voters to be captured if the party's nominee
Capturing is to have it in his power to reward his
the Voter. supporters' services by remunerative offices.
Headquarters have to be maintained, a vast
mass of publicity hterature has to be written and printed
and distributed, newspapers have to be captured, campaign
12 America of the Americans
speakers and processions have to be subsidised, and there must
be a large reserve to purchase such votes as can be influenced
by nothing less substantial than a monetary argument.
By far the most strenuous efforts of the campaign are
directed against what are known as " the pivotal States."
A concrete example will illustrate this point. For a presi-
dential election the State of New York is entitled to return
thirty-seven members to the Electoral College, and the party
which wins the State by the smallest majority gets that
entire vote. The capture of New York by the Democrats in
1884 elected Mr. Cleveland to the presidency, yet they only
secured a little more than a thousand votes in excess of the
RepubHcan poll. The lesson was not lost upon their rivals,
for at the next election superhuman efforts were made to
carry New York in the RepubHcan interest, with the result
that the Democrats were defeated. Hence it is easy to
understand why the " pivotal States " are the arena of the
fiercest fighting.
What the American calls " Chinese business," that is,
spectacular demonstrations, processions, firework displays,
etc., is most in evidence in the doubtful States.
Businesr^' ^^^ rallies, picnics, bands, flags, party
emblems with the candidate's portrait, bets
and straw votes, incessant canvassing, and sometimes indirect
intimidation, are among the devices employed by the cam-
paign managers. As the art of personal pubhcity has been
wrought to a high pitch in the United States, it follows that
much of the literature so widely distributed is concerned with
the candidate's life. Hawthorne, it will be remembered,
wrote the " campaign biography " of Frankhn Pierce, while
that of Lincoln was the work of William D. Howells. Apart
from lending himself to this personal inquisition, the candidate
is now expected to stump the country in his own behalf. When
he received his first nomination in 1896, Mr. Bryan traversed
the country in a private car from whence he made some four
hundred impassioned orations, but that record was exceeded
President and Congress 13
by Mr. Taft in 1908 with 436 speeches dehvered over a journey
of more than 18,000 miles.
All the foregoing details of a presidential election are
unknown to the Constitution ; they are indeed extra-con-
stitutional, yet have become part of the
^**Co^leT^^^ poHtical machinery of the land. At the
eleventh hour, however, the Constitution
asserts itself once more, for the end of the commotion finds the
voters called upon to indicate their choice, not of the President,
but of the electors who have to decide between the candidates.
In each State the various parties agree upon a hst of candidates
for the Electoral College equal in number to the State repre-
sentation in Congress, and it is upon these various Hsts that
the voter exercises his choice. Hence it is the party which
wins a sufficient number of States to secure a bare majority
in the Electoral College which seats its candidate in the White
House, irrespective of whether he has secured a majority of
the popular vote. As soon as the November election is
concluded the country knows who is to be the next President,
even though the Electoral College does not meet until the
following January and Congress does not take official cogni-
sance of the result until February. Save when the issue
depends upon a few contested votes, the proceedings of the
Electoral College and Congress are nothing more than a
pretence. If a candidate has secured an undoubted majority
of the Electors he becomes President-elect as soon as the
November poll is closed.
Yet neither then nor at any subsequent period does he
receive any official intimation of his election ; the Constitu-
tion takes it for granted that he will not be
^"^"Ptlf *^°" ignorant of his good fortune and that he will
President. present himself at Washington on the 4th
of March to be sworn in to his high office.
The inauguration ceremony is conducted with democratic
simplicity, the retiring President and the President-elect
being driven together to the portico of the stately Capitol,
14 America of the Americans
where the Chief Justice, in the presence of a vast multitude,
administers this oath to the new Chief Executive : " I do
solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of Pre-
sident of the United States, and will, to the best of my abihty,
preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United
States." Then follows the inaugural address, after which the
President drives back to the White House to review an impos-
ing procession of soldiers, sailors, and pohtical organisations.
Usually, the day's proceedings conclude with a mammoth
inaugural ball, but President Woodrow Wilson's refusal to
attend such a function, mainly, it is thought, because he
declined to be exhibited at so much a head, has estabhshed
a precedent which other Presidents may be glad to
follow.
In the opinion of Dickens, the President's mansion was
" Hke an English club-house, both within and without."
But that description was written more than
^^Hoi^**^ seventy years ago ; the White House of to-day
is a different building in many respects from
that visited by the novehst. The name by which it is best
known owes its origin to the devastation of British troops in
1814, for the President's home was included among the build-
ings given to the flames when General Ross occupied Washing-
ton. On the structure being repaired it was found that the
walls were so disfigured by smoke that it was decided to give
them a thick coat of white paint, and from that circumstance
the mansion, of which the official title is the Executive Man-
sion, became known as the White House. The site was
selected by Washington, who also laid the corner stone in
1792, and walked through its nearly completed rooms a few
days before his death. First occupied by John Adams in
1800, it has undergone two transformations : first, after the
war of 1814, and again in 1902-3, when many alterations and
additions were carried out. Even to-day it is not a pretentious
building as Washington homes go ; many a private citizen
is housed in a finer example of the architect's art ; but in its
Uiidenvood & Underwood
THE WHITE HUUSE, W.VSHEXGTOX, D.C.
THE
PU
President and Congress 15
stately simplicity it is a worthy official home for the first
citizen of a great democracy.
No ruler's palace is so accessible to visitors as the White
House, for, while those having direct business with the
President are restricted to an hour on five days of the week,
the East Room of the mansion is open to all comers every day
from ten till two o'clock. The chief apartments, in addition
to the East Room, which is really the State parlour and is
used for formal receptions, include the Blue Room, specially
reserved for the President's receptions, the Green and Red
Rooms, each decorated in the colour after which they are
named, and the State Dining-room, which is richly panelled
in Enghsh oak. The President's office and the cabinet room
are situated in the annex reserved for the executive as dis-
tinguished from the domestic side of the President's Hfe.
Besides being decorated in an artistic manner, the principal
apartments contain many valuable works of art, including
portraits of presidents, massive crystal chandehers, exquisite
services of china, gold clocks, bronze vases, and handsome
cabinets.
Of course, the occupant of the White House has no financial
habihty for the adornment or upkeep of the mansion. The
building and its works of art are the possession
^^Ij^"^'^ of the nation, lent for four years to that
nation's choice. Hence the upkeep of the
building, with numerous incidental expenses, such as the
care of the grounds, the stable charges, lighting, etc., are
defrayed from the national exchequer. Nominally the
President's salary is |75,000 a year (£15,000), but when his
travelling allowance of $25,000 (£5,000) is added plus the
various items relating to the maintenance of the White House,
the total appropriation bill represents more than $300,000
(£60,000). As salaries of important positions go in the United
States, however, the financial prize of the presidential office
is exceedingly meagre. But the occupant of that office has
many privileges : he may, it is true, be impeached but.
16 America of the Americans
pending the verdict, his hberty is absolutely unrestrained,
and no tribunal of the land can order his arrest for any crime.
In his official position the first duty of a new President
is to select the members of his Cabinet, that is, the heads
of the various permanent departments ; but
resident and custom and his position as the dispenser of
enormous federal patronage have saddled him
with a task compared with which the formation of a Cabinet
is recreation. He is the fountain-head of federal spoils. In
other words, and notwithstanding reforms of recent years,
the President has in his absolute gift a vast number of appoint-
ments representing an annual value of S 12,000,000 (£2,400,000) .
President Jackson is usually credited with the introduction
of the spoils system ; whatever the extent of his guilt, he
dispossessed hundreds of postmasters, revenue collectors, and
other office-holders of their posts, and gave them to members
of his own party. Hence, for many generations, the election
of a new president has involved a hberal use of the ' guillotine
of the party," one of the most distinguished victims of that
decapitation being Nathaniel Hawthorne, though, as his
dismissal from the Salem custom-house set him free to write
The Scarlet Letter, his case might be cited as an example of the
beneficent working of the system.
Since the murder of President Garfield by a disappointed
office-seeker, the amount of patronage in the Chief Executive's
gift has shown a tendency to diminish. The
The Civil classified, or civil, service of the federal
Jservice
government gives employment to some
350,000 persons, of whom at the present time some 200,000
are appointed on examination, the balance receiving their
posts on the spoils system. The president has practically
unlimited power as to what offices shall be included in the
classified service, and Grover Cleveland and Theodore Roose-
velt made a generous use of that authority. The agitation
for further reform is still being carried on, but while it would
purify presidential conflicts of a vast amount of corruption
President and Congress 17
if the spoils system were entirely abolished it may be doubted
whether such a consummation will ever be achieved. If it
were, it would revolutionise the political machinery of the
entire nation. Of course, the President cannot possibly
give his personal attention to all the claimants for ofhce ; the
members of his party in Congress provide him with ample
suggestions on which to act. Hence the dilemma of Lincoln.
A supporter had obtained a postmastership for a friend, and
then, having taken offence against his nominee, demanded
his removal. " I don't want to turn him out," Lincoln said,
" but I must — there's no help for it."
According to the Constitution, the President is to act *' with
the advice and consent of the Senate " in making appoint-
ments to the most important offices, such as
Appointments. J^^^^^' ambassadors, members of the Cabinet,
etc., but in the majority of cases the consent
of the Senate is a mere formaHty, for that house usually accepts
and endorses the President's nominations. It is true that
Senators expect to have the deciding voice in important
appointments in their several States, though on one occasion
senatorial nominations were overruled by the Chief Executive,
and when the offended senators resigned the electors decided
against them. As his power of appointment is so large it has
been decided that his authority to remove is equally great, he
being at liberty to dismiss any officer he has appointed without
even assigning his reason for doing so.
Other powers inherent in the presidential office relate to
the control of the mihtary and naval forces of the nation,
of which he is the commander-in-chief in
^President! ^ P^^^^ and war. The right to declare war is
reserved to Congress, but the President may
so dispose of the armed forces as to make such a declaration
inevitable. In the realm of foreign pohtics he must secure
the consent of two-thirds of the Senate to his treaties, but
neither house of Congress can prevent him dismissing ambassa-
dors, or refusing to recognise a new State, either of which
2— <2393A)
18 America of the Americans
might involve the country in armed conflict. In fact, save in
one particular, the President of the United States exercises
a plenitude of power far in excess of that of a constitutional
monarch.
But his authority over legislation is practically restricted
to the veto. He is an executor, not a legislator. If, as
may often be the case, the party of which
The Veto. he is the head, does not command a majority
in the House and Senate, his success in obtain-
ing laws embodying his policies depends not upon his official
position, but upon the force of his personal character, and
his ability to manage men. By the terms of the Constitution,
he is expected to inform Congress from time to time of the
state of the country, and to recommend " such measures as
he shall judge necessary and expedient " ; but whether those
measures become law rests with Congress. The veto, however,
enables him to thwart legislation of which he disapproves,
for a bill to which he has refused to sign his name must be
passed again by a two-thirds majority of both houses to
become law over the presidential veto. This power is of
negative as well as positive value, for a threat to exercise it
has been potent to secure the passing of measures specially
favoured by the President.
Reference has been made to the Cabinet, but to prevent
misunderstanding it should be added that the Cabinet of the
United States government differs considerably
C b^^ t ^^^"^ *^^ Cabinet of countries where parlia-
mentary government prevails. It consists,
of course, of the heads of the chief executive departments,"
who, however, are described as secretaries and not as ministers.
They are ten in number, the salary of each being $12,000
(£2,400). As these salaries are exceedingly meagre when
judged by the American standard, it might appear singular
that competent men are never lacking for the various depart-
ments, until it is remembered that a Secretary has a consider-
able appointing power, a factor of prime importance in
Photo by Undera.'ood & Underwood
IX THE WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON, D.C.
T <K
IpUBLIU LilJKARY
Jr(, LENOX
' ■•.'DATIONS
President and Congress 19
American politics. A singular fact in connection with
members of the Cabinet is that custom rather than the
Constitution, which is sahent on that matter, stipulates that
they shall not be members of Congress or have the right
to speak there. Consequently they are not directly respon-
sible for the introduction or control of legislation, though
they may draft bills and get them laid before Congress. The
members of the Cabinet, in short, are responsible to the
President, by whom they are treated in the main as a con-
sultative and advisory body. It has happened, however,
that other groups of men have been in closer touch with the
head of the nation than his regular secretaries, for the " Kitchen
Cabinet " of President Jackson, so called because they had
admission to the White House through the kitchen, and the
" Tennis Cabinet " of President Roosevelt, the members of
which were wont to join him in his favourite game, are believed
to have had more influence with the Chief Executive than his
official advisers.
It follows from the foregoing that a " Cabinet crisis " is as
impossible in the United States as a resignation of the Govern-
ment. The President, save for successful
^^^Cablnet^" impeachment, is immovable by Congress or
any other body ; much more is he wholly
independent of his Cabinet. A Lincoln story tersely illus-
trates this point. In closing a discussion with his heads of
departments, in which all were against him, he ejaculated :
" Seven nays, one aye, the ayes have it." Yet President and
Cabinet meet in regular session to discuss the general policy
of the administration, for naturally the members of the
Cabinet belong to the Chief Executive's own party, though
Washington did try the experiment of a coalition ministry.
Although the President nominally has a free hand in the
choice of the various secretaries, his nominations are largely
influenced by election campaign promises and also by the
tradition which expects him to placate his most formidable
rival in the nominating convention by making him Secretary
20 America of the Americans
of State. The latter tradition accounts for William J.
Bryan's position in the Woodrow Wilson administration.
As a rule, members of Congress are disinchned to resign their
positions for a secretaryship, for most men would prefer to be
a Senator for six years rather than a secretary
Ex-Presidents, for four. Owing to the four-year term of
the President, there is little continuity in
administration life ; for example, it is the exception rather
than the rule for a given secretary to serve for two presidential
terms. There is more stabiHty in a senatorial career, for
members of the Upper House are more frequently re-elected
than those of the House of Representatives, some Senators
having seen upwards of thirty years' service. In the main,
however, the leading figures of the administration come and
go with startling rapidity. Even a man who has been Pre-
sident quickly sinks into oblivion once he leaves the White
House. As if in mitigation of this reversal of fortune, it is
a singular fact that few Presidents long survive their tenure
of office. For example, of the nine men who have filled that
office during the last fifty years only two are now living,
namely, Theodore Roosevelt and William H. Taft. The
latter has dropped below the horizon into the comparative
obscurity of a university professorship ; the former is a
marked exception for the manner in which he holds public
attention as an ex-President. The Americans, indeed, are often
so perplexed to know what to do with their ex-Presidents,
that the suggestion was once made that it might be charitable
to shoot them unless the country saw fit to pension them off
at $100,000 a year !
Apart from " party bosses," and notably the chief of
Tammany Hall, the more stable leaders of American politics
must be sought in Congress, and especially
Congress, in the Senate. In its earhest form Congress
was a single-chamber body, but when the
failure of the Confederation necessitated a new form of govern-
ment the bicameral advocates were victorious. Jefferson
President and Congress 21
and Washington were at odds on that point, but one day
when the two were discussing the question and the former
had urged many objections against a two-chamber parhament,
Washington said, " You, yourself, have proved the excellence
of two houses this very moment." " 1? " rejoined Jefferson ;
" how is that, General ? " " Why," answered Washington,
" you have turned your hot tea from the cup into the saucer
to get cool. It is the same thing we desire of the two houses."
That homely parable looks Hke an anticipation of modern
criticism of the Senate to the effect that it is " all brakes and
no steam."
Although there is widespread discontent with the method
by which Senators are elected, and with the manner in which
the Upper House exercises its coohng powers.
Qualifications ^]^g bicameral system of government is an
Congressmen, essential part of the Constitution. Congress,
then, consists of two Houses, a Senate which
is regarded as representative of the States as such, and a
House of Representatives for the more popularly-elected
congressmen. The qualifications of Senators and Repre-
sentatives and their respective terms of office are rigidly
defined by the Constitution : a Senator, who is elected for
six years, must have attained his thirtieth year, have been
a citizen of the United States for nine years, and be a resident
of the State he aspires to represent ; a Representative, whose
term of office is limited to two years, is required to be a citizen
of seven years' standing, to be at least twenty-five years of
age, and to reside in the State in which he is elected.
Naturally, there is a marked difference in the method by
which the two chambers are recruited. The number of
Representatives allowed to a given State is
Representation adjusted by Congress, with the sole proviso
Population. ^^^.t it shall never be more than one for
every 30,000 of population, irrespective of
the number of voters. As a matter of fact, the average popu-
lation of a congressional district is now some 200,000, while
22 America of the Americans
there are some startling anomalies of the type which afford
cogent arguments for the advocates of proportional represen-
tation. Of two districts in New York, for example, one
contains a population more than twice as numerous as the
other. Many of these discrepancies are due to the fact that
the various States have sole control of the demarkation of
congressional constituencies. In other words, the party
which has a majority can so carve up a State territory as to
get the greatest value from its own vote while reducing that
of its opponent to zero. This practice has added to American
vocabulary such vivid phrases as " gerrymandering " and
" shoe-string district," etc. While the boundary hues of the
States are in the main as regular as a ruler can make them,
the shapes of congressional constituencies are fantastically
amorphous. That is, they illustrate the principle of " gerry-
mandering." The legend goes that a politician named Gerry
was the chief cause of the manipulation of his State in such
a manner that one of the districts bore a marked resemblance
to a lizard. This so appealed to an artist that he exclaimed,
" Why, this district looks like a salamander," to which an
onlooker retorted, " Say rather a gerrymander." In another,
a constituency had such an enormous length in comparison
to its breadth that it was described as the " shoe-string
district." By these methods it has been possible to elect
eleven congressmen for an area equal in population to
another area which only returned two members to the chief
legislature.
By the terms of the Constitution each State, no matter
what its area or population, is entitled to two Senators and
no more. Consequently, as the advocates of proportional
representation are frequently pointing out, it is possible for
fifteen smaller States to exercise the same influence in the
national Senate as fifteen times a State having a population
equal to all the fifteen. " States having less than on'3-sixth
of the population choose a majority of the entire Senate,
while more than five-sixths of the people of the country are
President and Congress 23
represented by a minority of that body. The State of Nevada,
under the last census, had less than 43,000 people. If New York
were permitted to have the same proportional representation
in the Senate, it would have some 350 Senators."
To the foregoing anomaly must be added the further con-
sideration that the Senate possesses enormous powers. An
American who was once reminded that the
Powers of Ene^lish House of Lords, in favour of whose
the benate. , ,. . , , , , • 111
abolition he had been arguing, had less power
than the Senate of his own country, was unabashed enough to
exclaim, " Of course it has." Such is the case, for although
money bills must originate in the House of Representatives,
the Senate possesses, and frequently exercises the authority
to amend those bills and increase their appropriations. As,
too, Senators are elected by the legislatures of the various
States, they are almost as much removed from popular
control as a hereditary chamber. The method of the election
of Senators is one of the burning questions of practical Ameri-
can politics, there being an ever-growing agitation in favour