Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1910-01-09
HOUSE EMPLOYEES
WANT NAMES ON
THE PAY ROLL
Secretaries to Con-
gresSmen Waging Determin-
ed Campaign With Good
Working ORGANIZATION
Morning Journal Bureau.
dl3 Munsey Building,
Wu4hfnof,p IA - In

Private secretaries to members Of
the house are preparing to wage a
campaign 20 have their names put on
the government pay rou They have
made similar efforts in the past. and
have been dofeotcd by their employ
crs on the floor Of the house. Now.
however the secretaries have q good
working organization and they propose
TO make their fight with the assist
ancc OF members of the house who
look with FAVOR on their program.
Under the existing law each meln-
Der Of the house Is allowed Sl26 Il
month for tho employment of a sec
rotary. The monthly checks are made
out BY the sergeant-at-arms in the
name OF the member. A great MANY
Of the members employ secretaries
and pay them the full amount author
lied by law simply by indorsing the
check over. There are a number Of
members Of the house, however, who
are holding out on their secretaries.
In other words they do not pay them
the $t25 given to each member witt
the specific provision that the money
be spent for that purpose. fhesc
members hire st%onographers at small
salaries and pocket the difference,
There are still other members of the
house who have devised another
scheme by which they appropriate a
portion oi The $l25 "A month. Three
or our of them get together. select
a secretary who shall do the work of
the entire group and pay him S125.
When five members make such n
combination it costs them onls SIS a
week for clerk hire, showing "A profit
Of $40 = week.
Another scheme practiced by a few
OF the members Is to do without Sec
retaries altogether, but still draw
down the S125 a month. Whenever
they have any steographic work to be
done they gather up their correspond
ence, go over TO the house and dictate
to the public stenographers. paying go
much per letter Tor the work.
The secretaries association is now
demanding hat members OF the house
spend the 1925 a month as the law
directs and pay the fun amount to
their clerks. They have a list Of mem
bers who either keep the entire
amount or else pocket a portion OF II
and they threaten to make the list
public unless they are protected by
their names put on the regu-
lar government pay rolls.
Concerted action by a number OF
in introducing resolutions
for information relative 10
amounts derived from the rental Of
1ostofnce boxes ana registr6tidn fees
the years 1864 and 1876 has
lroused considerable interest at the
Inquiry developed the fact hat dur
ng those years postmasters in nearly
very state turned these fees into tho
reasury. but that there has been q
uling since that time that these fees
hould be retained by the postmasters
n leu % salaries.
A claim by one postmaster in the
OF Washington for $500 started
he flood Of resolutions, and it is the
of the claimants to try to
ave congress enact an omnibus meas e
re to refund to All postmasteis the !
mounts paid TO the government dur
az that period,
No one seems 10 have any idea how
luch money viii be involved In the !
roposition, and the resolutions are /
ltended to supply the knowledge.
There is opposition on the part of
senators to the movement on T
ne ground that il is simply "a new {
Iethod devised 10 obtain money from =
le public treasury in the face of a
neral movement toward rctrench-
in other ines. n