iderably less than the compensation
offered by the general counselship of the New York Central.

Cleveland was most satisfactory as president in his quick and
decisive judgment upon matters presented to him. There were no
delays, no revisions; in fact, no diplomatic methods of avoiding
a disagreeable decision. He told you in the briefest time and
in the clearest way what he would do.

A great social leader and arbiter in social affairs in New York
was very desirous that the president should reverse his judgment
in regard to an appointment affecting a member of his family.
I gave him a letter which procured him a personal and confidential
interview. When he came back to me he said: "That is the most
extraordinary man I ever saw. After he had heard me through, he
said he understood the matter thoroughly and would not change
his opinion or action. He has no social position and never had.
I tried to present its attractions and my ability to help him in
that regard, but he only laughed; yes, he positively laughed."

While President Hayes had difficulty with civil-service reform
and incurred the hostility of the Republican organization and
machine men, the situation with him was far less difficult than
it was with Cleveland, who was a sincere civil-service reformer,
and also an earnest Democrat. While a Democratic senator from
Ohio, Mr. Pendleton, had passed a bill during the Hayes
administration for reform in the civil service, the great majority
of the Democratic party believed in Secretary Marcy's declaration
that "to the victors belong the spoils."

There was an aggravation, also, growing out of the fact that the
Democrats had been out of office for twenty-four years. We can
hardly visualize or conceive now of their hunger for office.
The rule for rescuing people dying of starvation is to feed them
in very small quantities, and frequently. By trying this, the
president became one of the most unpopular of men who had ever
held office; in fact, so unpopular among the Democratic senators
and members of the House that a story which Zebulon Vance, of
North Carolina, told went all over the country and still survives.
Vance, who had a large proportion of the citizens of North Carolina
on his waiting list, and could get none of them appointed, said
that the situation, which ought to be one of rejoicing at the
election of a president by his own party, was like that of a client
of his who had inherited a farm from hi