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LIFE AND WORK OF THEODORE ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL

 CHAPTER FOUR

ENTRY INTO POLITICS

Attends His First Primary—Discovers His Life Work— Nominated and Elected State Assemblyman—Fights Corruption and Beats a Hired Thug—Good Work and Valuable Experience in the Legislature—Reform His Watchword—Early Steps in National Politics.
It was in 1881, when he was twenty-three years of age, that Theodore Roosevelt attended his first primary in New York and thereupon discovered his life work. To the average well-educated young man of his day, there might well have seemed nothing but mean selfishness and sordidness in a city primary; but Mr. Roosevelt was prompt to recognize the power of the primary and its importance in a free government.

He saw an opportunity for good work to his liking, and practical politics immediately began to attract him. It was the beginning of a life-long interest, based upon a sincere desire to correct existing evils of government to be of service to the community wherever service such as he could render was needed. From that time on he served wherever duty called and was never found wanting.

Mr. Roosevelt had only just returned home from his post graduation travels when he was solicited to become a candidate for election to the Legislature of New York from the Twenty first Assembly district of the State.
For nearly two centuries the Roosevelts had been concerned with public affairs, and the prospect of an active political life had a natural attraction for the young man. Hon. Chauncey Depew, the distinguished former Senator of New York, has told in his memorial article in earlier pages some of the circumstances that attended the first nomination of Mr. Roosevelt for public office, and it is not necessary to recount them. Other intimate details of the event, however, that are still remembered among New York politicians, will be found interesting.

How He Was Nominated
One day when Mr. Roosevelt was scarcely more than a year beyond the last of his college days, he met one Joe Murray, a district worker around the Roosevelt home locality. Joe Murray had had a falling out with Jacob Hess, the district boss of the Twenty-first Assembly district. Jacob Hess had had his own idea as to who should be the next Assemblyman from the Twenty-first. Joe had an idea wholly different.

"Listen, men," said Joe Murray to his faction of anti-Hess district workers, according to the best local political historians of the day. "What this silk-stocking neighborhood will rise to is a swell candidate for the Assembly. Who's the swellest family around here? The Roosevelts. Listen, men—let's trot out this young colleger, Teddy Roosevelt, and we'll put Barney Hess flat on his back."

The young "colleger" got the nomination.   Instantly he began a local campaign that had all those elements of the picturesque which in after years were to draw the attention of the world to his far greater contests.   And whether it was due to his own campaign methods, the a hearty hustling of his lieutenant, Joe Murray, a desire of neighborhood for blue blood in the Assembly, or a combination of all these elements, the youthful-looking colleger, Teddy Roosevelt, was elected. He took his seat at Albany in January, 1882.

From the beginning of his public life the party "managers" were against him. They did not like the reputation of Roosevelt's for independent and fearless honesty of purpose and action; they looked young Roosevelt over, noted his square jaw and independence of speech, and resented them. They soon discovered that he was in the habit of thinking for himself and would not submit to dictation from "headquarters," and so his fight against bossism and the powers of evil in politics began with his first nomination and continued with added zest after his election. The "managers" soon found out with what manner of man they had to deal. It was a political giant in process of development. And the young giant knew that corruption existed at Albany and throughout the State. That was enough for him, and he soon got busy.

A Fearless Speech
It was on April 6,1882, that young Roosevelt took the floor in the Assembly at Albany and demanded that Judge Westbrook of Newburgh, against whom certain charges had been made, be impeached. And for sheer moral courage that act is probably supreme in Roosevelt's life thus far. He must have expected failure. Even his youth and idealism and ignorance of public affairs could not blind him to the apparently inevitable consequences.

That speech—the deciding act in Roosevelt's career— was not remarkable for eloquence. But it was remarkable for fearless candor. He called thieves thieves, regardless of their millions; he slashed savagely at the judge and the attorney-general; he told the plain unvarnished truth as his indignant eyes saw it.
When he finished, the veteran leader of the Republicans rose and with gently contemptuous raillery asked that the resolution to take up the charge be voted down. He said he wished to give young Mr. Roosevelt time to think about the wisdom of his course.

"I," said he, "have seen many reputations in the State broken down by loose charges made in the Legislature."

And presently the Assembly gave "young Mr. Roosevelt time to think" by voting not to take up his "loose charges."

Ridicule, laughter, a ripple—apparently it was all over, except the consequences to the bumptious and dangerous young man which might flow from the cross set against his name in the black books of "the ring."

He Fights Corruption and Wins
That night the young man was once more urged to be "sensible," to "have regard for his future usefulness," to "cease injuring the party." He snapped his teeth together and defied the party leaders. The next day he again rose and again lifted his puny voice and his puny hand against smiling, contemptuous Corruption.

Day after day he persevered on the floor of the Assembly, in interviews for the press; a few newspapers here and there joined with him; Assemblymen all over the State began to hear from their constituents. Within a week his name was known from Buffalo to Montauk Point, and everywhere the people were applauding him.

On the eighth day of his bold, smashing attack the resolution to take up the charges was again voted upon at his demand. And the Assemblymen, with the eyes of the whole people upon them, did not dare longer keep themselves on record as defenders of a judge who feared to demand an investigation.   The opposition collapsed. Roosevelt won by 104 to 6.
Beats a Hired Thug
When the gentlemen who had been accustomed to run the lower house of the Legislature, no matter which party was in power, found that they could not control Mr. Roosevelt, that he could be neither bought nor bullied, they resorted to the desperate expedient of hiring a thug to administer physical chastisement as a rebuke for his temerity in opposing their will. The mere fact showed the caliber of the men who had been in almost absolute control of legislation in the State—and the need of men like Roosevelt in public life.

One night, in the lobby of the old Delavan House in Albany, since burned, the thug and his expected victim met. There the legislators were accustomed to congregate every evening and much of the "inside" business of the session was transacted. Mr. Roosevelt started to leave the hotel at 10 o'clock on the night in question, after spending some time chatting with fellow-members. As he passed a door leading to the buffet, a noisy group emerged, as if by signal. Among them was a pugilist known as "Stubby" Collins, and this fellow proceeded to jostle Mr. Roosevelt with some force. Instantly the latter, who was alone, realized the nature and animus of the act. He paused, on guard, and "Stubby" struck at him, demanding with a show of indignation what he meant by running into him that way.

"Stubby's" blow did not land on the young legislator. His employers had not told him that Mr. Roosevelt had been one of the best boxers at Harvard, and enjoyed a fight. But he had been paid to "beat up" the young man and went ahead to earn his fee.
With great coolness Mr. Roosevelt awaited the attack which he knew was coming. He took up a position where he could see, not only the thug, but all the group accompanying him and in the background certain others whom he suspected of being the real principals. As he stood waiting, "Stubby" made his rush.

The fight lasted less than a minute, for the thug had more than met his match. He had the surprise of his life. As his friends picked him up from the floor, a badly beaten man, "Stubby" gazed in astonishment at the smiling Roosevelt and realized that he had much to learn about boxing and "beating up."

As the thug was removed for repairs, Mr. Roosevelt walked across the lobby and pleasantly informed the astounded promoters of the affair that he understood their connection with it and was greatly obliged to them. He said he had not enjoyed anything so much for a year.

Respect for his personality was thenceforth among the mingled feelings with which he was regarded by the inner circles of legislation at Albany, and his influence grew apace.

Becomes a Force in Politics
The investigation of the accused judge which Mr. Roosevelt had secured, as noted above, resulted in a whitewashing report, but that was not his fault.

The vote to investigate was his first personal political victory, and from then on in the Legislature he was a force to be reckoned with. In the fall of 1882, the year in which Grover Cleveland was elected Governor of New York, Roosevelt was re-elected Assemblyman by a big majority, despite the fact that it was a Democratic year. In 1883 he was elected for a third term. During his second term he was the Republican  floor leader, and in his third he was a candidate for the speakership, but was defeated through the influence of Warner Miller.

During his last two terms in the Assembly Roosevelt came into close touch with Grover Cleveland, then Governor. Although of opposite political faiths, there was a bond of sympathy between the two men in their stalwart independence of thought and action, and the Governor grew to trust and rely on his young antagonist, even more surely, it is said, than he did the regular leaders of his own party. Time and again the Governor sought and found in the Republican leader the support and encouragement that his own partisans denied him. Particularly was this true in their united efforts in behalf of a better civil service, in the national development of which both were to be such efficient champions. It was Mr. Roosevelt who, following the recommendation in the Governor's message, introduced and pushed through the Legislature a State civil service act, very similar to and almost simultaneously with the Federal act.

Results of Legislative Work
Mr. Roosevelt's experience in the Legislature was of great value to him, in his development as a public man. It also resulted in his introduction to the nation, for larger opportunities for service were soon to open before him. His work as a legislator was handicapped by the opposition that sought to nullify his efforts, particularly at the start, but he succeeded in making a decided impression on the legislation of his terms and several measures of great public utility owed their inception to him.

Besides securing the enactment of a civil service law for the State, thus inaugurating the merit system where it was sorely needed, he secured an investigation of the county offices of the State. By this investigation it was discovered that the principal officials in New York County were drawing nearly a million dollars a year in fees, while discharging no duties whatever; and all such offices were subsequently placed on a moderate salary basis.

Mr. Roosevelt also began an inquiry into the abuse of police power in New York, and this continued until better conditions were brought about. He secured an amendment to the Constitution of the State, taking from the aldermen of New York City the supreme executive power and placing it where it rightfully belongs, in the hands of the Mayor. This and other reforms in which he aided brought home to the people of the State a better realization of their power and ability to right wrongs and abolish evils, if they would but exert themselves through their representatives and the organization of public opinion to influence legislative action. Eight gallantly did Theodore uphold the Roosevelt traditions in the Legislature.

The Blaine Campaign in 1884
Republican State leaders who had grown gray in the political turmoil while young Roosevelt still was a stripling, suddenly began to look his way and take some notice. In 1884, or in his twenty-sixth year, they sent the young Assemblyman as chairman of the New York delegation to the Republican convention at Chicago which nominated James Gr. Blaine, "the Plumed Knight," idol of the rank and file of Republicanism, as Cleveland's opponent after a bitter scrimmage.

The struggle over the Republican Presidential nomination of 1884 began in the choice of delegates to the State convention. Mr. Roosevelt had to defeat his old opponent, Jacob Hess, the district boss, before he himself secured a place as delegate to the State convention at Utica. He had won the confidence of the reform element of his party, as represented by such men as George William Curtis and Carl Schurz, who were united on George F. Edmunds, of Vermont, as their candidate. Mr. Roosevelt went to Utica an enthusiastic partisan of the Vermont statesman. The convention was divided between supporters of Arthur, Blaine, and Edmunds, and the delegates to the National convention were uninstructed. But Roosevelt and his friends held the balance of power, and he himself was made one of the delegates-at-large and chosen chairman of the delegation.

In the proceedings at the Chicago convention he took a prominent part. He took part, at the opening session, in the revolt against the National Committee's selection of Powell Clayton, of Arkansas, as temporary chairman, and gave his support to John E. Lynch, of Mississippi, 'a negro, who was elected. In the same spirit of revolt at machine dictation he advocated a change in the plan of selecting delegates to future conventions, which should make the number of Republican votes cast in the last previous election a basis of representation. The proposal was defeated then, as it has been several times since. In Ms role of reformer, the twenty-six-year-old delegate opposed the nomination of Blaine to the extent of standing up in the convention and making a speech in which he placed the name of United States Senator George F. Edmunds in nomination. During the bitter struggle which ensued over the balloting, he worked and voted steadfastly for Edmunds, and was one of the nine New York delegates who voted for him on the final ballot.

Went West to Think It Over
After the convention Roosevelt went West to the ranch which he had bought in North Dakota to think the situation over in quiet and make up his mind what course to take. Many of his friends among the reform element of the party had announced in advance of the convention that they would not support Blaine if he were nominated. Every day saw some close friend or associate declaring his intention of supporting the Democratic nominees. He was at a parting of the ways.

The idea of temporarily severing his connection with the party did not appear to him as possible. With him the question was simply whether he should stay in or stay out. He decided to stay in, and having decided he gave out the following public statement: "I intend to vote the Republican  Presidential ticket. A man cannot act both without and within the party; he can do either, but he cannot possibly do both. I went in with my eyes open to do what I could within the party; I did my best and got beaten, and I propose to stand by the result. I am by inheritance and by education a Republican; whatever good I have been able to accomplish in public life has been accomplished through the Republican party; I have acted with it in the past, and I wish to act with it in the future."

Following this declaration he returned to the East, where he took what was for him a rather inactive part in the campaign. Many independent Republicans, however, deserted Blaine and supported Cleveland.