Evening star., 1894-01-10
WHOLESALE BLACK MAIL
How Corporations Are Bled by the Mary
land Bosses.
Contributions That Must BE Made to
Secure Immunity-Bills Intro
duced to ExtOrt Money.
BALTIMORE. Md, Jan. 8. IL


BALTIMORE. Md, Jan. s, 1894.
The bosses are in full charge at Annapo-
lis and the usual heavy toll will be levied
on all corporations asking privileges from
the state. Bills will be introduced which
IL enacted into law would destroy or per-
manently injure large property interests.
The people interested try, by appealing to
the committees in charge of the proposed
laws to convince the members that injustice
will be done, but it is discovered al last that
nothing can be done until some member of
the third house is seen and arrangements
made" The bill is then pigeonholed. and
the members Of the lobby divide their spoil.
From the beginning to the end of the ses-
sion this plugging of corporations and pri-
yate interests goes on. and a deep sigh OF
relief goes up from the community when
the ninety days have passed and the un-
wholesome crowd of lobbyists and strikers
retire to their holes and haunts to spend
their ill-gotten gains. An officer OF one OF
the wealthiest corporations doing business
here said today that he viewed the bien-
NAL meeting of the general assembly with
apprehension, and always saw its adjourn
ment with joy and relief. Stocks of local
companies stand still or fall, as IL Is known
tiers or hamper the work Of these corpora
tfons for the purpose Of securing money as
pay for immunity
Attacking the Corporations.
This year the usual attack is to be made
on the gas, electric light and railway COM
panies, while a new source of revenue will
be sought in combined effort to make the
insurance and trust companies come to
time and contribute to what Is known as
the Grandmother's Fund.
For more than forty years this system of
public plundering has been going on.
Whethe- the legislature has been whig or
knownothing, as IL generally was before
the war, or republican or democratic, as 1t
has been during and since the great st-ug
gle between the states, the same system has
preailed. Bills are introduced for the ex-
press purpose of frightening capitalists and
compelling them, in the current ye-nacuiar
to put up the stuff"
Members DO Not Reap the Profit.
Strange as 1t may appear, out of all the
large sums of money spent at Annapolis to
prevent hostile or secure favorable iegisia-
ton. the members get very little. Few are
ever known to sell out directly
The bosses here, as i'm New York and other
states. take the cash, and through their in
huence over the members, who are general
ly weak men who lack the courage to stand
up manfuily against the machine, they force
or cajoie a majority into voting as they de-
sire. and in this way the iniquitous work
goes on. 1t is the fault of the system of
machine and boss politics which has been
the curse of this city and state for more
than generation, and which appears to be
growing in strength here rather than dimin-
ishing In its power and influence People
would rather pay to be let alone than exert
themselves before the election, and by rous-
Ing public sentiment drive the rascals from
power by the ballot
The election laws here are made in the in
terest of the ring, and the results of the
elections are made to continue the machine
In control-notwithstandin the majority of
the legal voters may desire to turn the
rascais out Careful manipulation of the
ofi1cial machinery of the elections and the
open and glaring use of repeaters have in
the past kept the ring in control and will
continue to do so in the future as long as
clgid partisan boards have charge of the
elections ~