Arthur, Chester Alan

Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester Alan Arthur ([Signature series book])

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one of the best presidential biographies
Chester Arthur Revealed
An obscure president steps from the shadows

Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester Alan Arthur ([Signature series book])
Thomas C. Reeves
Manufacturer: American Political Biography Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0945707037

Customer Reviews:

one of the best presidential biographies.......2005-09-19

Over the last several years, I've read more than 30 presidential biographies. I would rate Reeves' biography of Chester Arthur in the top ten. Given the subject matter, this is especially noteworthy. It's one thing to write an interesting biography of Teddy Roosevelt. It is something more to write a great book about Chester Arthur. Gentleman Boss is highly readable, well researched, and presents the corruption of the times in detail and in context.

Certainly the post-Civil Wars years were the low point in US politics in terms of the quality of our presidents, the corruption of the elections, and politicians' contemptible disregard for actually addressing any of the problems of the day.

Chester Arthur was probably the most corrupted politician to become President (but most biographies minimize this part of the story - so its often hard to tell). The first two-thirds of Gentleman Boss details Arthur's years prior to his becoming President. He was a spoils man in the New York machine, controlled assessments of public employees, and managed patronage for the Stalwart branch of the Republican Party for more than 20 years. The investigations of the New York customs house and stolen election of 1876 are presented in fascinating detail. As the spoils system got more and more unfavorable press, and various investigations began, Arthur lied again and again. He participated in large vote buying schemes and bragged of this in a famous speech at Delmonico's Restaurant following his election as Vice President. His nomination to be Vice President was an affront to anyone who was interested in cleaning up politics. Even after he was elected Vice President, he worked hard to undermine President Garfield by trying to fix more jobs (and overthrow Garfield appointees in New York).

Arthur was very intelligent and a brilliant organizer. In these regards but almost no other he was well-qualified to be president. The last third of Reeves' book describes Arthur's presidency and his effort to rise above his past and not dishonor the office. This portion of the book seems anti-climatic, but the first 250 pages are not to be missed.

Chester Arthur Revealed.......2000-08-18

He is certainly one of the most obscure Presidents in American history. I enjoy reading about people who achieve high office, fame or fortune, probably because I want to find a link among them that predated their successes. In reading this excellent and very balanced biography, I came away with at least 3 lessons: 1) That blind luck can be the key ingredient in a man's success, for the early life and times of Chester Arthur no more predicted greatness than did those of Harry Truman (Truman, at least, was essentially honorable), 2) that is indeed possible for the Office to make the man, for once he became President, Arthur overcame many of his moral inadequacies, and 3) that for all we complain about American politics today, the state of the State in the late 19th century was more corrupt than most 21st century Americans would ever imagine possible. For these three lessons alone, the book is certainly a worthwhile read.

An obscure president steps from the shadows.......1999-11-25

High school history books tell you Chester "Chet" Arthur was a "dandy," a machine politician and an accidental president, but little more. This highly readable, very informative and interesting biography adds much historical flesh to the bare-bones treatment Arthur gets in text books. A man who is all but a caricature to generations of students is made fully human, with all the positives and negatives that entails. And while chronicling the president's life the author also chronicles a fascinating era in American political history, the day when the party bosses ruled and presidential candidates were chosen in smoke-filled rooms and not in state primaries; primaries may be more democratic, but they sure are a lot less interesting to read about. If you enjoy presidential history, add this book to your library.

Chester Alan Arthur (The American Presidents)

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This is all there is to say about Arthur.
A nearly forgotten president
Informative book about an average president
A LAIDBACK, GENTLEMAN PRESIDENT
Rescued from the shadows, if only for a moment

Chester Alan Arthur (The American Presidents)
Zachary Karabell , and Arthur M. Schlesinger
Manufacturer: Times Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0805069518

Book Description

Chester Alan Arthur never dreamed that one day he would be president of the United States. A successful lawyer, Arthur had been forced out as the head of the Custom House of the Port of New York in 1877 in a power struggle between the two wings of the Republican Party. He became such a celebrity that he was nominated for vice president in 1880-despite his never having run for office before. Elected alongside James A. Garfield, Arthur found his life transformed just four months into his term, when an assassin shot and killed Garfield, catapulting Arthur into the presidency. The assassin was a deranged man who thought he deserved a federal job through the increasingly corrupt 'spoils system.' To the surprise of many, Arthur, a longtime beneficiary of that system, saw that the time had come for reform. His opportunity came in the winter of 1882-83, when he pushed through the Pendleton Act, which created a professional civil service and set America on a course toward greater reforms in the decades to come. Chester Arthur may be largely forgotten today, but Zachary Karabell eloquently shows how this unexpected president-of whom so little was expected-rose to the occasion when fate placed him in the White House.

Customer Reviews:

This is all there is to say about Arthur........2005-04-27

As a cursory look at the shelves of any bookstore would show, figures such as Lincoln, Churchill, or the Roosevelts are often frequented by biographers to various levels of success. This is possible given both the amount of writings and speeches left behind from these types of figures, and their enduring influence in today's government and society.

Harder to write are biographies on historical figures who seemed to have only passed through the night, important as links in a chain, but without personal significance in their own right. In the American Presidents series, John Dean was successful in resuscitating life into the otherwise dead legend of Warren Harding. Less successful was Kevin Phillips' book on William McKinley.

Alas, this short bio on Chester Arthur by Zachary Carabell falls closer to the latter than the former in trying to find interest in a long forgotten president. Carabell acknowledges the difficulty with his subject since Arthur was the accidental president (took office after Garfield's assassination) and a person who was satisfied in acting as the unseen executive in the political machine.

Arthur left no historical papers of interest. The most interesting anecdote was his venture into the 1850's Kansas-Missouri civil war. But even this ended without drama with his running back on almost the next train to New York.

The author seeks to find importance to the Arthur administration, but his efforts are in vain. The author's best effort was discussing Arthur's efforts to redecorate the White House. That Louis Tiffany was contracted by Arthur to be the decorator showed exceedingly good taste for the widower president.

As for policy, however, Carabell could only be said to have convinced himself that Arthur achieved any importance. Aside from some minor naval buildup, he initiated no legislation. Arthur vetoed a blatantly bigoted anti-immigration bill, but immediately signed a slightly revised version. He signed a civil service reform bill, but played no part in its passage and only after its passage by a lame-duck Congress that was soundly defeated in the just completed elections. The author concludes that Arthur could not be blamed for his party's resounding election defeats and later loss of the presidency, but that only magnifies his lack of influence within his own party and the electorate. Most odd was the author's stated surprise at the lack of biographies written about Arthur. After completing this work, one could only wonder why anyone would want to write anything more about him.

A nearly forgotten president.......2005-04-21

Back in the post Civil War days when many plum governmental jobs were gotten from political bosses, Chester A. Arthur had one of the best patronage jobs of all, collector at the US Customhouse in New York. Prior to the federal income tax, this was the country's principal source of income. The collector, under the perfectly legal rules of that time, got a commission on what he collected as well as a comfortable salary. If you paid an assessment to the party, you might be able to secure a patronage job. From this system arose the career of Arthur.

The Republican party was divided into factions. The stalwarts (who had been Ulysses S. Grant supporters) were led by Senator Roscoe Conkling of New York. There was a reform wing of the party and then there was a faction, led by James Blaine of Maine (hmmmm that rhymes) called the half breeds. Arthur was aligned with the stalwarts and the patronage system. As a stylish New York lawyer who was in to the local social scene, he was happy being part of the bureaucracy. At times, he would lose his spoils system position in the bureaucracy due to politics but, he always had his law practice to fall back on. In 1880, his life changed as he ended up as a sort of unoffending compromise candidate for vice president on the ticket led by James Garfield. They were elected and shorly thereafter, Garfield was assasinated. Arthur, who had no aspirations ended up as president. He was as reluctant to assume the presidency as the rest of the nation was to have him take that office.

There were low expectations for Arthur, after all, he was never elected to office other than as Grafield's running mate. However, although he may not have been a great leader, there were significant accomplishments during his term. Most notable was the Pendleton Civil Service Act which began the breakup of the spoils system from which Arthur had arisen. Arthur took moral stands opposing an anti Chinese immigrant piece of legislation and a pork barrel Rivers and Harbors bill. His opposition to both led to their being significantly modified but, he didn't have the political clout to ultimately prevent either from being enacted. All he really did was cut his stalwart ties without creating any real new alliance with the reformers.

Arthur was ill. He had a kidney disease. Also, he really didn't want to be president. However, pride made him seek the nomination in 1884. He had cut himself off from his stalwart base and was not renominated. The Republican nominee, Blaine, lost a close election to Grover Cleveland. All in all, Arthur wasn't a bad president and perhaps deserves to be remembered in history. However, he was not a great president either. The picture that author Zachary Karabell paints is of a president whose legacy may be that he did a decent job of presiding over a period of peace and prosperity.

Informative book about an average president.......2005-03-27

The wonderful thing about reading books concerning the US Presidents is that these men represent a finite group.....forty-two men and forty-three presidencies. Writing for "The American Presidents" series, Zachary Karabell has offered up a slightly expanded thumbnail sketch of our twenty-first president, Chester Alan Arthur.

Since Arthur held the office of president, someone has to write about him. The problem with President Arthur is that not much about him survives. Most of his papers were destroyed after his death, so Karabell must rely largely on newspaper accounts of the day mixed in with a few anecdotes regarding the president, which, as the author mentions, may or may not be true.

We know that Arthur was a bon vivant, never aspired to the presidency and was passable at being the chief executive during his tenure from 1881-1885. Indeed, most presidential ratings place Arthur squarely in the middle or slightly below. Even the Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883, the most important piece of legislation passed during Arthur's presidency, was not a direct act of Arthur's leadership. (I think one more lasting thing to come out of the Arthur years, which Karabell doesn't touch on, is the adoption of Standard Time)

The author does his best to be fair. The few parts of this book with any real drama are Arthur's dealings with Senators Roscoe Conkling and James G. Blaine. The president certainly had a balancing act to do with these two bitter adversaries.

Chester Alan Arthur undoubtedly brought style and grace to the presidency and presided over a few relatively quiet and prosperous years in the United States. We should at least give him credit for that.

A LAIDBACK, GENTLEMAN PRESIDENT.......2004-12-10

The author, Zachary Karabell, writes an interesting, brief biography of Chester Alan Arthur the obscure 21st president of the United States. The text states "Chester Alan Arthur hadn't wanted to become the nation's chief executive. He certainly hadn't aspired to be vice president" and Karabell further notes "....Chester Alan Arthur may have the distinction of being the president who derived the least amount of pleasure from being president." Prior to becoming vice president he had been custom collector for the Port of New York, a well-paid lawyer and head of the New York Republican Party but had never been elected to public office.

He ran as Garfield's vice president in 1880, a campaign notable for what it lacked; "It was a contest of organization and will, not a battle over the future direction of the country." Ideology was ignored with politicians viewing "order as the most important good." With Garfield's assassination, Arthur became president on September 20, 1881. The text notes "No one knew what direction the Arthur administration would take, not even Arthur himself" and observes "As it turned out, the qualities he did possess allowed him to rise farther than many others who were more intelligent, dynamic, and driven."

He was president in an era when "the White House had shed much of the power it had acquired during the Civil War" and each national election was a patronage contest. The assassination of Garfield placed the issue of civil service reform on the front burner. The response was the Pendleton Civil Service Act, the most memorable legislation to emerge from Arthur's presidency. Zachary Karabell's account of Arthur's presidency is brief but informative. Besides civil service reform, the text covers Arthur's handling of Indian affairs, the Anti-Chinese sentiment, and his veto of the Rivers and Harbors Bill. However, in 1882 the Republicans lost control of the House and Arthur's chances for a second term were slim. Perhaps Author's most important contribution to the country was his resuscitation of the military. The army was somewhat sustained because of the Indian wars, but in less than twenty years since the Civil War, the navy had lost almost 90 percent of its ships. Arthur emphatically supported a plan to build ships "designed for offense and attack" and the text notes without Arthur "....[Teddy] Roosevelt and McKinley might not have had a navy capable of annihilating the Spanish in 1898." In addition, this helped to prepare the United States for the foreign affair challenges of the twentieth century.

Having lost his base support, Arthur was not nominated for a second term. The 1884 election was won by Grover Cleveland, a Democrat. As he left office Arthur was the object of warm political eulogies and the author writes "Arthur had become president with perilously low expectations, which he then exceeded. In essence, most people concluded that the Arthur administration hadn't been half bad." He died at age 56 less than two years after leaving office.

In conclusion, Karabell states Arthur "....tried to serve the general good rather than the interest of his faction..." and he "....did for civil service reform what he had done for most things in his life: he added a note of grace and honor, and the result was a balanced piece of legislation at a time when that was rare." The author concludes "In everything he did, Chester Alan Arthur was a gentleman and that is rare and precious" and closes stating "Arthur managed to be a decent man, a decent president in an era when decency was in short supply."

Americans would do well to read this brief biography of a somewhat obscure, laidback; but decent, honest, gentleman president.

Rescued from the shadows, if only for a moment.......2004-08-13

Zachary Karabell set a challenge for himself, no question: Take one of America's most forgotten presidents and try to find enough to say about him to fill a book -- even one fitting the relatively short length of the titles in The American Presidents series. And give the man credit, he's done it. More than that, he even makes a case for Arthur as -- if still not quite memorable, let alone important -- at least somewhat interesting.

Karabell's challenge was made all the greater by the shadows surrounding Arthur's personal life. Not only did Arthur prefer it that way himself (p. 108), but most of his personal papers were destroyed shortly after his death. Consequently, Arthur the man is a little thin in these pages ("thin" being an adjective probably never applied to Arthur himself during his lifetime). But while anyone looking for People Magazine-style "hidden secrets" about our twenty-first president is bound to be disappointed, the author more than makes up for this with a fine capsule portrayal of the Gilded Age and its politics. This is important, for Arthur was very much a man and a politician of his time.

Indeed, the most noteworthy part of Arthur's term in office was his own transformation from "Gentleman Boss" to simply "Gentleman." Despite his history as the veritable poster boy of spoils-system, backroom machine politicking, Arthur "grew in office," as we'd say today, into perhaps one of the best men to help shepherd through important civil service reforms. Karabell argues, I think convincingly, that the new political culture Arthur helped create still affects us today.

Chester Alan Arthur wasn't a crusader or a firebrand. He wasn't driven by a lust for power or glory. In fact, Karabell describes him as perhaps America's most reluctant president -- a man who never in his life wanted to be chief executive. He slipped back into obscurity almost as soon as he left office, and if anything is even more forgotten today. But "in an age of low expectations, he was more than satisfactory" (p. 139). That the author is able to make that case, not only convincingly but interestingly and even sometimes entertainingly as well, is a credit to him as well as to his subject.

Chester A. Arthur: Twenty-First President of the United States (Encyclopedia of Presidents)

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Chester A. Arthur: Twenty-First President of the United States (Encyclopedia of Presidents)
Charnan Simon
Manufacturer: Children's Press (CT)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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The Chester A. Arthur Conspiracy
William Wiegand
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ASIN: 0385278748

Chester A. Arthur: Twenty-First President: 1881 - 1885 (Getting to Know the Us Presidents)

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Chester A. Arthur: Twenty-First President: 1881 - 1885 (Getting to Know the Us Presidents)
Mike Venezia
Manufacturer: Children's Press (CT)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0516254014

Chester A. Arthur (Presidential Leaders)

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Chester A. Arthur (Presidential Leaders)
Ruth Tenzer Feldman
Manufacturer: Twenty-First Century Books (CT)
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ASIN: 0822515121

Chester A. Arthur, a quarter-century of machine politics (American classics)

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Chester A. Arthur, a quarter-century of machine politics (American classics)
George F Howe
Manufacturer: F. Ungar Pub. Co
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Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00089DVIG

Chester A. Arthur, Our Twenty-First President: Our Twenty-First President (Our Presidents)

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Chester A. Arthur, Our Twenty-First President: Our Twenty-First President (Our Presidents)
Carol Brunelli
Manufacturer: Child's World
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 1567668585

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A thorough, illustrated biography discussing the president's childhood, his career, his family, and his term as President of the United States. Includes a time line and glossary.

Chester A. Arthur (Encyclopedia of Presidents. Second Series)

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Chester A. Arthur (Encyclopedia of Presidents. Second Series)
Dan Elish
Manufacturer: Children's Press (CT)
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Binding: Library Binding

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The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur (American Presidency Series)

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Much about foreign affairs, little about domestic events

The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur (American Presidency Series)
Justus D. Doenecke
Manufacturer: University Press of Kansas
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0700602089

Book Description

This is the first single volume to focus on the presidencies of both James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur. Drawing from a host of studies on the foreign and domestic policies of the nation during the Gilded Age, as well as from his own primary research, the author presents a somewhat revisionist look at Garfield and Arthur--revisionist in that he gives the reader a renewed appreciation of both men. Far from being cynical spoilsmen or naive incompetents, individuals whose presidencies provide studies in ineptitude, Garfield and Arthur emerge as men of considerable ability. While making no claims of greatness, Doenecke maintains that each was a significant transitional figure, playing a crucial role as the institution of the presidency moved from the weak leadership of Andrew Johnson to the forceful direction of Theodore Roosevelt.

According to Doenecke, Garfield saw the office of chief executive primarily in administrative terms, and his great battle was over keeping the power of appointment in his own hands. His victory over the Stalwarts enhanced both the power and prestige of the office. His knowledge of how government worked was unmatched; long before Woodrow Wilson made his mark, Garfield was "the scholar in politics." The diplomacy of Secretary of State James G. Blaine comes under critical scrutiny. Doenecke evaluates his performance in the Chile-Peru War (War of the Pacific), the Guatemala-Mexico dispute, the isthmian-canal issue, Irish-American activities in Britain, and efforts to secure markets in Korea.

Garfield was assassinated less than six months after he entered office; he had yet to be tested on major issues of public policy. Chester A. Arthur was ill prepared to be chief executive, was in poor health much of the time while he was in office, and was faced with a hopelessly divided party. Nevertheless, he was one of the nation's great political surprises. His administration pioneered in the development of the navy, sought foreign markets for American surpluses, fostered civil-service reform, and pressed for a scientific tariff. Doenecke devotes one chapter to the spoils system and the background to the Pendleton Act, one to Arthur's strategy regarding the South, and then offers an in-depth analysis of diplomacy during Arthur's tenure.

During the presidencies of Garfield and Arthur, the United States attempted to intervene in a war between Chile and Peru, sought to turn Nicaragua into a protectorate, supplied leading advisers to Madagascar and Korea, and took a major part in the Congo conference of 1884. In examining these activities, even while pointing to uncoordinated statecraft and inept diplomacy, Doenecke challenges the long-held view that, from 1881 to 1885, the nation was withdrawn and insular. His fresh perspective on the Garfield and Arthur years will be of considerable interest to historians of the Gilded Age.

This book is part of the American Presidency Series Customer Reviews:

Much about foreign affairs, little about domestic events.......2004-10-09

Since he was assassinated very early in his term, it is inappropriate to analyze the Garfield presidency. It would be reduced to statements of his intentions when he took office and speculations regarding how he would have handled events. Although Doenecke spends some time in examining Garfield's personal philosophy, to his credit, it is minimal. He concentrates on one of the greatest problems facing presidents at that time, the federal patronage, which was one of the few things that Garfield managed to do before he was gunned down.
In the era before civil service reform, the change of administration meant that many federal jobs needed to be filled. At the time, they were considered political spoils, to be awarded to individuals who had served the new president in the past or who were expected to serve him in the future. While all presidents used it as a rewards system, they also were frustrated in the number of applicants, and the time it took to deal with them. Therefore, the sections on what Garfield did as president largely deal with his handling of the patronage issues.
While Chester A. Arthur was a compromise candidate for vice president and automatically suspect as presidential material, his presidency suffered from yet another serious problem. Unlike the earlier presidents who died in office, Garfield lingered for some time after he was shot. Eighty days elapsed between the time Garfield was wounded and his death. Furthermore, at times it appeared that he would recover. Therefore, there was over two months of leadership limbo, plenty of time for the government to drift. During this time, Arthur's hands were tied, as there was no precedent concerning an incapacitated president.
There are two things about this book that are striking, although they are related. The first is how little coverage there is of domestic affairs, especially in the area of legislation. The years of the Arthur presidency were a time of little major legislative action, the only significant accomplishment were the initial steps of civil service reform. There is mention of the general economic conditions and the continued expansion of the industrial revolution, but nothing with significant depth.
The second point is the amount of coverage of U. S. involvement in world affairs. With a military that could have been easily defeated by that of nearly all European nations, there could be no muscle flexing. However, the growth of international commerce, the European imperial quest for colonies and the fact that the U. S. now covered both coasts meant that U. S. merchants now traveled the world in search of commercial and economic ties. For reasons that I don't understand, the 1890's are generally considered to be the point where the United States shed the isolationist mindset and began to take an interest in the rest of the world. Doenecke does an excellent job in describing how involved the U. S. was becoming a decade earlier. There is coverage of U. S. involvement in events in Korea, Hawaii, Madagascar, the Congo, South America and Central America. We see the beginnings of a country that is starting to understand that it can no longer restrict itself to what takes place in North America north of the Rio Grande River.
There is also extensive coverage of how incredibly weak the U. S. navy was in the years immediately after the Civil war. In order to blockade the south and starve it of resources, the Union built up what was then the most powerful navy in the world. However, after the war was over, it was so weak that even one of the medium size capital ships of the British navy was more powerful than all U. S. ships combined. Although it started slowly and there was a lot of partisan wrangling, one can see the initial glimmerings of a great power on the ascent.
While I commend Doenecke for his extensive coverage of U. S. involvement in the world, I believe that he should have spent more time in examining the events inside the U. S. I readily concede that President Arthur did little in the way of legislation, however there were many other things happening in the country during his administration. Presidents affect those events, even if only by their inaction, so I would have preferred more detailed explanations of some of those changes.

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