The Republic for Which It Stands: The United States during Reconstruction and the Gilded Age, 1865-1896 (Oxford History of the United States)

by Richard White

When Hayes vowed to stop federal office holders from also taking political positions; appointed the Jay Commission, which recommended staff reductions in the New York Collector of Customs office; and tried to replace Conkling’s collector, Chester A. Arthur, with his own appointee, it meant war.76 In taking on the customs offices, Hayes wanted to break the Stalwart machines, which opposed him and which capitalized on the American system of fee-based governance. Arthur was actually quite competent. He had improved the procedures of the New York Customs Office and eliminated much of the outright bribery of officials. Arthur remained, however, a loyal functionary of the Conkling machine.