m associations of patriotic citizens, formed to serve a
public cause, into bands of mercenaries using a cause to serve them. It
perverts party contests from contentions of opinion into scrambles for
plunder. By stimulating the mercenary spirit it promotes the corrupt use
of money in party contests and in elections.

It takes the leadership of political organizations out of the hands of
men fit to be leaders of opinion and workers for high aims, and turns it
over to the organizers and leaders of bands of political marauders. It
creates the boss and the machine, putting the boss into the place of the
statesman, and the despotism of the machine in the place of an organized
public opinion.

It converts the public office-holder, who should be the servant of the
people, into the servant of a party or of an influential politician,
extorting from him time and work which should belong to the public, and
money which he receives from the public for public service. It corrupts
his sense of duty by making him understand that his obligation to his
party or his political patron is equal if not superior to his obligation
to the public interest, and that his continuance in office does not
depend on his fidelity to duty. It debauches his honesty by seducing
him to use the opportunities of his office to indemnify himself for
the burdens forced upon him as a party slave. It undermines in all
directions the discipline of the public service.

It falsifies our constitutional system. It leads to the usurpation, in
a large measure, of the executive power of appointment by members of the
legislative branch, substituting their irresponsible views of personal
or party interest for the judgment as to the public good and the sense
of responsibility of the Executive. It subjects those who exercise the
appointing power, from the President of the United States down, to the
intrusion of hordes of office-hunters and their patrons, who rob them of
the time and strength they should devote to the public interest. It has
already killed two of our Presidents, one, the first Harrison, by worry,
and the other, Garfield, by murder; and more recently it has killed a
mayor in Chicago and a judge in Tennessee.

It degrades our Senators and Representatives in Congress to the
contemptible position of office-brokers, and even of mere agents of
office-brokers, making the business of dickering about spoils as weighty
to them as their duties as legislators. It introdu