, he was therefore appointed Chairman of the Committee of the Whole and overruled the point of order, though it was vigorously pressed ; new ships were put into the appropriation bill, and so from that day to this the new navy has had plain sailing in the House of Representatives. The point of order has occasionally been made, but the precedent of 1886 has always been followed. The Cleveland administration was not in undue haste; its policy was a steady growth of the new navy on solid foundations, and as all partizan debate was carefully avoided, opposition soon practically ceased on both sides of the chamber. Appropriation bills con- taining new vessels, docks, etc., were sometimes passed without debate, after the briefest possible explanation from the chairman. During these four years Mr. Whitney, as Secretary of the Navy under Mr. Cleve- land, not only laid down new vessels, but built docks, established a great gun plant at Washington, domesti- cated the manufacture of armor at Bethlehem, and thus made easy the pathway of his successor. II Mr. Cleveland as a candidate for the Presidency in 1892 was the most striking civilian figure that had occu- pied that position since the days of Abraham Lincoln. He attracted notably the attention of students of his- tory, and, though not college-bred, college professors and young men fresh from their studies had turned to him in a wonderful way. After all the political va- garies of the preceding twenty-five years, here was a man about whom nobody could make any mistake. He had been brave enough to send to Congress his cele- GROVER CLEVELAND 399 brated tariflf message of 1887. tliou,G:li lie saw that it might, as it midoul)tcdly did. defeat liim for reelection. So, in 1892, his renewed declaration, shortly before the convention, for the gold standard, might defeat his rc- nomination; l)ut he gave it f^rth against the jirotcst of friends. All knew as well then as now that a choice of Mr. Cleveland would be a declaration for (i) old fashioned Democratic ideas of the Constitution; (2) economies; (3) merit as the ultimate test for appoint- ment to office; (4) tariff reform; (5) the gold stan- dard. His party, knowing that he stood for all these things, nominated him; and because the people also stood firmly for them, they elected him. Tf llie Democrats had supported him faithfully, representing as he did the majority sentiment, there can be no doubt that his party would have continued in power. But Democrats in Con- gress failed to hold up his hands. Many oi them, in- deed, seemed to feel really disappointed and aggrieved because their President did not go back on his pledges, and, so feeling, they occupied their time in manceuvering for political position in a campaign that was to come off in 1896. \Mien Congress assembled in 1893. unfortunately for Mr. Cleveland, the country was in the throes of a i)anic. The money question was paramount, and though Mr. Cleveland's views on the sul)ject were well kn^wn. many of his followers were unwilling to look upon his election as a settlement of the matter. Both Democrats and Republicans had for years been coquetting with the free silver craze. Both parties were divided o<>. Grover Cleveland: .\ Record of l"ricnd>hip. I'.y Richard Watson Gilder. The Century Magazine for August, September, (>:- tober, and November, 1909. Mr. Cleveland: A Personal Impression. By Jesse Lynch Wil- liams. New York : Dodd, Mead & Company, 1909. *This list makes no claim to completeness. It inchules, however. » few books or articles to which an inquiring reader may turn for further information. INDEX INDEX Agriculture, Department of. Nor- man J. Colman appointed Com- missioner and then first Secretary, 97- Allen, Lewis F., uncle of Grover Cleveland, editor of "American Shorthorn Herd Book." jS "American Shorthorn Herd Book," Lewis F. Allen editor, Grover Cleveland assisted in editing from i8s5 to 1861, 28 Anderson, E. Ellery, Mr. Cleve- land's letter to, on silver ques- tion, referred to, 151. Apgar, Edgai K., one of Tilden's lieutenants, 49; correspondence with Cleveland, 49; becomes Mr. Cleveland's confidential political adviser, 369; guest of Mr. Cleve- land with William U. Hensel, 392 Armstrong Committee, referred to, 222, Arthur, Chester A., opposition to free silver coinage, 72; referred to, 102; Mr. Cleveland's relations to and opinion of, 246 Bailey, E. Prentiss, letter of Mr. Cleveland to, on party conditions, 220 Baltimore, Md., Anne Neal, mother of Grover Cleveland, born and married there, 17 Bass, Lyman K., friend of Grover Cleveland, nominated against him for District Attorney and elected, 35 ; elected to Congress later, 35 ; becomes head of law firm of Bass, Cleveland & Bissell, 37 Battle-flags, return of, 386; NIr. Clevclaiui's opinion of the mis- judgment of pul)iic, 387 Bayard, Thomas F., presented for Presidential nomination, 69; ap- pointed Secretary of State in first Cabinet, 79; curt dismissal of many claims against foreign coun- tries, 84; firm attitude upon the anti-Semitic mnvrmrnt. 85; name considered for rcapp, 192; letter to author on feeling aroused by the Venezuela crisis. 192; only Cabinet officer appointed to office in second administration, 2JT,\ Mr. Cleveland attracted to, because of economic opinions. 291; letters from, found in house- cleaning at 816 Madison Avenue, 303; referred to as representative of the South, 309; as a politician and candidate for President, 318; the opposite of Mr. Cleveland, 319; his opinion of Mr. Cleve- land as President. 320; letters to the author about .American rela- tions with Great Britain. 321 ; let- ter to the author alniut Mr. Cleveland, 2)22; Mr. Cleveland's opinion of, 323; friendship with. Belmont, August, resigns as direc- tor of the I-^iiiitablc Life Assur- ance Society, 230 Benedict, E. C, voyages of the yacht Onnda. I^*^ Bethlehem Iron Company, con- tract with, for production of armor and g\m steel. 80 Bible. Mr. Cleveland student of, in e.irlicr life. 347 Bibliography, 410 Biographical and Historical ma- terial, Clevelaiid's indifTrreiuT to, 6 Birmingham, United States con- sulate in, appointment of author to, 188; character of, 188 414 INDEX Birmingham Dramatic and Lite- rary Club, celebration of Shake- speare's birthday, 192 Bissell, Wilson S., inside views of second administration, 5; junior partner in law firm of Bass, Cleveland & Bissell, 37; estimate of Cleveland as a lawyer, 37-41 ; goes to Albany to the guberna- torial inauguration, 56; chosen as Postmaster-General in second Cabinet, 176; appointed for politi- cal, not personal, reasons, 370 Bissell, Mrs. Wilson S., xvi Blaine, James G., Republican candi- date for President in 1884 and party revolt, 69; Mr. Cleveland's action in relation to a scandalous report, 245 Boies, Horace, proposed by friends for Vice-President, 133 ; call upon Mr. Cleveland, speech at banquet, and sequel, 134; threw away Vice- Presidency, 135 ; declines tender of Secretaryship of Agriculture, 178 Boteler, Alexander R., Pardon Clerk of the Department of Jus- tice, 114; his narration of Cleve- land's methods of dealing with pardons, 115 Boutellc, C. A., opposes appropria- tion for new navy, 397 Bowen & Rogers, Grover Cleve- land's law preceptors, 28 Breckinridge, Clifton R., in group of Mr. Cleveland's friends, 182 Bridgeport, Conn., Mr. Cleveland's speech there in campaign of 1884, 70 Bryan, William Jennings, Mr. Cleveland's opinions of, 209; his interest in earlier career, 213 ; seeking offices for his friends, many of them Populists, 214; Mr. Cleveland's opinion of his sin- cerity in the Parker campaign, 215; did not believe Bryan would be nominated in 1908, 216 "Bryan and Bryanism," 202 Bryant, Dr. Joseph D., Mr. Cleve- land's intimate friendship with, 371 Buchanan, James, Cleveland's sup- port of, in campaign of 1856, 33 Buffalo, N. Y., Grover Cleveland's first visit, 28; life at the Southern Hotel and estimate of its influ- ence upon him, 29; conditions of municipal development and favor- able geographical position, 42; election of Cleveland as Mayor, 44; inauguration as Mayor, 45; asked to meet Daniel Manning, 48; letter from Edgar K. Apgar, 49; Mr. Cleveland's reply, 50; Mr. Cleveland's general opinion con- cerning his position there, 370 Bynum, William D., in group of Mr. Cleveland's friends, 182 Caldwell, N. J., Rev. Richard Falley Cleveland called to pastor- ate of Presbyterian church, 18; birth of Grover Cleveland, 18 California. Methods of John P. Irish in managing convention, 140 Campaign biography, written, 4 Campbell, James E., chosen by Whitney Conference in New York as President of the Chicago Con- vention of 1892, 158; declines to have his name presented, 161 Carlisle, John G., conversation with the President reported, 105 ; Mr. Cleveland's opinion of, as his probable successor, 175 ; in group of intellectual friends, 182; eflfect of election as Speaker of the House, 310; declined Chief Jus- ticeship of United States Su- preme Court, 367 Carter, James C, name considered for Chief Justiceship of Supreme Court, 367 Cassatt, A. J., resigns as director of the Equitable Life Assurance Society, 230 Chamberlain, the Right Honora- ble Joseph, M.P., informal con- ference held at his house, 193 Charleston, W. Va., author's jour- ney thither to procure Stevenson's letter of acceptance, 170 China, treaty with, negotiated, 85 Chronology, 408 Civil Service Reform, appointment of men for fitness, 63 ; law adopted in response to Mr. Cleveland's recommendations, 66; letter to George William Curtis, 71 ; atti- tude upon, as President, 100 ; not a member of the Buff^alo associa- tion, 252; letter to the New York State Civil Service Reform Asso- ciation, 252; suggestions made by TXDEX 41 David B. Hill and Professor Willard Fiskc, 253 ; attitude taken in letter of acceptance as gov- ernor. 255 ; letter to Thomas Spratt, on post-office at Morris- town, N. Y., 256 ; anecdote by Valentine P. Snyder, 257; exten- sion under Presidents Arthur and Cleveland, 258; appoints George B. Cortelyou, as official stenographer and assistant secre- tary to the President. 260; Mr. Cleveland's large relation to, as President, 279; Mr. Cleveland al- ways firm supporter, but often disapproved methods of advo- cates of system, 262 Civil Service Reform Associa- tions, Mr. Cleveland's plain ex- pression of opinion concerning, 258 Cleaveland, Moses, first of name on American continent, 14 Cleveland, Rev. Aaron, the third, died in house of Benjamin Franklin, 15 Cleveland, Rev. Aaron, the fourth. grandfather of ex-President, life in Norwich. Conn., 15 ; genealogi- cal poem analyzing family, 15-17 Cleveland, Grover, writings and speeches collected, 3 ; campaign biography, 4; indifference to gathering of biographical and his- torical material, 6; letter sug- gesting estimate of himself, 6; no finer product of democracy, ii; his quality of reticence, II ; these recollections a study, not a por- trait, 12; indifference to geneal- og>'. 13 ; William Cleveland his grandfather, 16: birth at Cald- well, N. J., 18; clerk in gro- cery-store at Fayetteville, N. Y., and his interest in the work. 19 ; bookkeeper and assistant superintendent of the New York Institution for the Blind, 22: estimate of, by Miss Fanny Crosby. 23-27 ; a persistent reader of his- tory and poetry, 2i; his kindness of heart as a young man, 2t,: his capacity for friendship, 24 : his modest demeanor, 24 ; indepen- dence and character, 25 ; return home to enter upon career, 28; emplo\ment sought in Utica and Syracuse, 28; visit to his uncle Lewis F. Allen at Buffalo, 28; begins the study of law with Howen & Rogers, 28; admittr ' t the liar. 31 ; qualities as .i .st : and young piactitioncr, 31 , • clerk in law tirm of his pr- ■ ;, tors, 31; drafted in the arm . procures .substituli-, 32; return to practice of the law. and ass«H-ia- tion with A. P. Laning and C* I'olsom, 36; becomes Shrrr: Erie County, 36; enters la\v of Bass, Cleveland & H 37; Wilson S. Missell's est;; of position as lawyer, 3^-41 ; mar- riage to Miss Frances Polsom. loo Political aligtimcnt : supported James Buchanan before his ma- jority, 33 ; explanation of his rea- sons for party affiliations. 33-34; intimate knowledge of practical politics, 34-35 ; search for avail- able candidate for Mayor of Buf- falo in 1882, 42; nomination for Mayor, 43 ; canvass and election as Mayor, 44 ; inaugurated as Mayor, 45 ; attends Syracuse Con- vention, 52 Public life: Assistant District Attorney of Erie County, New York, 31 ; defeated for District Attorney, 35 : declined tender of place, as .\ssistant United State* District .\ttorney, 36; nominated and elected Sheriff of Eric County. New York. 36; nominated and elected Mayor of Buffalo. 44; in- augurated as Mayor of Buffalo. 45; vigorous reform attitude as Mayor, 46: "Plain Speech Veto" sent to City Council, 47; move- ment to nominate Cleveland a* Democratic candidate for (gov- ernor of New York. 47; askr ! t ■ meet Daniel Manning, letter i- 1 Edgar K. .Xpgar, 40; Mr. Clt . . land's reply. 30; asked to attend State Convention at Syracuse. 51 ; his consent and opinion he ex- pressed abtiut it, 52: letter •)f ac- ceptance as Governor, 53; cor- poration control, 54 ; election as Governor, 55: i; " ' Governor, 5is expressed upon t! cident t'men's sons, 20-21 ; of early associations and people, 30; of practical poli- ticians, 23 J of methods of deal- ing with party organizations, 34; of his visit to the Syracuse Con- vention, 52 ; of the difficulties sur- INDEX 41; rounding a newly elected Gov- ernor, 58; Buffalo veto policy continued, 60; of William C. Whitney, 90; of reelection to the Presidency, 12S; of active men in certain States, 136; of the Farmers' Alliance. 137 ; of Steven- son's letter of acceptance as Vice- President, 169; of John G. Car- lisle, 175; of applicants for Cabi- net appointments, 180; of Wil- liam L. Wilson, 183 ; of choosing men of prominent positions for Cabinet officials, 184; of the safe- guards of self-government. 185; of the acceptance of appointive offices, 187; of the demoraliza- tion of the Democratic party, 202 ; of William Jennings Bryan, 209; of the history and principles of the Democratic party. 210; of Demo- cratic opportunity. 218; of his work as Chairman of the Equi- table trustees, 237 ; of Thomas F. Ryan, 238; of Alonzo B. Cornell, 242 ; of Charles J. Folger, 243 ; of James G. Blaine, 245 ; of Ben- jamin Harrison, 247; of William McKinley, 249; of Civil Service Reform and personal interest, 258; of the use of patronage to punish party opponents, 269; of personal friends and offices, 273 ; of the use of temporary power for personal purposes, 274; of Senator George F. Hoar, 291 ; of John Sherman, 292; of the orig- inal Interstate Commerce Com- mission, 296; of appointment of Southerner as head of a military branch of government. 312; of his own unpopularity at close of second administration, 315; of Thomas F. Bayard, 323; of J. Pierpont Morgan, 324; of James J. Hill, 326; of George Gray, 327; of Patrick A. Collins. 330; of John E. Russell. ^,^^2: of Samuel J. Tilden, 337. 33^- 340. 341 ; of David B. Hill and the New York State election of 1888. 342; of ingratiating himself with editors or owners of newspapers, 360; of independence of the ju- diciary. 365 ; of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 376; of newspaper editors, 376; of the Bible, 382; 27 of the United States as a Chris- tian nation, 383 Cleveland, Mrs.Grover, n^c Fran- ces I'olMxn. tnarriaijc and char- acter, I (XI Cleveland, Lewis Fredric, enlisted in I'ederal army irum New York City and served in the Army of the Potomac. 3J Cleveland, Richard Cecil, enlisted in Inderal army from rrawfor Clinton, N. Y., Rev Richard Falley Cleveland's removal there as Prc5H 4i8 INDEX dent of the American Home Mis- sionary Society, 19; seat of Ham- ilton College, 19 Cochran, William Bourke, speech before the National Convention of 1892 in Chicago, 164 Collected "Writings and Speeches," part of the campaign for 1892, 3 ; chapter on the Indian question in, 97 Collins, Patrick A., relations with Mr. Cleveland, 328; estimate of, 329; latter's opinion of, 330; con- tributes to memorial of, 331 Colman, Norman J., original Sec- retary of Agriculture, 97; friend- ship w^ith Mr. Cleveland, 372 Columbus, O., "Old Roman" ban- quet held in, Mr. Cleveland prin- cipal speaker, 132 Commission, government by, Mr. Cleveland's fears, 295 ; danger of use by politicians or designing men, 299 Conference, the Whitney, 156; ad- journed to Chicago, 158; never mentioned in newspapers, 158; met at Hotel Richelieu, Chicago, 159; presided over at first meet- ing by Adlai E. Stevenson, 159 Constitution Centennial in Phila- delphia, 102 Cornell, Alonzo B., Mr. Cleve- land's predecessor as Governor, 242 Corporations, their control by the State, 54 Cortelyou, George Bruce, appointed official stenographer and assistant private secretary, 260 ; anecdote of, narrated by General L. T. Michener, 261 ; Mr. Cleveland's confidence and interest in, 262 ; career used by Mr. Cleveland to illustrate possibilities of our sys- tem, 263. Estimate of Mr. Cleve- land, 404-407 : high qualities dis- played, 404 ; close acquaintance with, 405; methods of work, 406; domestic life, beauty of, 407 Crosby, Miss Fanny, pupil and teacher in Institution for the Blind, 22; estimate of Gro\i2r Cleveland, 2.3-27 Curtis, George William, letter to, on Civil Service Reform, 71 ; favored appointment of Daniel Manning in Cabinet, "JT, Presi- dent State Civil Service Reform Association, 252 "Democracy in America," Dr. Tocqueville's, cited in a message, 66 Democratic Campaign Text-Book for 1888, prepared by author in White House, 106; proofs sent to the President, 119; one hun- dred volunteer workers assisted in its compilation, 120; author's secret never revealed, 121 Democratic National Convention of 1884, at Chicago, July 11, 68 Democratic National Convention of 1892, methods of management of Mr. Cleveland's cause, 159-163; speech by W. Bourke Cochran, 164 Democratic National Convention of 1908, Mr. Cleveland's keen in- terest in, 217 Democratic party, Mr. Cleveland's concern over its demoralization after 1896, 202; opinion of "wreckers," 207 ; fear that it might become a "Cave of Adul- 1am," 208; opinion of its principles and history, 210; treachery to, in second administration, and Mr. Cleveland's skepticism, 211; Mr. Cleveland's sorrow over its sad condition, 222 Democrats, the Cleveland, 277 ; Mr. Cleveland's interest in and knowledge of, 283 ; name given to a type, 284 Dickinson, Don M., presses Mr. Cleveland to accept invitation to make address on Washington before students of Michigan State University, 145 ; attends con- ference at William C. Whitney's house. 156, n.; friendship with Mr. Cleveland, 372 Dix, John A., Governor of New York, 56 Donahue, Judge, referred to, 221 Drum, General R. C, recommends return of captured battle-flags, 387 Economic questions, Mr. Cleve- land's careful study of, attracted to Washington, Hamilton, Jeffer- son, Madison, and Jackson, 286 ; and to Samuel J. Tilden, 288; friend- ship for Joseph E. McDonald, INDEX 41Q 289; attitude towards Thomas A. Hendricks, 290; towards Allen (i. Thurman, 290; and towards Adiai E. Stevenson. 291 Edmunds, George F., Mr. Cleve- land attracted to his attitude on financial questions, 292 Elias, Kope, Mr. Cleveland's letter to, on permanent retirement from politics, 204 ; letter to, on free coinage of silver, 314; letter to, on attitude of the South towards false and dangerous theories, 315 Emperor of Germany, telegram to President Kruger of the Trans- vaal Republic, ig2 Endicott, William C, appointed Secretary of War in first Cabi- net, 80; careful management of his department, 92; friendship with Mr. Cleveland, ^f^z England, complications with, over naturalized citizens, 84; new ex- tradition treaty with, 85 Equitable Life Assurance Society, Thomas F. Ryan's purchase of the stock and nomination of trus- tees of, 224; organization of trustees, 229; resignations of di- rectors, 230; address issuecj by trustees, 231 Equitable trust, the, constituted by Thomas F. Ryan with Mr. Cleveland as head, 224; Mr. Ryan's letter to Mr. Cleveland, 225 ; Morgan J. O'Brien and George Westinghouse made mem- bers of, 226; organization com- pleted, 229; filling vacancies in directorate, 230; correspondence concerning, with secretary, 233, 234, 23s, 2^7, 240; Mr. Cleve- land insists that technicalities shall not count, 236; Mr. Cleve- land's opinion of the work done, 237; diminishes misunderstand- ings in the South, 316 Ewing, William G., attends con- ference at William C. Whitney's honse, 156, n. Fairchild, Charles S., succeeds Mr. Manning as Secretary of the Treasury, 87; invested proceeds sinking fund in purchase of bonds, 87 ; consulted about Anderson let- ter on free silver, 151 ; Mr. Cleve- land's friendship with, i^z Fallcy, Margaret, married to Wil- liam C'lcwl.iiid. i() Farmers' Alliance movement, the. .Mr. CUv(l.ind\ intiTi-st in, M7 Fayetteville, N. Y., Rev. Richard l.iiley Clevrl.inds rcmrival there as pastor ot Presbyterian church. i8-ig; (irover Cleveland clerk in grocerv-sfi>re. 10 Fiske, t'rofcssor Willard, Jetier from, to D.iviil H. ilill. sent to Mr. Clrvrlaiul. .'53 Flower, RoswcU P., candidate for Democratic gubernatorial nomina- tion in 1W2. 48 Folger, Charles J., Secretary of the Treasury and Repul)lican can- didate for (juvernor of New York, 48; Mr. Cleveland's opin- ion of, 243 Folsom, Miss Frances, marriage to (Irover Cieveiaiui. loO Folsom, Oscar, number of tirm of Laniiig. Inlsoin & Cleveland. 36 Foreign affairs, care in manaRc- ment of. 84; complications with Great Britain over Irish disputes, 84; prevention by treaty of en- trance of Chinese laborers, 85 Franklin, Benjamin, Rev. Aaron Cleveland, tliird, dies at his house in Philadelplna, 15 Frick, Henry C, resigns as direc- tor of the I'".(|uitable Life .-Vssur- ance Socictw 2,^o Friendships, Mr. Cleveland's, 3'»j; Enlargement of circle in Wash- ington, including all members of Cabinet. 371 ; with Senators and Representatives. 374 ; shy of news- paper men. 375 ; interest in .struggling persons. 377 ; capacity for friendship, 378; a greeting from William C. Whitney. 37*); a parting letter from William K. Vilas. 3S0 Fuller, Melville W.. appointed Chief Justice of the L'nifed States Supreme Court. 93 ; deciding rea- son for making appointment. 368 Garland, Augustus H.. appointed .•\ttorney-(itiural in tirst Cabinet. 79; conduct of his office, QJ ; letters from, found in house- cleaning process. 303: stat' for, prepared by Mr. Cle-. 420 INDEX 304 ; referred to as representing the South, 309 Genealogy, Mr. Cleveland's indif- ference to, 13 ; opinion of what constitutes a good family, 14; first of name on American con- tinent, 14; poem by Rev. Aaron Cleveland, fourth, 15-17 "Gold Telegram," interest shown by Mr. Cleveland in campaign of igo8 after the sending of, 207 Governor of New York, his re- sponsibility, 56 Grant, General U. S., silence re- ferred to, 358 Gray, George, believed to be the logical candidate for President in 1904, 203 ; friendship with Mr. Cleveland, 310; Mr. Cleveland's opinion of, 327 Green, Andrew H.,anecdote of, 339 Gresham, Judge Walter Q., chosen for Secretary of State, 178 Ham, Moses M., interest in nom- ination of Horace Boies for Vice- President, 133 Hamilton, Alexander, Mr. Cleve- land's study of, 287 Harriman, Edward H., resigns as director of the Equitable Life Assurance Society, 230 Harrison, Benjamin, Mr. Cleve- land's opinion of, 246; character- istics, 247; Mr. Cleveland re- sented efforts of his own ap- pointees to hold on under, 276; never bowed to the god of free silver, 289 Harrity, William F., attends con- ference at William C. Whitney's house, 156, n. Haynie, William Duff, xvi Hendricks, Thomas A., presented for Presidential nomination and chosen for Vice-President, 69; Mr. Cleveland rather resented his attitude on financial questions, 290 Hensel, William U., estimate of Mr. Cleveland, 390-395 : meeting with him at a Brooklyn barbecue, 391 ; description of articles sent after election of 1884, 393 ; ex- perience in pardon cases, 393, 394. 395 Herbert, Hilary A., chosen for Secretary of the Navy, 178; Mr. Cleveland explains his hesitation to appoint as head of military branch, as Secretary of the Navy, 312. Estimate of Mr. Cleveland, 395-403: reconstruction of the navy, 395; bill reported to the House, 397; issues on which Mr. Cleveland was renominated in 1892, 399; gold platform adopted by Republicans, 400; anecdote by, illustrating same, 401 ; relations of the United States with Spain, 402 Hill, David B., New York delega- tion to Chicago Convention of 1892 instructed for, 145 ; not con- sidered for Cabinet appointment, because term in United States Senate had just been entered on, 176; letter to Mr. Cleveland on Civil Service Reform, 253; Mr. Cleveland's opinion of, in rela- tion to New York State cam- paign of 1888, 342; his own opin- ion of this contradictory result, 343 Hill, James J., resigns as director of the Equitable Life Assurance Society, 230; Mr. Cleveland's opinion of, 326 Hilles, Mrs. W. B., nee Florence Bayard, xvi Hoar, George F,, Mr. Cleveland's reminder that he was for honest money, 291 Honey, Samuel R., attends confer- ence at William C. Whitney's house, 156, n. House-cleaning process at 816 Madison Avenue, New York City, 13, 253; done during Easter week of 1892, 301 ; some of the revelations it made, 302 ; interest- ing correspondence and public documents, 303 ; letters from Messrs. Bayard, Whitney, Vilas, Lamar, and Garland. 303 Hyde-Alexander quarrel, the, Mr. Cleveland's interest in, 223 "In my blundering way," one of Mr. Cleveland's stock phrases. 351 Institution for the Blind, in New York, William and Grover Cleve- land employed as teachers, 22 Insurance Department, appoint- ment of Superintendent. 63 Insurance episode, the, 223 Interstate Commerce Commis- i INDEX 4-1 sion, 295 : Mr. Cleveland sifjns the bill with misgivings. J96 ; ap- pointment of Thomas M. Coolcy as original Chairman. 297 Ipswich, England, Moses Cleavc- land loaves there for Massachu- setts. 14 Irish, John P., activity in promot- ing renomination campaign in California, 140; anecdote concern- ing. 141 ; his estimate of Mr. Cleveland's position in declining to press for Cabinet appointment, 180; referred to by Mr. Cleve- land. 187. Estimate contributed by. 386-390: opinion of Mr. Cleveland's judgment of men, 388 Jackson, Andrew, Mr. Cleveland's birthday speech on, 350 Jay, John, favored appointment of Daniel Manning in Cabinet. "]-; ; member of committee State Civil Service Reform Association. 2^2 Jefferson, Thomas, Mr. Cleveland's studies and addresses on, 287 Jenks, George A., eflFiciency as Solicitor-General, 93 Judiciary, the, and official criticism, 365; Mr. Cleveland's pride in ap- pointments to. 366; choice of Chief Justice and considerations entering therein, 367 Kieley, Anthony M., sent as Min- ister to Italv and later to Austria. 85 Kruger, President, German Em- peror's telegram to, 192 Labor questions, come to the front as issues during Mr. Cleveland's first year as Governor, questions emphasized, 63; veto of bill deal- ing with contract labor, 67 Lamar, L. Q. C, appointed Secre- tary of the Interior in the first Cabinet. 79 ; appointed Associate Justice of the United States Su- preme Court. 80; support of Hoke Smith for Secretary of the In- terior. 177; agreement with Mr. Cleveland on financial questions. 291 ; letters from, found in house- cleaning process, 303: reference to, as representing the South. 30Q ; friendship with Mr. Cleveland. 372 Lament, Daniel S., inside views of second admini';tration. 5; rir>t used phrase. "Public office, a pub- lic trust." as title of a campaign pamplilet, 44 ; appointed private secretary to the President. 76; tele- gram from, to author alnnit Cam paigTi Text -Hook, 106; scheme of. outlint'd. 107; credential.s given to author. 108; asks author to sec Mr. Cleveland, 124; consulted about the letter to K. Kllcry An- derson on free silver, 151 ; chown for Secretary of War, 177; re- ferred to. 188: interest in the campaign of i(X34, 205; lieutenant to Samuel J. Tildcn. 3.^; inti- macy of relations with Sir. Cloc- land. 371 Laning, A. P., head of firm «>f Laning, Folsom & Cleveland. 3ft Lee, General Fitzhugh, Consul- Gencral to Havana, asks that a war-vessel >lii)uld be sent into Cnl>an waters. 402 Legislatures, 363; Mr. Cleveland would not use social influence to influence >amc. 364 Lentz, John J., organizes and suc- cessfully conducts the "Old Ro- man" banquet to .Mien G. Thur- man in Columbus. O.. 132 Letter of acceptance of Presiden- tial nomination in 1884, submitted to Sanuifl J. TiMrn. .vv8 Literary deficiencies of the time, n Lochren, William, pressed for Cabinet appointment. appointc. n. Stevenson. Adlai E., Chairman of adjourned Whitney Conference in Chicago. 159; letter of accept- ance as Vice-President, methound in houseclfaninR prnccs*, 303; friendship with Mr. Cleve- land, 372; birthday greeting to tlir l.Tttcr. 37