Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-02-21
INVESTIGATING A COMPLAINT.


he entered office was that of the allege,
severity and discourtesy of custom:
officials at New York city who are re,
quired to inspect baggage and examine
passengers for dutiable goods. Shaw.
predecessor Lyman j. Gage. had insti-
2 tuted reform measures to correct
goods into that port. and of course
many who sought to evade the laws are
sore over this treatment. In order to
, get at the facts, however, and to learn
! whether there is real cause for just
grievance, it is announced that Secre-
tary Shaw has addressed a circular let
ter to more than 1000 women who have
, had trouble in getting their trunks thru
the New York custom house. He asks
ing in each particular case. These let
tiers, it is stated, will be regarded as
confidential, the sole aim being to learn
the truth. As indicated elsewhere, how
ever, the secretary is already encoun-
tering objection to his method OF con-
Quoting an inquiry.
While Secretary of the Treasury Mr..
Gage was justly proud of the reforms
instituted In an article contributed to
cember he devoted twelve pages to the
| presentation of customs Inspection of
| Baggage" In promising he said: We
have as our ruler only that impersonal
thing, the law. The law is impartial,
universal. It's bans and it's blessings
must extend alike over the rich and the
poor, the great and the humble. Who
ever seeks to violate it for his own sup
posed advantage commits moral trea-
minister the law must be as impartial
and as memorable as the law itself 1t
goes without saying that when public
officer takes this just view of his duty
and frames regulations to correct
abuses, as Mr.. Gage did in the present
case, somebody's toes will be trampled
upon.
He claims that one of the greatest
evils that existed before he set upon
foot new regulations was the wholesale
extension of the so-called courtesy OF
the port" by which baggage was put
fh11I tho ran I'd of
what dutiable articles ii might contain.
and that thus in the course of the year
many thousands of dollars We're lost to
the government. All who could pulled
official strings to secure this courtesy
of The port
In proof of reforms instituted and as
showing the good results ofimpartial in
spection he presents statement TO the
effect that for the seven months ending
Sept. so, last, duties amounting TO
S655. 04S.13 were collected on the per-
sonal baggage of passengers arriving
from Europe. For the corresponding
period of 1900 the collections We're only
$152,455.15. The number of passengers
were practically the sameeachyear, ov
er 100000 in round numbers. The diff
ference in receipts, therefore, he states,
is to be attributed solely to the more
honest and even handed inspection.
AS to the question of severe treat
ment Mr. Gage says:
Recently, an old friend of the writer
who was travelling abroad wrote that he
was to return on a certain steamer, and
asked that the collector at New York
be instructed to extend TO him the
courtesies of the port He was in
formed that the favor he asked could not
be granted. knowing him we'll, the
writer asked him to prove that he har-
bored no hard feeling because of this
refusal, by himself doing a favor TO the
department This favor was that he
should come in like any other traveller,
take his chances, and report in fun de-
tail his experiences. lie was advised
of the attitude that had been taken by
some of the newspaper, of the general
assertion of hardship and ill-usage at
the dock, and he was asked to cooper
there was for these charges. He agreed
to the proposition and in due course ran
the gauntlet of the inspectors, writing
the department from New York. He
said that. so far as he could judge, the
examination of baggage had proceeded
with far greater dispatch than had ever
been the case before, and he had gone
thru the mill many times. He fond
no dissatisfaction among the passen
gers whom he had interrogated on the
question, and tho he had kept very
sharp lookout for rough usage, he had
found nothing that would have justi-
fled the slightest protest. Altogether,
in spite of the fact that the courtesies
of the port had been denied him. he
said he felt impelled in justice to adj
nit the superiority of the present meth
cd over the old"
1t will thus be seen that Secretary
Shaw has no pleasant duty before him
in any attempt to show up the unde-
sirable features of present regulate
IOWA OPINIONS AND NOTES.
The Grundy Republican notices that
Senator Dolliver is growing in popular
ity not only with his constituents but