Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1891-05-22
ANoTHERpENsIoN OFFICE SCANDAL

Mr.. Green b. Raum, Jr., the son OF
the Commissioner OF Pensions, has re-
signed his position as assistant chief
clerk OF the Pension Office upon the
very pointed request OF Secretary
Noble. Young Mr.. Raum, it seems,
has been using his position for his pc
cuniary advancement in rather
shady manner He has been selling
places in the Pension Office at so much
a lob. and has undoubtedly made a
good deal of money by the scheme.
One of the incidents related is to this
effect: A South Carolinian wanted
clerkship and advertised for it. MIR.
Raum communicated with him
through the medium Of u colored
chun. and the South Carolina man
put up $500 cash and got his appoint
ment. Then the South Carollnlan
wanted promotion. He needed
81, 200 salary and was willing to pay
for it. A job was put up by which
clerk in the Pension Office personated
Smith for that was the South Car
olinian's name, before the Civil Ser
vice Commission. The substitute
passed a good examination, and when
Smiths name was drawn from the
eligible list Smith himself put in an
appearance. The photograph OF Mr..
Jackson, who was the Pension Office
Clerk, not being ON the papers, there
was no way in which to identify
Smith, so he got the appointment.
There is no telling how much of
this sort of business has been going
on, nor Is it possible to guess when 1t
would have ended, had not the above
described transaction been brought
TO the attention of Secretary Noble.
That gentleman promptly discharged
all persons concerned in the disgrace
full affair, save Raum, whom he re-
ouested to resign at once. Raum
demurred, but he had to so, and 1t
wa. only by hard pleading OF his
friends that he was not arrested, Tor
an additional charge of embezzllns
S72 was brought against him. This
he managed to explain in some sort
Of fashion, and perhaps he was limo
cent in the matter.
1t seems impossible to keep the
faint Of corruption from the Pension
Office, and it is not to be wondered at
when the rottenness OF the whole
system is considered. There Is lit
tie solid foundation for the structure
which has been reared almost entirely
on political necessities and plastered
with fraud without and within. Few
persons have been connected with It's
management and remained altogether
clean, and the dishonesty on the in
side is nothing to the fraud and hum
bug that have been sapping the gov
eminent through it from the outside.
The Pension Office has probably done
more to corrupt the people than any
other agency connected with the gov
eminent.
As for the Raums, those who knew
these people predicted scandal from
the time that General Raum was
made Commissioner. They hadn't
long to wait, for it was only a few
months until his patent refrigerator
scheme showed him up in a sorry
plight. Congress ordered an investl-
CATION, and most damaging testimony
was deduced, though eventually the
committee whitewashed the Commls-
sioner. 1t will be remembered that
young Raum cut quite figure IN the
investigation, and acted as though
he owned the government. He seems
to have held this opinion until Secre-
tary Noble stopped him so suddenly
in his mad career. The defense made
by young Mr.. Raum in the present
case has been extremely lame, and
the father has not had much to say
except to express his belief that he IL
the victim OF conspiracy. The Com
missioner seems to have had no
knowledge of his sons schemes, and
saws he hasn't the faintest idea of re-
signing. No one expects him to re-
sign unless it be by request.
We are OF the opinion that the re-
quest will not be very long in coming.