Taft performed well in his role as commissioner and then governor-general of the Philippines. He took the job with zeal and it showed. He upgraded the health standards in the country, created a civil service system, established a governing legal document, and limited corruption. At times he clashed with Major General Arthur MacArthur—father of future general Douglas MacArthur—over the treatment of Filipinos. During his tenure in the Philippines from 1901 to 1904, Taft even turned down two offers from President Theodore Roosevelt to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.