$8 Morality and Efficiency 



rich as to vote against him because he is poor. The 

 one man has just as much right as the other to claim 

 to be treated purely on his merits as a man. In 

 short, to do good work in politics, the men who or- 

 ganize must organize wholly without regard to 

 whether their associates were born here or abroad, 

 whether they are Protestants or Catholics, Jews or 

 Gentiles, whether they are bankers or butchers, pro- 

 fessors or day-laborers. All that can rightly be 

 asked of one's political associates is that they shall 

 be honest men, good Americans and substantially 

 in accord as regards their political ideas. 



Another thing that must not be forgotten by the 

 man desirous of doing good political work is the 

 need of the rougher, manlier virtues, and above all 

 the virtue of personal courage, physical as well as 

 moral. If we wish to do good work for our coun- 

 try, we must be unselfish, disinterested, sincerely de- 

 sirous of the well-being of the commonwealth, and 

 capable of devoted adherence to a lofty ideal; but 

 in addition we must be vigorous in mind and body, 

 able to hold our own in rough conflict with our 

 fellows, able to suffer punishment without flinch- 

 ing, and, at need, to repay it in kind with full in- 

 terest. A peaceful and commercial civilization is al- 

 ways in danger of suffering the loss of the virile 

 righting qualities without which no nation, however 

 cultured, however refined, however thrifty and pros- 

 perous, can ever amount to anything. Every citi- 

 zen should be taught, both in public and in private 

 life, that while he must avoid brawling and quar- 



