 Although Minister of Finance and an accountant by pre-war profession, he seems never to have pursued personal profit; indeed he was sometimes all but homeless during the war for independence.This characteristic was exemplified by a letter he wrote on 4 August 1922 to his canvassing agent; offering to pay half the bill for a hired election car because some of the journeys had been for personal trips.While clearly fond of command and keen to take charge, he had an equal appetite for input and advice from people at every level of the organisation, prompting the comment that "he took advice from his chauffeur."