The Irish standard., 1898-12-03
ENTERTAINING SKETCH OF THE NEW
GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK.
VIEWED AS AN OFFICIAL AND SOLDIER.
PROMOTED AN IRISH PATROLMAN
FOR A BRAVE ACT.
NO FOREIGN POWER ON AMERICAN SOIL.
A THRILLING INCIDENT DURING THE
CUBAN CAMPAIGN.

Within month, writes Ray STAN
nard Baker in McClure's for November,
Mr.. Roosevelt was the most hated as
we'll as the best beloved man in New
York. With characteristic clearness of
| vision, he had determined at once upon
| a course of action, and having deter
mined upon it he proceeded with some
thing of the energy OF Il steam engine
| to put it into force. His reasoning had
I. all the simplicity of originality. He
was appointed to enforce the laws as
they appeared upon the statute books.
| He enforced them. That was original
! ity; it rarely had been done before.
The excise law, compelling saloons to
/, close on Sunday had been enforced
against the poorer saloonleepers, in
order that the police might levy black
mail on the wealthy liquor dealers. Mr..
Roosevelt enforced it impartially against
both rich and poor. To him dead let
ter law was as bad as hypocrisy in the
church. When prominent citizens and
influential newspapers protested he sn-
| swered:
II am placed here to enforce the law
| as find it. I shall enforce it. If you
! don't like the law repeal IT,"
The politicians tried their best to en-
| tangle him, but he eluded them by the
! simple process of invariably speaking
the plain, hard truth-a quality which
must have astounded them more than
anything else that he did, SO accus-
toned were they to peer for Interior mo
tives. This device Mr.. Ro o,sevelt used
naturally, Just as Bismarck often used
1t as one of his fine arts Of diplomacy.
To be certain that his police orders
/, were obeyed and that the reforms he
recommended were carried out, he pur
| sued the very simple but effective
method of visiting the patrolmen Of the
force on their beats at night very much
| as the good Haroun- l-Raschid visited
the citizens of Bagdad. A very few
such visits, with the punisnments which
| followed, were quite enough to give the
average policeman wholesome regard
! for Mr.. Roosevelt's authority.
| There never was man who had q
| keener appreciation of bravery than Mr..
Roosevelt. Every feat Of heroism," he
says, "makes us forever indebted to the
man who performed it,
%ol,
and rewarding it among his lnen. A
lank, red-headed Irish patrolman, nam
ed Duggan, saw burglar one night on
| Park avenue near Seventieth street,
making off with bundle Of silverware.
He.gave chase. The burglar threw
away the bundle and jumped the fence
that surrounds the cavernous ventilat-
| ing holes of the New York Central rail-
road tunnel. Duggan followed him.
| The burglar ran to one Of the holes,
hesitated and jumped sheer 20 feet to
! the tracks below, regardless Of the dan
ger of being crushed by passing trains.
| Without moments consideration
| Duggan sprang after him, landed on him
and dragged him out by the collar
When the president of the police board
| heard of that, he straightway sent for
| Duggan and heard the story from his
own lips, and when Duggan went away
he was roundsman. And this is only
one instance among hundred, every
one of which was link to bind him to
his men. They learned that lie was as
| quick to reward as he was to punish,
and that he had their welfare at heart
Previous to his admin nistration police
man who ruined his clothing in stopping
a runaway or in arresting q thief, was
compelled to buy new suit at his own
expense. Commissioner Roosevelt in
formed the force that he considered
muddy clothing, when muddled in such
cause badge of honor, and that the
department would always make good
the damage.
| Mr.. Roosevelt was the only }olicc
officer to whom the labor unions Of New
York came for counsel on friendly terms.
Usually the police and the unions are
at odds. A small strike, in which there
was much bitterness between the strik-
ers' pickets and the patrolmen, brought
this condition forcibly to Mr.. Roose-
velt's attention. He promptly called
meeting of the leaders, spent an even
ing with them discussing their griev-
ances. and finally made the very simple
and sensible suggestion that they ap-
point duly authorized picke1s, whose
rights the police should protect. After
that there was perfect confidence be-
tween the police department and the
| labor unions.
Dynamite bombs were left in his office,
sensational newspapers attacked him
with bitter malice. part even of his
own board was against him, but be
neither wavered nor paused. When a
police captain would not obey orders,
he placed him under arrest; he appoint