ANCIENT& not so ancient WISDOM
offering a weekly positive perspective

September 18, 2003

Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. 

- Calvin Coolidge (1872 - 1933)    (photo: Calvin Coolidge and Helen Keller)

Born on July 4, 1872, in Plymouth Notch, Vermont, he was named John Calvin Coolidge. Coolidge's father, John Calvin Coolidge, was a jack-of-all-trades, teacher, storekeeper, farmer, politician, and even mechanic when necessary. His mother, Victoria Moor Coolidge died when Calvin was 12.

After his graduation from Amherst in 1895, Coolidge became a lawyer. He was able to earn enough in his practice of drawing up legal documents, doing title searches and collection work, managing estates to become financially independent in a short time. 

During 1896 and 1897, Coolidge was active in politics through the Republican Party, and in 1898 he was elected as a city councilman. From then until his retirement, he was seldom out of public office. In 1905, he suffered his only election defeat, in a contest for school committeeman.

During his two 1-year terms in the House, his record was mildly progressive. In 1911 he was sent to the state Senate, where he became a Republican leader. His creed was “something for everybody, so long as it did not cost much”.

In 1913, Coolidge was elected presidency of the Senate. Advising his colleagues to "Do the day's work" and "Be brief," Coolidge performed effectively, producing legislation that was sound and well received. In 1915, he ran successfully for lieutenant governor and in 1918 he was elected governor. His national reputation was made with the 1919 Boston police strike.

The police of Boston had grievances over pay, hours of work, and working conditions. Receiving little satisfaction from the city, they affiliated with the American Federation of Labor (AFL), and when 19 local police union leaders were suspended from the force, the police voted to strike. Their walkout brought disorder to Boston. Coolidge took command of the various forces that had been introduced to bring order. He denied the right of the strikers to return to their jobs, and defended the city and state's actions in a telegram to Samuel Gompers, president of the AFL, in which he asserted, "There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time." Coolidge received the acclaim of the nation, including that of President Woodrow Wilson, for meeting a dire threat to public safety, and that fall he was reelected governor.

At the 1920 Republican National Convention, Coolidge, was elected as Vice President for the Warren G. Harding ticket. That fall Harding and Coolidge won a landslide victory.

Vice President Coolidge presided over the Senate without flair and made rather unimpressive speeches over the country. By the summer of 1923, he had little enthusiasm for his job and had developed no power as a national political figure.

All that changed on the night of August 2, 1923, when President Harding died. At 2:47 a.m., his father in his rural Vermont home swore in Coolidge as President of the United States by the light of an oil
lamp. Coolidge left for Washington a few hours later to take up his duties.

Coolidge set out to establish a working relationship with the leading members of the Harding administration, and he drew on many people for advice and help. The scandals of Harding's presidency, particularly the Teapot Dome oil affair, were coming to light, and Coolidge spent much of his time defending his party. His relations with Congress were unhappy, but he coped with scandal by prosecuting offenders, and, thanks to that, his integrity, and his self-possession, he revived public confidence in the White House.

Although he was elected President for a full term in 1924, it was a sad year for Coolidge, for in July his younger son, Calvin, Jr., died of blood poisoning.

During his full term as President, Coolidge was successful at paring the national debt and reducing income taxes, to increase money for consumer spending, creating orderly growth of civil and military aviation, expansion of the services of the departments of Agriculture and Commerce, regulation of radio broadcasting, development of waterways, flood control, and encouragement of cooperative solutions to farm problems.

He demanded and got efficient and economical performance in government operations and through his appointments raised the level of competence among diplomats and federal judges.

Coolidge declined to run for reelection. He retired in 1929 to Northampton, where he busied himself writing newspaper and magazine articles. He seldom took an active role in politics. His health declined rapidly, and on January 5, 1933, he died of coronary thrombosis.

As the 30th President of the United States, the number and variety of Coolidge's accomplishments were substantial. Unhappily, with the economic events of the 1930's they were soon forgotten.

Wishing you great and continued success!

Sincerely,