Moses curbed his bluntness because he recognized real power in someone else

Evidence

But, in spite of the cursing, there was a difference in Bob Moses. The man who had not hesitated to criticize to their faces his superiors at the Bureau of Municipal Research was careful that his cursing of Mrs. Moskowitz was done out of her earshot. “He certainly didn’t talk to her the way he talked about her,” a staffer recalls. While he might dispute a decision heatedly, he stopped arguing once she made clear that the decision was final. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 427

Categorization

• XREF: This self-discipline before genuine authority prefigures how the mature Moses handles himself before governors — and how he expects others to behave before him. — connects to: Moses treated near-equals democratically but subordinates with drill-sergeant peremptoriness. — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the…, 446