Plunkitt of Tammany Hall

by George Washington Plunkitt

1905

Edited and introduced by Eric C. Sands

What does George Washington Plunkitt mean by 鈥渉onest graft鈥�? If this is how big city machines operated in practice, did they deserve to be called corrupt?

Do the big city machines give rise to the need for Roosevelt鈥檚 New Nationalism?

The Diminished Yet Necessary Role of Political Parties

Introduction

George Washington Plunkitt was born into poverty and received only three years of formal education, but this did not stop him from rising in the ranks of Tammany Hall, the New York Democratic political machine. A political machine, as opposed to the political party, was a party organization headed by a single boss or small group that held enough votes to maintain political and administrative control of a city, county, or state. Often these machines provided goods and social services that struggling local governments were unable to give to the people. William 鈥淏oss鈥� Tweed, head of Tammany Hall, for example, was able to build a loyal following by performing favors for immigrant groups, such as providing jobs or securing housing.

Plunkitt served as state senator and a representative to the New York Assembly, but was best known and most influential acting as a ward boss (that is, a local political party organizer) in New York鈥檚 Fifteenth Assembly District. Plunkitt built a substantial and powerful following among the working-class Irish of the district by doing political favors and providing services for the people. At the same time, he became independently wealthy by manipulating the political system and trading political favors for insider information. These practices, which Plunkitt candidly (if ironically) defended as 鈥渉onest graft,鈥� provide a close-up look at the functioning and practices of the big city machines. Plunkitt was only too happy to defend these practices against accusations of corruption and inefficiency.

—Eric C. Sands

Source: William Riordan, Plunkitt of Tammany Hall: A Series of Very Plain Talks on Very Practical Politics (New York: McClure, Philips, 1905, pp. 3-16.

Chapter 1: Honest Graft and Dishonest Graft

EVERYBODY is talkin鈥� these days about Tammany men growin鈥� rich on graft, but nobody thinks of drawin鈥� the distinction between honest graft and dishonest graft. There鈥檚 all the difference in the world between the two. Yes, many of our men have grown rich in politics. I have myself. I鈥檝e made a big fortune out of the game, and I鈥檓 gettin鈥� richer every day, but I鈥檝e not gone in for dishonest graft鈥攂lackmailin鈥� gamblers, saloonkeepers, disorderly people, etc.鈥攁nd neither has any of the men who have made big fortunes in politics.

There鈥檚 an honest graft, and I鈥檓 an example of how it works. I might sum up the whole thing by sayin鈥�: I seen my opportunities and I took 鈥渆m.鈥�

Just let me explain by examples. My party鈥檚 in power in the city, and it鈥檚 goin鈥� to undertake a lot of public improvements. Well, I鈥檓 tipped off, say, that they鈥檙e going to lay out a new park at a certain place.

I see my opportunity and I take it. I go to that place and I buy up all the land I can in the neighborhood. The the board of this or that makes its plan public, and there is a rush to get my land, which nobody cared particular for before.

Ain鈥檛 it perfectly honest to charge a good price and make a profit on my investment and foresight? Of course, it is. Well, that鈥檚 honest graft.

Or, supposin鈥� it鈥檚 a new bridge they鈥檙e goin鈥� to build. I get tipped off and I buy as much property as I can that has to be taken for approaches. I sell at my own price later on and drop some more money in the bank.

Wouldn鈥檛 you? It鈥檚 just lookin鈥� ahead in Wall Street or in the coffee or cotton market. It鈥檚 honest graft, and I鈥檓 lookin鈥� for it every day in the year. I will tell you frankly that I鈥檝e got a good lot of it, too.

I鈥檒l tell you of one case. They were goin鈥� to fix up a bid park, no matter where. I got on to it, and went lookin鈥� about for land in that neighborhood.

I could get nothin鈥� at a bargain but a big piece of swamp, but I took it fast enough and held on to it. What turned out was just what I counted on. They couldn鈥檛 make the park complete without Plunkitt鈥檚 swamp, and they had to pay a good price for it. Anything dishonest in that?

Up in the watershed I made some money, too. I bought up several bits of land there some years ago and made a pretty good guess that they would be bought up for water purposes later by the city.

Somehow, I always guessed about right, and shouldn鈥檛 I enjoy the profit of my foresight? It was rather amusin鈥� when the condemnation commissioners came along and found piece after piece of the land in the name of George Plunkitt of the Fifteenth Assembly District, New York City. They wondered how I knew just what to buy. The answer is鈥擨 seen my opportunity and I took it. I haven鈥檛 confined myself to land; anything that pays is in my line.

For instance, the city is repavin鈥� a street and has several hundred thousand old granite blocks to sell. I am on hand to buy, and I know just what they are worth.

How? Never mind that. I had a sort of monopoly of this business for a while, but once a newspaper tried to do me. It got some outside men to come over from Brooklyn and New Jersey to bid against me.

Was I done? Not much. I went to each of the men and said: 鈥淗ow many of these 250,000 stories do you want?鈥� One said 20,000, and another wanted 15,000, and other wanted 10,000. I said: 鈥淎ll right, let me bid for the lot, and I鈥檒l give each of you all you want for nothin鈥�.

They agreed, of course. Then the auctioneer yelled: 鈥淗ow much am I bid for these 250,000 fine pavin鈥� stones?鈥�

鈥� Two dollars and fifty cents,鈥� says I.

鈥� Two dollars and fifty cents!鈥� screamed the auctioneer. 鈥淥h, that鈥檚 a joke! Give me a real bid.鈥�

He found the bid was real enough. My rivals stood silent. I got the lot for $2.50 and gave them their share. That鈥檚 how the attempt to do Plunkitt ended, and that鈥檚 how all such attempts end.

I鈥檝e told you how I got rich by honest graft. Now, let me tell you that most politicians who are accused of robbin鈥� the city get rich the same way.

They didn鈥檛 steal a dollar from the city treasury. They just seen their opportunities and took them. That is why, when a reform administration comes in and spends a half million dollars in tryin鈥� to find the public robberies they talked about in the campaign, they don鈥檛 find them.

The books are always all right. The money in the city treasury is all right. Everything is all right. All they can show is that the Tammany heads of departments looked after their friends, within the law, and gave them what opportunities they could to make honest graft. Now, let me tell you that鈥檚 never goin鈥� to hurt Tammany with the people. Every good man looks after his friends, and any man who doesn鈥檛 isn鈥檛 likely to be popular. If I have a good thing to hand out in private life, I give it to a friend鈥擶hy shouldn鈥檛 I do the same in public life?

Another kind of honest graft. Tammany has raised a good many salaries. There was an awful howl by the reformers, but don鈥檛 you know that Tammany gains ten votes for every one it lost by salary raisin鈥�?

The Wall Street banker thinks it shameful to raise a department clerk鈥檚 salary from $1500 to $1800 a year, but every man who draws a salary himself says: 鈥淭hat鈥檚 all right. I wish it was me.鈥� And he feels very much like votin鈥� the Tammany^[1] ticket on election day, just out of sympathy.

Tammany was beat in 1901 because the people were deceived into believin鈥� that it worked dishonest graft. They didn鈥檛 draw a distinction between dishonest and honest graft, but they saw that some Tammany men grew rich, and supposed they had been robbin鈥� the city treasury or levyin鈥� blackmail on disorderly houses, or workin鈥� in with the gamblers and lawbreakers.

As a matter of policy, if nothing else, why should the Tammany leaders go into such dirty business, when there is so much honest graft lyin鈥� around when they are in power? Did you ever consider that?

Now, in conclusion, I want to say that I don鈥檛 own a dishonest dollar. If my worst enemy was given the job of writin鈥� my epitaph when I鈥檓 gone, he couldn鈥檛 do more than write:

鈥淕eorge W. Plunkitt. He Seen His Opportunities, and He Took 鈥楨m.鈥�

Chapter 2: How to Become a Statesman

THERE鈥橲 thousands of young men in this city who will go to the polls for the first time next November. Among them will be many who have watched the careers of successful men in politics, and who are longin鈥� to make names and fortunes for themselves at the same game鈥擨t is to these youths that I want to give advice. First, let me say that I am in a position to give what the courts call expert testimony on the subject. I don鈥檛 think you can easily find a better example than I am of success in politics. After forty years鈥� experience at the game I am鈥攚ell, I鈥檓 George Washington Plunkitt. Everybody knows what figure I cut in the greatest organization on earth, and if you hear people say that I鈥檝e laid away a million or so since I was a butcher鈥檚 boy in Washington Market, don鈥檛 come to me for an indignant denial. I鈥檓 pretty comfortable, thank you.

鈥� Another mistake: some young men think that the best way to prepare for the political game is to practice speakin鈥� and becomin鈥� orators. That鈥檚 all wrong. We鈥檝e got some orators in Tammany Hall, but they鈥檙e chiefly ornamental. You never heard of Charlie Murphy^[2] delivering a speech, did you? Or Richard Croker,^[3] or John Kelly,^[4] or any other man who has been a real power in the organization? Look at the thirty-six district leaders of Tammany Hall today. How many of them travel on their tongues? Maybe one or two, and they don鈥檛 count when business is doin鈥� at Tammany Hall. The men who rule have practiced keepin鈥� their tongues still, not exercisin鈥� them. So you want to drop the orator idea unless you mean to go into politics just to perform the sky-rocket act.

鈥hat was beginnin鈥� business in a small way, wasn鈥檛 it? But that is the only way to become a real lastin鈥� statesman. I soon branched out. Two young men in the flat next to mine were school friends鈥擨 went to them, just as I went to Tommy, and they agreed to stand by me. Then I had a followin鈥� of three voters and I began to get a bit chesty. Whenever I dropped into district head-quarters, everybody shook hands with me, and the leader one day honored me by lightin鈥� a match for my cigar. And so it went on like a snowball rollin鈥� down a hill I worked the flat-house that I lived in from the basement to the top floor, and I got about a dozen young men to follow me. Then I tackled the next house and so on down the block and around the corner. Before long I had sixty men back of me and formed the George Washington Plunkitt Association鈥�.

Footnotes

1. Tammany Hall was the Democratic political machine that controlled New York City and New York State politics through most of the nineteenth century.
2. Known as Silent Charlie Murphy, he was a political boss of Tammany Hall and was responsible for raising it to a level of respectability.
3. Known as Boss Croker, he was an Irish American politician who led Tammany Hall as a political boss.
4. Known as Honest John, he was a boss of Tammany Hall and a US Representative from New York from 1855 to 1858.