The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-05-20

Abraham Ruef, the indicted political
boss, in sumptuous quarters at Hotel st.
Francis, remains the storm center of the
present Doodle investigation at the Gold
en- Gate. Every day, with its new indict-
ments of bribers and bribe-takers and
with its startling disclosures of worse
yet to come, invariably focuses all the in
terest anew on the personality of Abe
Ruef
The life story of this most notorious of
bOOdlers, since the day of Boss Tweed, is
well known, of course, in San Francisco,
but outside of California it may not be
amiss to draw a fun length portrait Of
this singular man.
Born of French-Jewish ancestry in San
Francisco, Abraham Ruef, was reared in
the city he has lived to disgrace. His
parents. though not even well to do, gave
him every educational advantage within
their means. AT the public school and in
high school the boy distinguished himself
by his quickness Of mind. He also
earned a name for himself, even at this
early age, by traits of unusual greed and
selfishness. For this reason Abe's school
mates called him Piggy" a nickname
which chung to him all through his col
lege career.
Young Ruef entered the University of
California at Berkeley at an age when
most boys enter high school. He was
bright in his studies, but made no other
mark in student life. When he was grad
uated in 1884 he had scarcely friend
lege of Law, taking his degree as bach
elOr of law.
Law to Politics.
Entering upon the practice of law in
1856. Ruef first hung out his shingle in
Oakland. across the bay from San Fran
cisco. His success as a practitioner at
the bar was practically nil. If he had
any clients he must have induced them
to compromise their cases. for no Oakland
L. Of
ing Ruef plead a case before a jury.
Though Ruef did not qualify as a bril-
lent lawyer. ne lost no time in proving
himself politician. As socS as he was
old enough to vote he became a familiar
figure in ward politics and at primaries
and soon got TO be known among the
politicians of San Francisco bay as
Curly Ruef.'
Now and then, at county conventions,
he was allowed to put some cut and cried
motion or to ''speechify' a little at the
hustings. He attracted no general at
tentiOn until 1895. when he had become
influential enough to procure the APP
pointment of attorney for the public ad-
ministTatOr.
In those days Ruef kept a little dingy
office on the top floor of an old tumble
down building on Montgomery street
where the Kohl building now stands His
only office assistants were his sister, act
ing as stenographer and typewriter and
his father, who was office boy and man
of all work. While Ruef held public of
flee these assistants" were paid out of
the public funds. The wits of San Fran
cisco likened them to the famous law firm
of Solomon and Sallie Brass in Dickens
''Old Curiosity Shop
During RGef's term as attorney for the
public administrator there were rumors of
crooked deals. but no public charges were
brought against him until long afterward
when Dick Chretien, from his prison cell
in San Quentin, laid the crime of perjury
for which he had been convicted, at
Ruef's door.
In those days Ruef professed to be a
stanch Republican. He rose to a posi-
ton in the county central committee and
In the state campaign for governor took
a part in what was then called the Grand
hotel movement of the Republican party
in California