Chapter 20

THE RISE OF THEODORE ROOSEVELT

[1900]

Theodore Roosevelt was born in New York City, October 27, 1858. He was graduated from Harvard in 1880. At the age of twenty-three he entered the New York State Assembly, where he served six years with great credit. Two years he was a "cowboy" in Dakota. He was United States Civil Service Commissioner and President of the New York City Police Board. In 1897 he became Assistant Secretary of the Navy, holding this position long enough to indite the despatch which took Dewey to Manila. He then raised the first United States Volunteer Cavalry, commonly spoken of as "Rough Riders," and went to Cuba as their lieutenant-colonel. Gallantry at Las Guasimas made him their colonel, the first colonel, Leonard Wood, having received a brigadier-general's commission. Returning from the war, Colonel Roosevelt found himself, as by a magic metamorphosis, Governor of his State, fighting civic battles against growing corporate abuses. He urged compulsory publicity for the affairs of monopolistic combinations, and was prominently instrumental in the enactment of the New York Franchise Tax Law.

The party managers in the 1900 convention hoped by making him Vice-President to remove him from competition for the presidency in 1904. But the most unexpected of the many swift transitions in his career foiled their calculations and brought him in a moment to the summit of a citizen's ambition.

The new chief magistrate was no less honest, fearless, or public-spirited than the recent one; it only remained to be seen whether he were not less astute and cautious. Coming to the office as he did, he was absolutely unfettered, which, in one of so frank a temperament, might prove a danger. He was more popular with the people than with politicians. Though highly educated and used to the best associations, he was more approachable than any of his predecessors. At a public dinner which he attended, one round of cheers was given him as "the President of the United States" another as "Roosevelt," and a third as "Teddy." Had McKinley been in his place a corresponding variation would have been unthinkable.

The members of President McKinley's cabinet were invited to retain their portfolios, which they agreed to do. At the time, Roosevelt was reputed to be the foremost civil service reformer in the country. Politicians were soon made aware that the President regarded fitness for office as the first test. Unfortunately during the presidency of McKinley, some 8000 offices had been taken out of the competitive lists. During Roosevelt's first term, however, the list of offices placed under the merit system was greatly extended. Within the twenty-one years from the enactment of the first national civil service reform law wonders had been accomplished in that more than one-half of the 300,000 offices in the executive civil service were placed in the classified competitive service.

President Roosevelt stood for liberal reciprocity with Cuba, urging this, at first, with results disastrous to party harmony. He was vindicated by public opinion, but learned wisdom. Though believed to be favorable to a decided easing of custom-house levies, his administration soon frankly avowed itself unable to proceed further than high- protectionists would follow. The evidence of his tariff convictions won him strong support in the West, which was prepared to go greater lengths than he. In the congressional campaign of 1902, ex-Speaker Henderson, of Iowa, a stanch protectionist, withdrew from public life, as was supposed, rather than misrepresent himself by acceding to tariff reform or his constituents by opposing it.

Mr. Roosevelt signalized his accession by an effort to make the federal anti-trust law something more than a cumberer of the statute-book. His inaugural message and innumerable addresses of his boldly handled the whole trust evil and called for the regulation of capitalistic combinations in the interest of the public.

Appreciation of the President's attitude on these matters may be assisted by some notice of the then threatening vigor and universality of the movement toward industrial combination. Mr. Beck, Assistant Attorney-General of the United States, declared in 1892:

"Excessive capitalization of corporations, dishonest management by their executive officers, the destruction of the rights of the minority, the theft of public utilities, the subordination of public interests to private gain, the debauchery of our local legislatures and executive officers, and the corruption of the elective franchise, have resulted from the facility afforded by the law to corporations to concentrate the control of colossal wealth in the hands of a few men . . . . The question presses ever more importunately for decision whether these marvellous aggregations of capital can be subordinated to the very laws which created them."

Legislation in many States, the enactment of the Sherman anti-trust law by Congress, and the decision of the Supreme Court in the Trans-Missouri case rendered insecure trust agreements of the old type, in which constituent corporations surrendered the control of their affairs to trustees. But the current merely shifted to a different channel, the trust proper giving way to the giant corporation having the same aims, methods, and efficiency, while, as more legal, it was less vulnerable.

In the railway world, "community of interest" assumed the place of pooling agreements. The Union Pacific acquired large holdings from Collis P. Huntington's estate and controlled the Southern Pacific. The power behind the Southern Railway got control of nearly all the other Southern railways, including the Atlantic Coast Line, the Plant System, and at last even the Louisville and Nashville. The New York Central dominated the other Vanderbilt roads. The Pennsylvania secured decisive amounts of Baltimore and Ohio stock, as well as weighty interests in the Chesapeake and Ohio and the Norfolk and Western, and so on.

[1902]