Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1900-09-29
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The Republican, Machine Find,
Fine manoW in the Bones
Of the Taxpayers.
Salaries Of Political Pets Gre Raised ip
Order That tbe Bosses Nay
Thrive Well.
While the City Government Cuts Expenses, the
County Has Raised Everything
in Sight.
Some Facts for Taxpayers to Ponder Over While Looking Over
the Big Ballot for the Election Next
November.

bosses In attacking the administration
Of Mayor Harrison from an economical
standpoint Is attracting the attention
of the tax.paylng public to the manner
In which the Lorimer machine Is loot
ing Cook County.
Sheriff Magerstadt, who enjoys a
rake.off of $4,000 a year for dieting
jail prisoners,
Treasurer Raymond. who enjoys
rake.off Of 100000 from the interest
on the peoples money.
The County Commissioners, who
raised their own salaries and then
laughed at the voters, are but markers
to the rest of the crew.
When 1t Is understood that the whole
taxing power of the county Is In the
hands of the Republicans and that they
have cut down the allowance for the
city while they have raised that for
the county. the robbery looks all the
worse.
Sock it to the taxpayers and give 1t
Lorlmer battle cry.
The machine Is thriving all right.
The taxpayers are grooming under
their burdens.
Detailed examination of the county
appropriation bills of 1898, 1890 and
1900 made In connection with the in
vestIgatlons by the Young Mems
Voters League. throws light on the
charge of wholesale salary.ralslng pre-
ferred against the present County
Board. The indictment penncd against
the County Commissioners Is that they
refused to advance the salaries of actu.
nj workers on the plea of ECONOMY"
but at the same time gave political pets
bonuses varying from Sl2O to 1000 a
year. In reply to that charge the com.
missiOners and county officials have
urged that the majority of the raises,
almost the whole amount" In the
words of Deputy Comptroller James l..
Monaghan, was given to union labor at
the county institutions.
Tabulatlon of the raises shows that
not only did union wOrkmen fail to r..
celve the larger part Of the raises, but
they received less than One-sXth of
the amount voted from the public
funds during 1890 and 1900 in advances
of salary. The total amount voted dur.
Ing that time over the salary rates paid
in 1888 Is SS3,360. or that the County
Commissioners voted themselves $780,
| 900 for the two years. Union labor got
but Sl2,i90, all voted this year. OF
the amounts voted last year, not cent
was voted to member of labor
union, although salaries outside Of the
commissioners "salary grab" were adj
| yanccd 10 the amount of 5000. None
of the advances made In 1898, amount
| Ing to 81, 100, were resclnded this year,
but on the contrary, We're again voted
in the appropriation bill, making total
Of twice that amount extended over
the two years. Besides those raises,
$50, $50 was voted in addition this year
and less than half of 1t went to union
labor.
Cuts were made on the plea of "econ,
omy," but the political pets did not feel
the sharp edge of the knife. The vie
tins Were the men and women who In
the amount of their monthly stipend
We're at the very bottom of the list
Eight dOmestics at Dunning had theiI
yearly wages reduced from S2lG ia
Sl92. Two wOrkmen at Cunning had
their wages cut from $40 a year to
$50 a year. Last year the physicians
in the County Agents office-men who
brave the weather day and night, en-
dure foul smells, invade filthy homes
ana actually furnish medicines they
prescribe for their INDECENT patients
were paid only $50 month for three
months out of the Si5 a month apprO
prlatcd for them-all on. the plea OF
ECONOMY"
| Nurses at Dunnlng and the County
Hospital continue to get their $40 and
their $500 year each Most of then
are women who have studied years IN
their profession and in consideration OF
their preparation they asked the board
to give them an extra 81 month each
The board said: "No; economy" The
advance the nurses asked for and could
not get was less than one-fOurth in the
aggregate of the raise given the pOllti
cal pets in those two institutions alone