The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-07-02
A REIGN OF TERROR.
Distress Among the Female Employees of the
Treasury Department.

Washington Special
AS the first of the fiscal year approaches, the
panic among the clerks, especially the women in
the Treasury, increases, till it is now actually
pitful. Many of these women are without rela-
tives who can be of any service to them; not
few of them are widows, with children to sup
port; some are unmarried, with widowed, mothers
their hands If they lose their places in the
department, there is absolutely no prospect be-
fore them. 1t is not unnatural that they are
nervous Many of them, in fact, are perfectly
demoralizej They talk of nothing but the
dreadful rumors that have reached their ears
They worry over their impending fate till they
can neither sleep at night nor work by day.
'What have you heard9' How many are 60
ing to gol' what do you think the auditor
will doT These are the questions they inces
sanity put to each other. Nothing can divert
the attention of hundreds of them from the Wis
ion of the wrath to come which is always before
their eyes They are resorting to every device
to strengthen their positions. Every one who
has any means of securing them has got letters
from Democrats of more or less prominence,
asking for their retention in the event OF a
ducton Of the force. Then the women flock in
scores to the Office of Eugene Higgins. They
only want to see him five minutes. They want
to refresh his mind to their necessities
tnelf DeInOcratlC influence. ana reinforce the
documents they have on file with their most
persuasive and fascinating manners in
personal interview. OF course. this scare began
Immediately after the Attn of March. Accord
ing to the rumors widely believed amongst
the Treasury women, there were to have been
wholesale removals May l, but that day passed
without the occurrence of anything very dread
full Then the clean sweep was to be made June
j, but 1t wasn't Rumor postponed the clean
sweep fifteen days, only TO adjourn it again for
half a month. But the end of the fiscal
year has been reached, and the clean sweep is
certain. Faces are long and their expressions of
anxiety are distressing. There are whole dlvis-
ions where II woman has not smiled for two or
three days, and yesterday the atmosphere was
positively oppressive, with gloom in every room
where there were many women. The men are
not so badly frightened because they not
so tlmid naturally and because dis
charge would not be quite disastrous
to them. There are a good many things
man can do on a pinch, but there are not many
ways In which women can earn from $50 to 500
per month To add to the horrors of the pres
who. to make themselves solid in their rela-
tons with the administration are making all
sorts of charges against their colleagues and
Subordinatea They hope in that way to prove
their usefulness and devotion to the interests of
the government The women are afraid of each
other. more afraid Of n lot Of male clerks and
assistant chiefs OF division and still more afraid
of Captain McCrea. the new captain of the
treasury watch, and some of his gang, who i'm
agine that their duty is TO act detectives. and
whenever they two clerks speak to each
other IN a corridor TO report them to the secre
tary for violating the rules and neglecting work.