Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-04-23
GUNS IN THE TREASURY
INCIDENTS THAT OCCURRED IN A
RIoToUs PERIOD.
Clerks, Commanded by Green B. Raum
Ready for Service-Baker Cohen's
Undelivered Speech.

! If visitor to the Treasury Department
| building on entering at the 18th street door
| just turns to the left and takes a little
| peep in the door of the first room he
comes to he will have the opportunity of
| gazing upon as fine a display of Krag-
Jorgensen rifles as can be met with any
| where. The little room in which they are
| stored in old-fashioned cupboard-shaped
| cases is the official habitation of the cap
| tain of the watch-Capt Cobaugh-and
| there Is not the shadow of chance that
these handsome pieces of the most modern
gun machinery will ever be called into
| requisition.
But there have been times, and within
| the memory of the present generation,
| when there were reasonable grounds for
apprehension of attacks by rioters upon
| the treasury. During the Pttsburg rail-
road riots, back in the I0s. there was cause
| for such dread. The riots, as many re-
! member, spread beyond the confines of the
| smoky city, and there were turbulence and
| fighting at Philadelphia and Baltimore The
| police forces of Washington were wide
awake in those days also, as there were
| open signs among idle and disconnected
| men to join in any unruly move that might
be contemplated.
A Move on the Treasury.
1t was at that period that suspicious
arose to the possibility of wild leaders
instigating a move on the treasury. 1t
cannot be said that there was any fear
of such a circumstance, but it was felt
that it would be a wise thing to be pre-
pared for anything that might occur. and
sufficient arms We're at once secured to arm
the clerks, particularly the men who knew
the smell of hostile powder. and there
were many of them in the building.
The regular force of treasury watch
men kept bright lookout and arrange
ments were made by CObaugh with the
city fire department to give a signal at
the slightest indication of trouble COM
pany of men who had seen service in the
civil war was formed and put under the
| command of Green B. Raum, who was then
commissioner of internal revenue. The plan
agreed upon was that at the first alarm
given by the fire department the men of
this company would assemble in Lafayette
Square and were to be admitted to the
building by Capt. Cobaugh at the north
door AT the same time, lest any demon
stration be made during the day, many of
the clerks were provided with revolvers.
The men who had them knew how to
them and were ready to do so. The rifles
then distributed among the treasury COM
pany were of the old Springfield brand and
the revolvers were Colts. But if there was
ever any serious design of raiding the
treasury it was npped in the bud and the
ordnance was turned back to the War De-
partment. There is a lurking suspicion to
this day that some of the clerks were
rather disappointed that few thousand
rioters did not make attack upon the
building so that they could have shown the
metal of which they were made and gather
ed in an additional stock of martial glory.
The Cohen Fiasco.
A treasury official, referring to this
Renaissance, said to a representative of The
Star yesterday: There need never be any
dread of an armed mob making a raid upon
no Trua ba baS
robbed, and may be again, but it was by
trustd men who had access to it's vaults
and not by a band of rioters or a mob of
outlaws, and if such a thing was ever
seriously dreamed of there would in twelve
hours time be enough government troops
here to defeat any force that could be
mustered. Even" said he, laughingly, IF
friend Castro with his Venezuelan
army should come laundering up the gran
lite steps and demand admission to the cash
room I doubt if he could strike sufficient
terror to the souls of Cobaugh and his
valiant lieutenants to have his demands
granted"
At about the same period of these railroad
riots, it may have been a year or so
in advance of them, there was a baker in
this city named Cohen who constituted
himself a sort of Moses of the masses and
harangued every crowd that would listen
to his wild rhapsodies about the rights of
men, the principles of justice, higher wage
and lesser hours Of labor, and all that sort
of thing. Strange as it may seem, Cohen
did get into the treasury with army.
He collected a lot of tatterdemalions, many
of whom were laborers about the Washing
ton monument, the erection of which had
then been resumed and stalked into the
building with his gang. Secretary Sher-
man admitted them to his room.
A ragged picture this crowd presented.
| Their intention through their leader
to present some kind of an appeal and the
men scattered themselves about the room.
Some of them sat on the floor and others
crouehed Indian fashion against the wall
Cohen was awed when he got into the
presence of the Secretary. He had a speech
all ready when he entered the building but
when he found himself in the august pres
ence of greatness anu dignity he became
stage struck; forgot his part. He only
stammered out a few words and left with
his motley gang.
Secretary Sherman's Order.
Secretary Sherman did not want repe-
tition of this call upon him. and he sent
for Capt. Cobaugh. Captain" said the
Secretary Can you keep this crowd out of
the building
Il certainly can If you instruct me to-
said the captain of the watch.
Then do So said the Secretary Il don't
four men, but outside of this number l de-
cline to see Mr. Cohen's crowd"
This effectual in preventing a repe-
tition of the raid, but Cohen when he got
out in the open air, recovered his gall and
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