The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-07-24
Mayor. as nployment Agent s
" Clever Work by Campaign
Secretary ? olitics Va Business
Which Deals in Public Jobs
], and Contracts 2 official Fen
dalistnC City Hall as Asylum
for Incompetcnts.
BY an Ex-Mayor Of One e. ,e,f the
Largest American Cities.
..EnI1RTH ARTICLE

FOURTH 4AR,rI Gle
copyrlght, 1901, by Joseph b. Bowles.)
Ncy1,E-For obvious reasons the writer
prefers that his identity remain UNI
i-3oFOREs II hadN been he chiet
.l&n executive OF my city ma ll3i, y
lD8 dozen weeks u was 81 ronglys
80 tempted to rub out the sign
eFSt 4s5 "Onice OF the May when.
-''------ gllttered in gold LEI tiers on my
door. and substitute for 1t " Employm
Agent Apparently all the expended dl.
money. time and energy. all of the bit--4
terness OF a fierce political fight. ~ q
the element. worry and "a tigue c4tussu
by a8nlayoralty campaign, and AZ o. tilsi
skill, cunning and $craftness incld !. g
an election had been SO many "a g o:s "
sition, not to make me t a mayor,
but to- enable me to- istriputc. clly j u''Ss'
&to several hundred part s.aS
e. The day AFT err was v n ON ina tcd taIn "a
modest mail suddenly expallde led 70 Tear
some proportions. Letters literal Y flowed
Into home and office. I he We're .hca ped ,'
sup iii mounds ana hllocks. q NJ q these
swelled to mountains the day q TIER my
election. 5 az Es 5l23 M 81, aisS3 .
with rare exceptions every tier began
with a tulationI and ende wit an
application fora public posi- lon, Most q
them were reinforced by endorsement
Recommendations from men OF WEoseN ex-f
istcnce i was densely ignorant.
IN the beginning ! made some futllc
attempts to classify and Group me lel.,
tiers, but a few days demonstrated ny
kepe the head of system above
the deluge OF applications, 50 called on
JmySi. campaig n manager for help. lie
3promptly said 4 needed a "cam pai On sec
|sretary,s' and in few hours had installed
a brisk young man. with a corps OF type
writers, and 1 saw no more appli tlons,l
lfpr fyui
lStaryS took hold he started the major par
Of the2 troubles which beset me after !
became may
q Every letter represented a posslbleSyotc
and probably Enthusiastic partisan. "A y
campaign secretary wrote a reply to
each application, SO cleyerly wordcd that
while it did not contain the definite
statement that I would, II elected, give
! the applicant n ctyihall posi- ton, IT wa 8
..'''Warn,, 4. enough to justify thousands Of
tho petitioners in Tie belief that they
certainly be taken care of,
| The answers dictated by my ca n1paign
secretary were said 10 be vote-getters.
They were regarded as exceedingly fetch
ling campaign lterat lure ~ n ma ter OF
fact, they We're 50 many petit IS WIND les.
designed to obtain gnodssunder IA SO pre-
i lenses. i did not see these troub breed
i ers until j became mayor, Then they fell
Il OIL IH6 lFUlil All SItSs " lSAt ppph :
/ ers filled 81 HE halls and corridors Of tho
city hall. They nlobhed my home every
morning and stormed II my office avery
I-hour. ! could not rGpndlate8 the Implied
1 promises. for each bore my rubber
4 stamped SIGNATURE. simply was COM
4 PEELED to listen TO every man who came
Will one Of those lpewrItten curses aud
i write down his name, address and JOB
i wanted" for future consideration,
. Valuab BILE hours, which should have been
/ used in the conduct Of the city's bus-
4 mess, were given IN entirely to this emf
i ployp,ent gency5 work. And "A ma ryeled
4 at tho eager desire for public poslt Ions
seeking Getty hall Jobs some Of them
/ held ti good positions, which paid them
higher salaries than they ever could nope
4 to get frnm3tha city, Yet they were Will,
i Ing nd arx iollsa to glye Up sllb anita
i Situations in honorable business houses
for. insecure, small salarlcd clerkships III
4 the public service. & i5s i5l3s,
While i was strpggl ling q galnst this IN
frielltls tha in ~ yidins tne
A pluhls ] must constantly keen IN amino
a not the good OF our party, hut the vel,
4 5fare of our organlzat ion.3 \ Ia We toc
glhow HE peauia pol tlcal scondl Ions Wilcl
4 obtained at that time led me 10 gnrsanlze
a what lDyS opppheHts VISITS PtSusSu ~ ~
4 MY npersonal machpe36 lssupposed tina
4 In building In up an organization Y
Strengthen my administration Il ought 4
4 Id doing my party good al \ he same time
But 4 soon learned tina svecessf9l poll
tlcans place nrganlzat ton flrsta and paflS
Z second. 4 ! was M friendly q ldarma =, ~ g
5laid down this rule AZ conduct Tor me
4 give your fellows the Jobs, and they'll
slsmake tho party keen you IN your w,
4 lie had called to / set one }of his Eel
I lows ON the pay roll, n 81 IN
q lilo isn't much on flgu res, + hut he's 9
a ihus.icr mt the primaries. and l need
7 |5hm, Hes one Of The best canYassers
a i've got, and + want syon to ta Ike care
q Of him. There's good job In the healtl
y office which doesn't lake ups more than
one day a week, and the rest ~ the time
4 can use him, Hes y pretty wise! laa
4 SIdcould get the street car COMPANY g
i take him, but he'd have to work there
4 The chat which followed led me to