The Penn's Grove record., 1900-01-26
Ex SLAVES D%EFRAUDED.
Pension Swindle IS Now Reaching
Great Proportions.
Efforts to Stamp 1t Out-In Spite Of ON
eIal Warnings Many Negroes Are
Paying Money to the Promoters.

WASHINGTON, d. G. (special).-The ex
slave pension swindle has taken deeper
root and spread further than had been sup
posed even by Government officials. The
delusion that the United States Govern
ment is about to. pension all the persons
who were in slavery before the Civil War
10 a fixed belief throughout the Southern
States. thanks to the ingenuity with which
the meh behind the scheme have fostered
It.
Here in Washington, where wide publicity
has been given to the rascally character Of
the swindle, poor old negroes are paying
money regularly In the expectation OF get.
ting Q big windfall from the Government.
and now reports from all over the South
snow that the delusion Is spreading every
where faster than the Government expo.
sures can follow.
= discovery made by the Senate Commit.
tee on Pensions shows what a lucrative
scheme this must be to the men who are
preytng on the ignorance of an unfortunate
,lass. The committee has two member
ship certificates in the so-called "assocfa
ton to which the former slaves are in
1uced to belong. 1t costs twenty five cent?
TO get n OF these certificates, and the
1ues are ten cents a month.
Besides that. before a local branch of the
association" Is formed its member have
to pay $3.50 for q charter. One of the Ger.
tif1cates which has fallen into the hands oil
the Senate committee Is dated July S, 1897,
and is numbered 1867. The other is dated
April II, 1899, and IL numbered 80, ITO. This
indicates the momentum with which the
delusion Is spreading. By the time the
second certificate was issued-nine month";
ago-the heads of the "association'' must
have gathered In over $50 900, with no o..
penses except the cost of printing and mail.
Ing seductive circulars. /.
The circulars are enough to convince
people more intelligent and better edu.
sated than the averave ex-slave. They are
profusely illustrated, and give histories
of the progress OF the movement" The
dissemination OF this literature received g
severe setback when Assistant Post.
master General Heath, or the recon.
mendatfon of Pension Commissioner
Evans, barred it from the mails. Never.
theless, though badly hampered, the pro-
motors of the scheme continue to push
their plan with undated vigor.<
Unfortunately, it is easy enough to get
some unthinkfng Congressman to intro.
duce. "by request" q bill to pension ex-
slaves, and this has been done In more
than n Congress. OF course, the intro
duction of the bill Is the end of It 1t Is
promptly killed. but that is enough to ac-
complfsh the purpose OF the promoters.
They are able to say that q bill has been or
will be introduced, that money is needed
for Expenses" and the victims, encour-
aged by the news, fall over themselves In
their hurry to pay subscriptions and dues.
Senator Gallinger. Chairman OF the
Committee OF Pensions, has investig ated
the matter, and added his vigorous denun-
citation to those Of Commissioner Evans
and Mr.. Heath. The victims, however, be-
long to a class that Is hard to reach in the
main, and the lie is travelling q long way
while the truth is getting its boots on.