the system of interlocking directorates should be checked. Of course there should be publicity with regard to capitalization. But extreme legislation may altogether prevent efficient regulation.

Labor Unions. Mr. Wilson's legislative programme a year ago included measures to be enacted into law on the subjects of the tariff, banking and currency, and the trusts. To these he has added a measure to improve rural credits. It was natural that he should wish to unite the Democratic majority support for these measures. Apparently so anxious was he that he signed a Sundry Civil Bill last year which carried with it a "rider" exempting labor unions from prosecution under the Sherman Anti-Trust Law. Such a measure as this, as The Outlook has said, ought not to be carried on the back of an appropriation bill, but should be considered on its own merits as a separate piece of legislation.

Hetch Hetchy. Mr. Wilson's approval of the Hetch Hetchy Bill also called forth much adverse comment, although the question was one on which good men were divided. Such a law will doubtless prove an awkward precedent.

Immigration. The President's sometimes seemingly hypnotic power over Congress was shown during the recent discussion of the Immigration Bill, when the provision to exclude the Japanese was stricken from the

measure.

Alaska. This power was also shown by the passage of the Alaskan Bill, which, without the President's influence, would doubtless have been defeated both in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.

President Wilson's course concerning Alaska is to be commended. In face of much opposition, the Administration has strenuously and successfully espoused the policy of Federal construction, ownership, and operation of Alaskan railways. This feature of the Wilson Administration's first year will doubtless furnish one of its chief claims to distinction.

Canal Tolls. More striking still has been the President's influence with regard to the repeal of the provision of law which grants exemption from Panama Canal tolls to American vessels engaged in coastwise trade. In the Democratic majority there has been much disagreement as to our Canal policy. But these differences are melting away in the presence of the Wilson influence, the

plank in the Democratic National platform to the contrary, which reads, "We favor the exemption from tolls of American ships engaged in coastwise trade passing through the Panama Canal." It is almost amusing to read day by day the statements given out by certain Democratic leaders who, in Congress, voted for exemption and who for more than a year have been supporting the plank in the Democratic platform. Most of them are now explaining why they are "lining up" behind the President.

Arbitration.

Similar power has been exercised by the President, in especial, over the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. After a delay of many months the President has finally induced most of the Democratic obstructionists on this Committee to agree with such Republican authorities among its members as Senators Root, Lodge, and Burton, and to extend the life of the arbitration treaties negotiated in 1908 by Mr. Root, then Secretary of State, with eight Powers. This action has been interpreted everywhere as a pledge of international good faith.

Nicaragua. It is to be hoped that the President's influence will also be sufficient to induce action on the Nicaraguan Treaty, which has been "hanging fire for months. This treaty would put Nicaragua on much the same basis as Cuba with regard to this country, and should insure to Nicaragua administrative, commercial, and territorial independence and stability.

Opium. We have still to see another international pledge fully redeemed. As far as calling international conferences together is concerned, our Government has been a leader, especially in the direction of opium reform. We should show equal enthusiasm in cleaning our own house as we have promised. For some years we have prohibited the importation of opium except for medicinal purposes. The pending Anti-Opium Bill in the Senate has now been favorably reported, we are glad to say, and, if passed, will complete the Wilson Administration's fine record in checking the domestic manufacture, the export, and the inter-State traffic in opium, thus lessening the evils to public health and public morals alike.

The President's Power. The President's power over Congress is also a power keeping the Democratic party together. Perhaps no President has been more successful in such a party endeavor. The success is the more striking when one considers the Democratic

party's record of faction and folly, when one considers its unwieldiness, and, above all, when one considers that Mr. Wilson had no previous experience in National politics, or even much personal acquaintance with Democratic leaders.

In all this the President's personality counts for much, especially as he has the reputation of not seeking advice from others as much as he might. He does not because he is strongly convinced of the truth of what he believes, he stoutly maintains his rugged faith, and he takes a long look ahead. Thus

when he has appeared before Congress in person to read his Messages-resuming a practice discontinued by our Presidents for over a century-many Congressmen have regarded him as a kind of popular monarch,. one who combines authority with the fascination frequently exercised over men of lesser minds by a superior mind. It is clear that the President's first year in office has increased the respect which is felt for his ability and his personality among the members of his party, his political opponents, and the country at large.

L

IKE the Duke of York and his faithful army whose uphill work is celebrated in song may have appeared the Mayor of New York and fifty citizens of that city, who advanced up the steep slope of State Street, in Albany, last week, to plead for legislation to break the police "system" of New York City and restore discipline to the Police Department; but, unlike the fabled Duke's forces, this troop did more than "march right up the hill and then march down again." Before it retreated down the Capitol Hill at nightfall it had secured the promise of Governor Glynn to sign the desired legislation-misnamed the "Goethals Bills "--if it came before him, and in an open hearing before the committees of the State Senate and Assembly charged with the consideration of these bills it had advanced arguments for their passage that should convince any legislators not hopelessly prejudiced by considerations of political expediency.

The Albany pilgrimage was the culminating effort of Mayor Mitchel and his supporters to get for the metropolis a measure and a man-a medicine and a doctor-with enough combined healing power to cure the body politic of the carbuncle that has for generations been its sorest spot-a corrupt and disorganized Police Department. The man is Colonel Goethals, the measure is comprised in five bills, essentially one in effect, which have been popularly named for the Canal-builder because they embody a change in the laws governing the Police Department

of New York which Colonel Goethals has made a condition precedent to his acceptance of the police job.

These bills were framed to give the Commissioner of Police final authority to dismiss subordinates, with the exception that members of the Department would have the right to appeal to the Mayor, who appoints the Police Commissioner, for a rehearing by the Commissioner. They would deprive policemen of the privilege of having their dismissal reviewed in a court of law with power to reinstate them. The other bills provide for reimbursing dismissed policemen for money contributed to the Pension Fund, and for earlier promotions to higher ranks on the force.

New York is not alone among American cities with its police puzzle. Wherever there are laws which have not the hearty support of the whole community there is a police problem in some degree, and wherever the disaffected persons are willing to pay for the privilege of breaking laws there is likely to be police rottenness. Wherever, in addition, the engine for enforcing laws is so disorganized that the engineer is unable to control the component parts of the machine and dis-.. cipline them to their proper functions, there is likely to be what has come to be known as system." The police "system" in New York, as the man-on-the-street understands : it, consists of a cohesive group of men who .. sell the privilege of breaking the laws, surrounded by a larger group which, while

a

honest, is stultified by the tainted spirit of the powerful and corrupt few.

Furthermore, not only is there a similarity between police conditions in New York and elsewhere in America, but in a number of cities there is in force the same provision for a court review for dismissed policemen against which the delegation to Albany protested. Therefore this attempt to make New York's army of self-protection a co-ordinate force, energized from the Commissioner to the patrolman and founded on direct lines of responsibility from the meanest doorman through swaggering lieutenants and haughty inspectors to the Commissioner again, has more than local interest.

The

The public hearing on the police bills was held in the high-ceilinged Senate Chamber where had been staged the dramatic trial of a Governor a few months before. The crowd that attended this hearing was almost as interested in the proceedings as that other throng that had packed the chamber to hear the case of "The People against William Sulzer," and to watch the folly of a Tammany Legislature preparing its own death-warrant. But the interest was of a different kind; on the whole, it was more impersonal. attempt of a New York Mayor to kill a police "system" had certain spectacular featuresparticularly as the newspapers protruding from the pockets of the onlookers told in lurid headlines of the new lease of life just granted by the Court of Appeals to "Charlie" Becker, convicted more than a year ago for having engineered that most flagrant act of the system," the murder of the gambler Rosenthal. Still the business at hand was not vital to the immediate welfare of Albany, and the sympathies of the spectators seemed pretty much disengaged.

The opposition had the floor first and unlimbered its big guns at once. William B. Ellison, counsel for the four big police organizations-the Captains' and Inspectors', the Lieutenants', the Sergeants', and the Patrolmen's-led the attack for the police forces. Job Hedges, Republican candidate for Governor in the last election, his Punch-like profile cut clear against the stained-glass windows in the rear, and his sallies of wit bringing smiles on the faces of opponents as well as supporters, and former District Attorney Jerome, speaking in a frenzy of sarcasm that would have done credit to him in his best prosecuting days, spoke for themselves in opposition to the bill. Other

speakers followed Mr. Hedges and Mr. Jerome.

Sifted and summarized, the arguments against the proposed laws fell into two classes, positive and negative. The former were that the passage of the laws would work an injustice to the individual policemen, patrolmen in particular, and that the bestowal of unlimited power on the Commissioner would leave the rank and file at the mercy of his merest whim— in short, that it would disrupt discipline, as no

copper" would perform his duty when every arrest meant another enemy who could poison the Commissioner's mind, perhaps, and have the conscientious bluecoat "broke." What might be called the negative arguments were those that avoided the issue entirely, or at least failed to meet it squarely. Other reforms, such as making the Commissioner independent of the Mayor and giving him a definite term of office, were urged as more needed than the one sought by Mr. Mitchel. Glowing pictures were painted of the policeman's loving wife and little ones, as if the fact of husbandhood and fatherhood was sufficient qualification for a life job with the city. Last, but not least, repeated attempts were made to pique the pride of the committee members hearing the arguments with the statement that it was not necessary to go beyond the city limits to get a good police head.

This point, if any, was brought out as the one upon which the bills were most likely to go to wreck when the slim and youthful Mayor took the floor in defense of his own bills. He told Senator Curren, the presiding officer and Chairman of the Senate Cities Committee, that "we offer you a measure as well as a man, but the measure is paramount.'

That's better," muttered Senator Jim Frawley, half to himself and half to the newspaper correspondents, whose pencils. were racing over telegraph blanks on a table almost under his nose.

If Colonel Goethals were to die to-night, we would still be here, figuratively speaking, urging the passage of these bills," went on Mr. Mitchel; and the Tammany Senator growled, I should hope so!"

The contention that little injury was done to Department discipline because in the fourteen years from 1899 to 1912 inclusive only 46 men were reinstated by the courts out of 683 who appealed against dismissal had little force, said the Mayor, first, because the bare possibility of outside reinstatement bred a

spirit of insubordination in the men, and, second, because under the present arrangement the Commissioner dared dismiss only for crimes or open violation of rules, and could not reach the sullenly rebellious policeman who folded his arms and did nothing. In this connection he referred to the case of an inspector whom a former Commissioner knew to be a criminal, and who said to his chief, brazenly, "You've got nothing on me, and you can't break me." Another fallacy exposed was the theory that a policeman had a "right" to an appeal to a law court. This appeal was not a right, but a privilege, granted to the uniformed men of the force in the belief that such grant was in the best interests of the community; but time had proved otherwise, and now the public proposed to revoke the privilege that it had given, said Mr. Mitchel. Furthermore, he pointed out that of 55,000 employees of the city only some 15,000 policemen, firemen, and a few others had this " ight," which was not due to bluecoats in recompense for the special risks to which they were subjected, as this consideration was already balanced by the fact that policemen are, on the whole, better paid than other city employees and are the beneficiaries of a generous system of insurance, half-pay when sick, full pay, as a rule, for disability received in the performance of duty, and a pension for their families if they are killed on post.

The rebuttal offered to the argument that denying court review would "let politics into the department " was that it was a good civil service principle that "you needn't worry about the back door so long as the front door is guarded;" i. e., that as long as the Commissioner can appoint only those men handed up to him by the Civil Service officers there is little danger of any kind of favoritism.

However, those who pleaded for the removal of the privilege of court review based their forensic structure mainly on the following propositions: first, that the same principles that apply to the conduct of private business apply to the management of the affairs of the city, which is simply a huge business corporation in the last analysis, and no private employer would brook the interference of a judge, however just, between himself and his employees; second, that it is a mockery to put a man at the head of a department and not give him power to carry out the business expected of him; and, third,

that as soon as the Commissioner is made the head of the police in fact as well as in name, the honest policeman will cease to be at the mercy of the crooked policeman and the sale of the privilege to break the law will be reduced to a minimum.

"That the same system that was exposed by the Lexow and Mazet investigations is still in force was shown by some of the remarks at the police lieutenants' dinner a few days ago, and at the same function last year, when the diners rose to their feet and cheered an inspector under indictment who had refused to testify against the other policemen," said the Mayor in the course of the hearing. "If these bills pass, we believe that six months from now the rank and file of the force will admit that we were right, and that the appeal from the Commissioner to the Mayor is ample protection."

Ninety per cent of the opposition to the police bills is the opposition of the policemen and other city employees who have the same privilege of court review or who hope some day to get it. Backing the bills is the overwhelming sentiment of the community and of the disinterested. experts who are qualified to testify. Of the former Police Commissioners living, McAdoo, Baker, and Cropsey have come out publicly as favoring the proposed legislation, while, so far as the writer has been able to learn, General Greene is the only ex-Commissioner who opposes it. In short, for the most part the opposition is based on selfishness—a perfectly natural selfishness, however, the same selfishness that leads any man to hold what he has. As it has worked itself out, the issue before the legislators has narrowed to a choice between serving the interests of the whole community or a small part of it; it is a question of the city or the "system."

If the same elements that formed the "fusion" which elected Mayor Mitchel on a platform devoted to the interests of nonpartisan good business administration in New York will back him in his efforts to get such an administration in the Police Department, there will be no question of the success of the most important measure yet proposed by the new administration. The passage of these bills would not usher in the millennium, but it would be a long step in the right direction, and, although he professes not to know. it, it would be as much to the advantage of the honest "cop" as to the advantage of the honest citizen.