Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-06-11
WHITE SLAVERS ARE
WATCHED CLOSELY
Railroad Employees Furnish Great AS
sistance to Government In Landing
Bad Gang,


port trade in women and young girls
today began serving limit sentences,
some Of which are as long as As years.
Owing to ignorance and poverty, some
of the provinces have been among the
principal recruiting grounds for the
slavers. The latter had strong Organi
zations throughout the country, and it
has only been with greatest difficulty
that the government has succeeded in
ferreting them out.
Scores of young girls, deceived by
promises of marriage, big wages and
forged letters purporting to come from
relatives in America, have easily been
induced to slip away with the recruit
ing agents, who were sometimes women,
but more often men. Hundreds Of cases
of young girls disappearing have been
reported to the police. Few of the vie
Tins ever have been heard from.
It was when matters reached such
pass that the government issued an
edict that no girl unaccompanied by
parents or relatives should be allowed
to sail from any German port without
a pass. The authorities also were in.
structed to investigate thoroughly when
applications were made for such passes
The slavers circumvented the police
and government by slipping across the
frontier into Holland, Belgium or
France with their victims.
As the next move, the government
ordered that all railroad officials and
employees cooperate with the police.
Rewards and promotion were offered
to any railroad official or employe who
detected ''white SLAYER" taking girls
out of the country. The aid Of station
employees and conductors especially was
asked. As result of this cooperation
more slavers have been nabbed in the
last few weeks than in as many months
before. Between police and railroad em-
ployes, Germany today has been freer
of slavers than for many years.
Despite the seeming openness of the
fight against the slayers the govern
ment conducted its fight with unusual
secrecy, Every possible means was
taken not to put the slavers on theil
guard after they had discovered the
way the government was watching sail
ing vessels. At last, however the gov
ernment is giving its campaign the wild
est publicity and today n government
report was issued telling Of the break
ing up Of two gangs One was in 81
lesia near the Russian frontier and the
other in Alsace Lorraine on the French
border. In each instance it was @
watchful railroad employe who put The
government sleuths on the trails Of the
gang,
The Silesian gang was smuggling
girls-some of them were from thirteen
to sixteen years old-over the line int
Austria They were sent thence tC
Trieste and from there to Bueno'
Ayres, regarded as the worlds creates
"buying" white slave market ant
where many Of the girls were bought
for points in the United States.
Girls Finely Treated.
The Alsace Lorraine gang got thei
victims across the line from Paris, Am
sterdam, or Brussels, from where the,
were shipped to the same destination. Il
the majority Of cases, IL was learne,
through confessions of some Of the con
, victod slavers who turned states evi
dence afterwards, the girls were finel,
D treated and did not know for what pur
pose they were taken until they reach
ed Buenos Ayres. They imagined the
were being taken to America or SoutI
America to work in industrial estal
lishments and were easily made 10 b,
Z lieve that labor and immigration law
made necessary the secrecy with whic
'' they were compelled TO leave the cour
> try. The majority Of the slavers wer
sentenced TO terms Of from three to fiv
d years.
The watchfulness Of a railroad en-
ploye some days ago led to the uncover
n erng Of n plot to sell several youn
Cologne girls into white slavery.
> number Of the girls Of a nearby vi
lage we're reported missing. The su
7 picions Of a conductor we're aroused b
: the actions Of "banker" who was n
companied by a beautiful girl Of
years. lie communicated with the p
- lice who boarded tho train at the ne,
stop and followed the "banker" VII
d, went openly to a suburban house
which seven young girls, one Of who
d, was thirteen and the oldest Of who
20 was eighteen, were held by notoriol
slavers The girl with the "bankcr
10 was found to the daughter Of wealth
Cologne merchant The following d.
station employe at the geological ga
dens in Berlin caused the arrest Of
- man who claimed to the owner Of
laundry. lie had four girls with hil