West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1905-08-17
TuE GRAFTERS

The graflers are an OLD sect
Christ found them making the
Temple a den Of thieves and he
drove them ou.. But there was
never time when the CRATER was
abroad in our land as he is to-day.
the newspaper editorials TO the con
trary notwithstanding.
An exposure Of some graft in a
county office does not make GOOD
newspaper story The people ex-
pect it and don't seem To care.
For a bank to close its doors and
good" man to get away with the
loot is so ,mmon IL is hardly worth
while u mention il. When the facts
leak through, il is found he has been
using other peoples money for his
own private interests. The old
method OF saving a bank president
is a sound business man has lost It's
value.
There does not appear To be de
partment of the general government
where there is no. meddling with the
public funds. The postoffice de-
partment has had a big run, and
heaven only knows how much of the
real grating was kept from view.
Jdst now there is an investigation of
the biggest land steal ever attempted
in America. An old United States
Senator, trusted and tried, has been
caught in the trap. Even the clerks
In the land department have taken
bribes and given away government
secrets. Lumbermen in the North
have not only stolen timber from
the public lands but the land itself,
and have become independently
rich. BY graft the Indians have
llrgely been heeced of the lands
once held by them.
The Equitable CD Life Insurance
scandal has attracted great attention
and we are told that other insurance
companies are in just as bad a con.
dItion.
Senator Depew of New York, not
ed for his power to make nice
speeches 10 young men on honesty,
industry and integrity, has been
drawing from the Equitable $40, 900
a year for doing nothing. He also
loaned from that institution $3.50, 900
on a security of $3.50 600.
One of the commonest methods
of making money slick and quick is
to sell inside information, such as
where the government is going 10
locate buildings. Outside parties
will buy up the property and sell it
to the government at a good round
price.
Take the adulteralion of food.
The smell of embalmed beef is still
in our nostrlls, though the inquiry
was hushed up. A grain merchant
of Milwaukee told me he sold all
his third class wheat 70 the factories
which are flooding the country with
their pure health goods. Cores,
peelings, worm-eaten spots, and
worms too, which form the refuse of
fruit canneries are made into "pure
apple jelly" and sold at enormous
profit Bonedust is put into -four,
hogs liver into coffee, and old shoes
are ground up and sold as ginger.
Penny chocolates have only flavor
Of chocolate. 1t would make the
blood curdle for a man to 90 out
into the street and cut baby's
throat, yet greed IS Staying thou
sands Of infants with the poisen
1t puts into their food. Even the
bran the COWS have to eat is mixed
with sawdust. In a resent test of
drugs IN New York, out Of ninty.
eight samples purchased, eighty
eight we're bad
II is not always easy to distinguish
between legitimate business and
graft. II / have So, 600 in cash and
ask you to give me $4,000 in cash
for it, you call me fool. But If /
put that Sex into house and
then induce you to pay me s., 500
for II, | have done what is regarded
as strictly legitimate. This is a
sample Of what IS going on every
where IN the business world.
The CRATER is seldom punished.
One man will not prosecute another
for gIafting, because 'phose who
live in glass houses should pull
down the blinds" Paul Morton
goes free at the presidents bidding
and the lawyers who wanted to pun
ish him resigned Depew goes TO
Europe to have a good time with his
grated money. Bank looiers, II
they go to jail at all, are too good
TO put on stripes or have their heads
obfngtod fVhc,. 80 -.