Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-06-16
BLACKMAILING FEDERAL
EMPLOYEES.

The Washington Post has exposed n
most scandalous attempt to rb,nckmail
federal employees. According to the
Posts account, the Republican Cam
paign committee established AN agent
in the Raleigh hotel who asked each
of the employees OF the Capitol to call
and pay over so per cent. Of the extra
months salary voted them by the last
congress, according to custom. This
would have given the Campaign COM
mittee nucleus of $4,000 to start with,
but the employees declined to "shell
out" and exposed the scheme.
When the agent. u person named
Schrader, was asked for the facts. he
did not deny that he was acting for the
Republican Congressional committee.
He contented himself with asserting
that no specific sum had been asked for
and made this engaging confession:
These men are ncs under civil SER
vice rules. and, more than that, they
are not assessed. y good many of them
have heretofore complained that there
was no recognized committee-r room and
no one authorized TO receive campaign
SObti iCubitnS' IIS yCdi IL wis uC-
cided to give the generously inclined no
such excuse, and they were notified
that they might call alt the Raleigh.
where they were told that anything
they might be inclined to give would be
thankfully received. Every man has
been given n receipt for every cent con-
trfbuted by him, and no man holding
such receipt will say that he was forced
to give. or that his place would be jeo-
pardiZed if he refused to give anything.
If there has been any. kicking 1t must
be from those who have kept at 4 safe
distance. and hive allowed their fears
to eXaggerGte their danger"
Such an example of disinteres.ed
thoughifuiness Mr.. Schrader here
lays bare cannot fall ito commend itself
to every man whose soul has burned to
make contributions while he was un-
able to find 4 contributee. The speota-
Gle of federal employees rushing hither
and thither over the super-heated as
phaNt of 1ashngton's streets in the
vain search for a depository for cam
paign funds was calculated to harrow
more hardened sensabilities than are
the property OF n Republican Congress
siorhl campaign committee.
There was no cornpulsfon, says Schq.a-
der. Was not the admission that the
men asked to call and deliver are not
under civil service rules an unfortu-
nate, II necessary, admission? It COM
potts rather i'll with the theory of en-
tire freedom from compulsion. If the
men invited to hand over half
months salary are not under civil SER
vice rules they are subject to summary
dismissal. and any call upon them for
contributions was, in the nature OF the
case, the full equivalent of n threat.
The case, therefore. plainly stands that
the Republican Congressional cam
paign committee has Attempted to
Dlackmail the Capitol employees, under
circumstances the most outrageous and
disgraceful. and on pain of dismissal,
implied, If not expressed.
Federal employees of all sorts and de-
grces may as well take notice and be-
gin to economize. No hard luck
stories will go down this year. The
proposition is half a months salary or
decapitation 1t is too pain to be mis-
understood and too urgent to be par
rled. There should be no favoritsm.
however. Schrader says he gave receipts
why, is not explained. but is easy to
conjecture-and all other federal en-
ployces should demand THE same evil
ience that they have bought immunity
from persecution and further black
mail.