Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, June 29, 1902, Page 22

E ¥ 3 | i ! T0 CLEAR A SOLDIER'S NAME Qaptain Winder Recites an Unwritten Ohapter of War History, REBEL LEADER NOT A CONSPIRATOR Albert Sidney Johnaton, Whe Fell at Shiloh, Did Not Seek to Carry California Into Souther: Confederacy. i Captain Willlam A. Winder, a brother-in- law of Admniral Dewey and a distinguished veteran of the union army during the civil war, lles seriously 11l at an Omaha hotel. His condition is precarious because of the infirmity of his advanced age. He Is now in his 77th year. “I want to tell to the world & story be- fore I leave it to vindicate the name and memory of an honorable man who suffered from a cruel slander during the last few years of his life and whose memory ha been defamed by a ruthless, baseless ut- This statement was made by the stricken weteran to a reporter for The Bee one day during the week. The man he wanted to exonerate of false charges had been his enemy and the enemy of the United States, bad been a leader of the southern con- federacy and therefore an aseailant of the federal government. Prominent in the eouncils of his self-proclaimed government and active on Its fields of battle, this man Decame a tower of strength, a tremendous factor in promoting the cause of secession and widening the breach which separated the sisterhood of states and imperiled the union. Justice the Soldier's Alm. Yet this man had been maligned and it lay in the power of the large-hearted hero of the union to give the world the truth and thus remove a stigma from an innocent and honored soldier's memory. No bitter atred recurring in his mind over the fra- ternal strite of forty years ago stood be- tween this emaclated veteran and the per- formance of a duty which to him was sol- emn and fmperative. In his estimation the “rebel” had been the victim of uneerupu- Jous and maliclous prejudice and not only was compelled himself to suffer anguish, but was powerless to efface the false im- pression that his posterity might at least enjoy freedom from unfair pollution. Cap- tain Winder is the only survivor who is familiar with the detalls of this conspiracy, s he terms it, and therefore he feels that he must record the truth before he dies, that the world may know at last, after & long period of years, that it has been mallciously decelved General Albert Sidney Johnston, whom history has recorded as one of the south's greatest soldiers, was in command of the Department of the Pacific, with headquar- ters at Ban Francisco, just before the out- break of the civil war. At the same time Captain Winder was in charge of the Island of Alcatraz, the most important fortifica- tion to the harbor of San Francisco, though & decidedly barren and uninviting terri- tory and since converted into a military prison. Ante-Bellum xumors. To repeat the words of Captain Winder, Just prior to the actual hostilities between the north and south, rumors of all sorts regarding plans and maneuvers of the south and soutbern men were afloat. Espe- clally did these reports gain circulation and In most cases substantial credence concerning men from the land of Dixie who were then in the service, military and civil, of the United States. Minds were inflamed, sober judgment was at a dis- count, and it is not surprising at this late day to be told that prejudice and passion were ruling motives. Under such condi- tions It was not difficult to secure a firm lodgement in the minds of people of a story which under ordinary circumstances would have been dismissed after casual thought as a mere canard. Naturally enough, however, not all the echemes and plots unearthed and attrib- uted to the sympathizers of the south were untrue; many of them were founded upon fact and were discovered in time to thwart an evil purpose and avert disastrous con- sequences. In this connection it may be recalled tha ‘aptain Winder relates, there was general talk of a movement to form an independent government to be known as the Republic of the Pacifie. com- prising those states bordering on and near the western boundary line of the United Btates. This was not a conspiracy on the part of southern sympathizers, nor did it have for Its purpose the promotion of the cause of the south. The originators of the idea were not notably southern men, in fact, they may all have been northern men. But at any rate, there was no einister motive in it. Tt was belleved by the people in that part of the country that, owing to their isolated location and the poor faclli- ties for travel, i belug necessary to go from the east to the Pacific coast by way of Cape Horn, a separate government, tem- porarily, would be a mutual benefit and| that when developments had reached that stage where a reunion of states and thelr ., the states of the west would be in a better condition to administration were wi: advance the common Interests than if gov- erned under the old regime. Supporters Were Sincere. People clung to this theory out on the coast with great pertinacity, says Captain ‘Winder, and were perfectly sincere in their plaus. But they finally were cou- vinced that their scheme was futile and impracticable and consequently it was abandoned. This wild idea of an independent govern- ment furnished tae basis for the reproach brought upon Albert Sidney Johnston and ultimately led to his resigning his post, leaving the service of the union and join- ing the southern confederacy. On receipt of news of the firing upon Fort Sumter General Johnston immediately ordered all the munitions of war stationed &t Benecla arsenal, down the bay, removed to Alcatraz island. In this he had a two- fold purpose; primarily he sought to es- tablish the most formidable fortifications possible on the island where the entrance bay could be safely guarded, and, secondly, it was his plan to get thg arms and ammunition away from the afsenal to a place where they could But this maneuver eritical observers and used to give plausibility to the story of the conspiracy afterward cir- to San Francisco be properiy protected. was misinterpreted by Johnston culated. Captain Winder, in referring to this act upon Johnston's part, declares it the most | ! Judiclous that could have been performied t the general had no intention other than that of protecting his country's and says t interests to the best of his ability. 3 Was Loyal. ‘While the fecling against Johanston was develop- ments Winder had a long talk with the engendering In view of recent commander in his camp San Francisc In that conversation both wen. who were of southern nativity, Johnston belng from Toxas, though a native of Kentucky, and ‘Winder from Mary! discussed at | thelr future careers. “General Johnston told me at that time that he was Io & quandary—that it seemed always to his native which had made bimr all that Be was and given him all that he bis first duty THY OMAHA DAILY BEE: SUNDAY, JUNE 29, 1902. had, and yet he did not see how he could join arms against the union, his own be loved country and under whose flag he had long been a soldier. The man studied over this matter with profoundest thought,” said Captain Winder, “‘and 1 remember as die- tinetly as though it were yesterday that when we parted on that day the noble Johnston, arleing as I started to take my leave, extended his hand and said: ‘Well Winder, I have no intention now at least of resigning my commission under the Stars and Stripes and joining the confederacy.’ “As for me, there was never any doubt in my mind a& to what my course would be, though I confess that it cost me many a severe struggle to take eides agalnst my own relatives, as much as I loved the union, and what it stood for.” Johnston and Winder parted. The former remained at his post in San Francisco while the subordinate officer returned to his camp on the lsland of Alcatraz. They did not meet for several days, and when they did Johnston revealed a decision formed since their last meeting which completely astonished Winder. Announces His As Winder entered Johnston's quarters the latter sald: “Well, T guess you will be surprised when I tell you that I have re- signed my commission, forwarded the let- ter to Washington and decided to go to Los Angeles, where 1 have relatives, but not with any idea of going back to the south to join the army of Jefferson Davis.” “Yes, I am surprised, indeed,” was Win- der's quick response. “But if that Is your decision, General Johnston, after careful consideration of the weighty consequences Involved, T have nothing to say, except I would like to know what has led to your sudden change of mind."” Since the two men had seen each other information reached Johnston from Wash- ington by pony express which justified this action on his part. A friend at the national capital had informed him that word had reached the seat of government that he had become the leader of a conspiracy to throw the Pacific states into the confed- eracy and thus use the influence of his office In betraying his country, to promote the cause of seccsslon. This report, born of ignorance or malice, according to Cap- tain Winder, was given credence at Wash- ington and General Sumner was at onse ordered to hasten to San Franclsco by secret mission to supersede Johnston. Ready to Be Rellevea. Resignation. But instead of being in ignorance of the plans at Washington Johnston was care- fuly informed as to what had taken plac He told Captain Winder of these circum- stances, and declared that if the govern- ment had lost faith in him and could no longer trust him he could do it no good by remaining in its service, and hence desired not to await Sumner's arrival, but resign forthwith. Consequently Johnston's resig- nation was in Washington long before Sum- ner had reached San Franelsco, and when Sumner did arrive he found his predeces- sor ready to turn over his office and every- thing pertaining to it. Sumner, who had even guarded his coming with such secrecy as to enter San Franclsco at a lower and out-of-the-way port, instead of at the main harbor, was overwhelmed with surprise at Johnston's knowledge of events and his thorough preparation, and a slight chagrin was apparent on his part. It actually re- quired but ten or fifteen minutes for the retiring officer to deliver his post, papers and all equipment over to his successor. Johnston acted upon his original deter- mination and went to Los Angeles, where he became very popular and was besleged with various business offers and induce- ments of most flattering sorts. It was his plan to settle at Los Angeles and not joln the confederate army, but he found it im- possible to resist the urgent demands made for his co-operation and eervices by the ‘south and he finally yielded, joining the southern army and fighting its battles against his former government until his tragic death at Shiloh. Having been thus superseded by Sumner and gone to the south, Johnston was then made the permanent victim of the slander that he had systematically endeavored to wheel the states of the Pacific into the confederacy, and it was folly for friends to seek to correct this impression at that time. Johnston was stung to the quick by the {ll-fated course events had taken and Is sald to have carried his grief to his grave. He made no attempt personally to dissuade the authorities at Washington from the opinion into which they had been misled. Sherman Believed the Story. Some years after the war the story of General Johnston's alleged perfidy was re- peated by General Willlam Tecumseh Sher- man at & banquet in Cincinnati. General Sherman, like thousauds of others, had ceased to question the truthfuln of the story and had accepted it as true. But General Sherman’s attention was called to the inaccuracy of the story by Captain Winder and also by Colonel Stevenson, who was assoclated with General Johnston for a time on the coast and knew the full eir- cumstances of the case. It was coincidental that both these former oclates and friends of Johnston's should have written Sherman at the same time, al- most upon the same day. They learned of Sherman's utterance through newspaper reports and, knowing the great warrior as both did, they were sure he would be glad to learn that the story which he had inno- cently repeated was untrue, and would be glad to make amends for relating it. In reply to the letter written him upon this occasion by Captain Winder, General Sherman wrote the following: 912 GARRISON AVENUE, ST. LOUIS, Mo., Nov. 30, 188i—Captain _Willlam A Winder, S8an Diego, Cal My Dear Friend— 1 have 'your letter of the 2ist, bearing ad- ditlonal testimony to what Colonel Steven- son has already sent me, to the effect that, although there was & conspiracy or at- tempted conspiracy in California to seize the arsenal, forts, etc., somewhat as was done in Texas, the attempt was frustrated before the arrival of General Sumner, if not before he started; that General John- ston was in no manner compromised and that Johnston had not communicated to Washington_at all. In another letter he sends me what amounts to the claim of a Sacramento editor, who sent o message across by the pohy express because he could not trust the telegraph. K also, in his new book, Experfence of Men and testimony to.the hon- le ‘character of General Johnston and ays that the order releasing him and sending Sumner out was made by Gen- eral Bcott, at the Ingtance of Mr. Seward, on information given by Senator Nesmith (of California). Of myself, I, of course, pretend to no knowledge, but am sure it was the general impression’ of the country that the chan of commanders at that critical moment saved San Fr co and California from the effects of a tumult or even an attempt, 1T was only too glad to learn the truth, which you now so amply afirm, that Ge eral Johnston was absolutely frue to his trust, 8o consistent with his previous exalted reputation and so creditable to the regular army, now more damaged by the defection of a few of its high officers in 1861 by any other cause since its creation. | have sent all previous papers to the Cincinnati Historical club and will in other ways correct the hitherto wrong impres- sion. As of old, your friend, W. T. SHERMAN. P. S.—Please show this to Dr. Griffin, for whom' T "have the warmest affection.— (Dr. Grifin was an uncle of General Albert Bidney Johnston). Truth Never Pul Although this correction was made in the mind of General Sherman and the general no doubt did what he could, personally, to counteract the influence of the false report b | which he had innocently repeated, no pub- the prospects of war and its effect upon lished contradiction of the statement was made at that or any other time. In fact, Captain Winder says the real story has never before been printed. For years it been his intention to place the facts upon record through the medium of some leading newspaper that they might be given free course and general circulation. He has thercfore selected The Bee to aid him in effacing what he considers a malignant slander from the memory of an honorable man. Winder and Johnston were much attached to each other and, although one wore the blue and the other the gray, their friend- ship continued throughout the bitter strug- gles of that fraternal war and Winder was koenly afficted when the news reached him that Albert Sidney Johnston had succumbed to wounds received at the battle of Shiloh. Captain Winder's Career. Captain Winder's own life presents many Interesting phases. He was born in the city of Baltimore. He served in the war with Mexico and gained considerable dis tinction at the battle of Buema Vista, after which he was commissioned lieutenant of artillery. At the close of the Mexican war he served with his regiment in an effort to subdue the Seminole Indians in Florida. During the civil war he was with the Army of the Potomac in command of Battery G, Third artillery, before he was again sent to Alcatraz. His thorough knowledge and skill in the use of artillery made him a valuable man to command the troops that were to guard the mouth of San Francisco bay, the most important fortification on the Pacific coast. At this post he remained for three years and a half, until the close of the war. During that time he made a number of requests to be given a change of location because of the almost intolerable conditions which existed on the island, but the government needed him there and so he remained. Captain Winder's arrangement for the protection of the western coast at so crit- fcal a time was claimed to have been the most effective that could then be devised. Captain Winder's father was in the con- federate army and, owing to this fact and the young officer’s southern birth, a sus- picion as to his loyalty arose during his incumbency of the Alcatraz station, which led Brigadier General Wright, who suc- ceeded General Sumner as commander of the Department of the Pacific, to send a Captain Black, with his company, to join Winder. These suspiclons were soon dis- missed by the superior officers, however, as not worthy of thought, and Captain Winder's actual loyalty was never brought into question. Captain Winder is a physiclan by pro- tession, but he has devoted but a few years of his busy life to practice. He remained in the military service of the country for some years afler the war. Later he went to San Diego, Cal, which place he still considers his home. For the last seven years he has been allotting agent for the government on the Roscbud Indian reservation. His health has falled and he is now in Omaha being treated. His condition, while possibly not alarming, is serious. Captain Winder married a daughter of Governor Goodwin of New Hampshire, an- other daughter of whom was the wife of Admiral Dewey. A LITERARY RE Thoughts Rudely Dis bed by an Intruder. Ennobling t This is the tale of a tailor, a pair of trousers and a woman's club, and the scene is in Somerville, Mass., a city which faces the back vard of Charles Eliot Norton's estate. “It was this way,” said Willlam Garty of Brookline, quoted by the New York Tribune. “A Somerville man méved, and later took a pair of trousers to his tallor to be pressed. He forgot to tell the tailor he had moved, and the trousers were re- turned, with no name on the bundle, to the old address. The servant took the bundle from the boy and carried it in to the new mistress of the house, who was at the tinie entertaining the lterature class of the woman's club. Maeterlinck and spring’ styles were under discussion when the nameless bundle entered. ‘Whai can it be? sald the hostess; ‘It 1s too large for cake and too square for flowers.', ‘Open ft!’ cried the literature class, crowding around. “So the bundle was opened. Silence en- sued; then confusion. ‘This is a very funny joke, indeed,’ said the hostess grimly, ‘and someone will pay dearly for it. Betty (call- ing to the servant), come and remove these —garments at oncs. Who sent them? ‘Please, mum, I think it was the breeches; 1 mean the tallor's boy." ‘Take them away and keep them till he calls for them. Ladles, let us go on with “The Life of the Bee,” ' she said. Later the owner recov- ered them. That is how I know. AL NOTES. EDUCATION The Baron de Hirsch school fund in Galacia maintains fifty schools. The num- ber of teachers amounts to 247 and there are 5,634 puplls, Dr. D. L. Kiehl, head of the department of pedagogy of the University of Minnesota, is about to retire from the position, which he has held for twenty-seven years. Senator T. H. Carter has presented to the University of Montana his private collec- tion of *“Congressional Records,” which give a complete history of government from the meeting of the first congress to the close of the last. Dr. Willlam Lowe Bryan, who has been elected resident of Indlana State ’m!- versity, gu been vice president of thaf in- stitution sinee 1889, He is 44 years old, an Indiana university graduate of 1584 and has been teacher of pedagogy and philosophy since 1888. His brother, Albert Bryan, is preeident of the State Agricultural college at Pullman, Wash. The resignation of Prof. Charles W. Hors- well of the chair of Hebrew language and Wterature at Garrett Biblical institute, Chi- cago, has been accepted. It was tendered because of his extreme conclusions in higher criticism.” He had held the place for thirteen years and the trustees give Prof. Horswell the highest praise as a “ripe scholar and inspiring teacher.” The advice given by Charles M. Schwab to the graduates of the Pennsylvania State college. “Never ask your friends to helg rou—-nplhm‘ will ever do you so muc njury as to start life with influence,” re- celved its best comment In his action. Finding that one of the most promising of the graduates was going to decline a ost-graduate scholarship which he had won Eer‘nulr he felt obliged to quit college to earn his living, Mr. Schwab very gener- ously offered him $1,000 to finish the course and the young man very sensibly ac- cepted it New York City, with a school budget of nearly $20,000,000 this year—a larger sum than Is expended for purposes of education by any other city In the world and very much larger than is expended by many countries—is far at the head of the list of American cities in this particular, though the expenses for school purposes in other cities have been increasing rapidly in re- cent years. Boston expends for public instruction nearly $3,000, a year; Phil delphla, which on account of low rents and the homogeneity of its population, has small school expenses compared with its large population, 35,000, and ‘Washing: ton, which has a_ very large Iilliterate colored population, $1,180,000. There scemd to be a rather greater de- mand than usual for women teachers of zoology, & study which women ought really to find one of the most interesting, buf, strange s It may seem, the average woman student does not care fullrulnrl)‘ for it and few speclalize in this direction. Sev- eral years ago Prof. M. A, Wilcox of Wel- lesley had an application for a woman teacher and recommended one who hegan with a salary of $L,200. This year she had four applications, but it is usually required that such teachers shall have had experi- ence, and Miss Wilcox suggests that an studenis who are going on with the wurz might find it worth while to let her know. The head of one of the teachers’ agencles ni that there is no subject in which he has so much difficulty in fillicg 1one as In zoology. An esting Woma: An interesting woman. Mrs. Elizabeth Cooper MclIntire, aged 102, has just died in Philadelphia, with teeth, eyes and facul- ties remarkably preserved to the last. Often she referred to meeting Lafayette in 1524 and recounted the pleasure experienced in shaking hands with the French general When her brother, Lieutenant Franci: Cooper, was stationed at Fort Miin dur- ing the war of 182 she made frequent visits there and during the civil war was one of the assistants at the old cooper shop refreshing bullding, where the union sol- diers were 50 Wi cared for by patriotic women. | | WOMEN IN FEDERAL SERVICE Large Number Employed as Olerks in the Departments at Washington, PRECIOUS FEW SNAPS TO BE HAD Denial of the Cherished Tradition That Only Pretty Women with Po- litienl Influence Are Ap- pointed and Advanced. About one-third of all emploves in the government departments at Washington are women. Several recelve over $2,600 per annum, about fifty recelve $1,600 per an- tum, 100 receive $1,400 per annum, 450 re- ceive $1,200, 300 $1,000 and the remainder recelve from $660 to $900 per annum. The government employe at Washington is always regarded by the outsider with moro or less envy, writes a correspondent of the Boston Transcript. Every woman who cannet play the part of one of Solo- mon’s “lilies of the fleld,” but must “toll” or “spin,” looks with jealous longing at what are supposed to be the “snaps” at Washington. The “snaps” are just waiting to be picked up—by the right people, and with that cold-blooded institution, the United States Civil Service commission, In prime working order, the right people are very easily selected. The Civil Service commission records for last year show that 3,083 women were ex- amined for the various positions open to them under the civil service. Of these 2,476 paseed and 444 were appointed; 1,351 of the applicants examined came under the head of “skilled labor.” This is the easiest ex- amination given and the lowest salaries are pald to those appointed under it, the re- muneration ranging from 25 cents an hour, amounting to from $20 to $40 a month to $60 a month. The higher salaries generally g0 to the men employed from this class; the lower salarfes are paid to the char- women. Stenographers in Demand. The most popular examination for women is that for stenokraphers and typewriters. “Good stenographers” is the ceaseless de- mand of the department officlal—not mediocre—but good par excellence. On stenographic examination days the big dreary examination room at the commis- slon is crowded with the trembling appli- cants. Nowadays the stenographer is of necessity a typewriter and the preliminary tinkle and click reverberates from every known make of writing machine. The men predominate. Last year they numbereéd 562, while the women had little more than half that representation—307—yet the aver- age passing was larger on the female side. But when it came to the question of ap- pointment eighty-nine of the 174 men who passed received good positions, while only thirteen out of the 100 women on the eligi- ble list were appointed. These positions carry a salary of from $600 to $1,200 a year; the stenographers of bureau chiefs receive $1,600 and those of the heads of the de- partments $1,800. The commissioner of pen- sions employs a woman stenographer and many of tfe lower officials refuse to have male stenographers in their offices. Men Outclassed. In those classes which are open to the competition of both men and women the records show much greater ability on the side of the latter. Last year there were 8,033 male applicants and 2,175 female for these examinations. The successful com- petitiors numbered 1,785 male and 1,614 female, and yet three times as many men as women were appointed. This preference for the male clerk in the departmnts will endure as long as the sterner sex sit in the nhigh places. A thousand reasons are urged why men should have the preference. The very poorest is that a woman in an office interferes with the freedom of fts male contingent. As freedom is frequently con- strued to mean an absence of coats in warm weather and an atmosphere of plutonian density in cold weather, then by all means let us have the “interference.” The best reason offered is that the average govern- ment salary is big enough for two, and therefore should go to a head of a family or a prospective head. All very well and &0od as far as the présent head of a family goes—but as for the prospective head he s apt to think a very long time before he really confesses that $100 a month divided by two, or more, i8 quite as pleasant as the undivided whole. Furthermore, this reason might serve as equally good ground for employing women. Hardly one woman out of every fifty in the departments (if we except the girls in the census bureau) but 1s either the head of a famlily herselt or ome of its main props. A great many have mothers whom they care for, while the brothers are married, or perhaps not doing so well. “Pall " of Little Value. An erroneous opinion prevalls that the woman government employe is shoved into position by an influential member of con- gress; that her working hours are a sort of quiet resting time, and that congressional backing 1s constantly pushing her a notch higher on the salary roll. Now, she is no more a fit subject for jealousy than any other successful woman. She works just as hard—and larder sometimes—than her sister on the outside. In the first place, all the influence at Washington wen't put her on the “eligible list” of the Civil Service commissiou. In the second place, when she has secured a place she must work to keep it, and expert work for six hours and a half a day is not easy. There must be no errors in accounts, no mistakes in letters, no misstatements of facts. Government work 1s well paid only when well don In the third place, promotions are the award of Terit. A very striking illustration of this occurred last winter when & young woman was made chief of one of the divi- sions in the Postoffice department, becaus she knew more about the work of that par- ticular division than any other employe in it. She receives a salary of $2,240, one of the best paid to any woman in the serv- ice. Miss Thora Stejneger of the Smithsonian institution is another woman who is earn- ing large wages. Miss Stejneger is a Nor- weglan who has devoted her life to the study of animi She has charge of the classification of all animals received by the Smithsonian, and many are the queer specimens that she examines and labels with unerring skill. A Western Worker. Miss Estelle Reel, superintendent of dian schools, does the work and endures th hardships {hat are supposed to be the lot of men exclusively. The poorest Indian school on the faraway frontier must be visited quite as regularly as the famous institu- tions at Carlisle and Hampton. Miss Reel has had many adventures and not s few mishaps. Often she is obliged to drive for miles in a buckboard or on a rattling stage- coach, and camp all night on the open pra- irle—the rustling prairie grass for a mat- tress, a Navajo blanket for covering, the start-studded sky for canopy and a dear lit- tle revolver for company. Last year while fording & rive’ in Indian Territory her wagon was upset and she was swept down stream for nearly balf o mile and was res- cued by & cowboy just as she was being whirled into some deep and dangerous rap- ids. No one will say that this woman does pot earn her §3,000 a year, with the addi- tional §1,600 for travellng expenses and sub- sistance If Miss Reel could eat Uncle Sam's greenbacks and gold pleces, every- thing would be comfortable, but there are { comprehensive and able a legal Indian villages where all the ‘“‘neceseary expense” appropriations for the White House state dinners would not buy a square meal. Recently Miss Reel wrote a textbook for Indian schools which embraced every tople of educational training for the Indlan student. Bra Better Than Good Looks. 1t is a mistaken idea also that good looks influence promotions. A case in mind Is that of a young lady in one of the depart- ments, decidedly unprepossessing in appear- ance, who entered the government service as | A copylst, was advanced to a etenographer's | position, and while holding that position studfed that branch of law applicable to the work of the department in which she was employed. Called upon by accident to ex- amine a complicated case she rendered so dectston that she was promoted to the position of law clerk, which she now holds. All this was without political influence or the sup- posed power of good 10oks. Outside of the salaries paid skilled borers, printers’ assistants and press foed- ers, which rarely If ever exceed $40 a month, remuneration for women in the de- partments runs from $650 to $1,400 a year —that is, for the average clerk. It has been urged that the women drawing these comparatively good salaries are being spolled for wives. Perhaps they are. No one can blame a girl for being reluctant to glve up a comfortable income and the free- | dom to live as she pleases for the cares and worries of married lite. When a de- partment girl does marry she usually makes | & success of it. No dashing ne'er-do-well | can hope to catch her fancy and her neat nest egg. She meets and knows too many men mot to be able to catalogue them. Then, the matrimonfal ¢hances in Wash- ington are few. It is not a business town. The male department clerk {s not an “eligi- ble” by any means. He frequently gets no more per month than his female co-laborer and sometimes less. A large proportion of them live from hand to mouth and are “flush” only on salary days and “broke” on all others. “01d Ladies of the Treasury.” Much has been said and written about the “old ladles of the treasury It 1s true, there are a great many elderly women in that department—but surely their age is no cause for complaint. Some are in the 706, one or two have drifted along to 80 odd. Their salaries all touch or overlap | the $100 per month mark. Among them are the widows and daughters of famous men. For years they have worked in this biggest bank in the world and millions upon mil- lions of dollars have they helped to pour out through the enormous check books over which their white heads are constantly bent. The treasury contains the most in- teresting workers In Washington—‘“ese are the women whose skillful eyesan (elicate fingers can detect a counterfeit in a second. So expert are they that & glance suffices. Occaslonally, however, a counterfeit is so near the original that it takes considerable time and labor to prove the forgery. In the case of a bogus bill the paper is soaked and then separated by means of a slender knife. The government greenback is made up of three thin sheets pressed together with hairlike threads of sflk between. One can imagine the steadiness of hand required to separato these sheets one from another without tearing or mutilating them in any way. These women are not pald extremely large salaries for their work, not over $1,800 per annum, yet it is doubtful if any men could te found to do the work regard- less of Where Women Beat Men. Some pension officials declare that if male instead of female clerks were em- ployed on the pension cases of our old soldiers, thelr widows and orphans, the poor prospective pensioners would dle of starvation before action was reached on thelr claims. In cases where exactitude to the verge of finickiness is required, women are better clerks than men. This has been borne out in the work of the| census, bureau. where the tabulating ma- chines requiring unending patience, and the most ekilliful exactness of touch, are all | run by women. It is & well-dressed crowd of women and girls who troop down to the departments in the mornings, the women, may of them, from once wealthy familles, dressed in somber black, the girls in short skirte and tallored waist. Indeed, this sensible cos- tume of short skirt and shirtwalst has become almost a uniform, so general has been its adoption. It signifies the passage of the old idea that woman in business | is playing at work. She has tried it and | found it good, now she is going to dress| for it, and those of her sex who are ener- ( getic and ambitious enough to secure the shekels from Uncle Sam's moneybag should not be objects of envy, but rather | of emulation. The way of obtaining these places is tedious and long, but under the methods employed by the Civil Service | commission it is open to all, and no matter | how remote the place may be, opportunities are given to those who live there to take the civil service examination, which is the prerequisite for employment in the govern- | ment service. ! LABOR AND INDUSTRY. There are 244 establishments, employing | 9,859 glovemakers, in the United States The executive council of the American Federation of Labor recommends mass meetings on July 4 and Labor Day to pro- test against the Injunction abuse. One of the strongest organized national | bodies of labor In the United States is the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners. its annual conventfon will be held In Atlanta next September. The_Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and Paper Hangers of America issued elghty-three charters for the quarter end- ing March 31, 192, making the total number | of locals under ifs banner 621. The Civic federation is attempting in a new way to settle the great coal strike. Tt has failed to get any concessions from the operators and now is trying to reach the rincipal stockholders in the mines af- ected. Baggage smashers of Chicago have or- nized and the next thing will be union bels on freight and baggage to insure safe transportation. The union has for- mally afiiated with the National Brother- hood of Rallway Employes. President Buffington of the Tilinols Steel »mpany in announcing a 10 per cent in- ease of wages for the workmen em- ployed at the Jollet mills says that the action of the management is “in recogni- || tion of the adva: cost of living." The work of organizing the retall drug clerks of Baltimore into a unfon to afiiate with the Federation of Labor has begun Tt is sald that Baltimore and Philadelphia are the only two large cities in the coun- try where the clerks are not organized. An elght-hour work day will be demanded by the union. From the first of the vear up to last menth 1000 Japaness laborers had been sent to Hawall It is reported that advices have been received from Hawall to the ef- fect that no more emigrants should be sent for the present, as there are fears of the emigration act being enforced. A semlon setting forth their grievances and demanding an advance of wages being eirculated through the country among the Pullman conductors now has 15,000 signers, It demands that all new condacfors be paid $%5 a month for the first six months of thelr service, $i0 the second six months and $50 after they have served one year. The south is keeping up with the pro- cession of trusts. A combination of cotton yard mills is belng organized with o capl- lization of $60,000,000. The object 1s to fix prices, regulate produstion and float truat nds'in New York and New England while the fever fur such investments is on. The striking machinists of the Allis- mers company at Chicago returned to work last week. They gained about 4 per cent increase in wages over the amount offered by the company before the strike was in- augurated. Under the terms of the settle- ment the men will work ten hours except Saturday, when (hey work five hours, mak. ing & Bty-ve-hour week The union has out $56,000 in strike benefits, sufferin been endured and human life sacrificed The company has returned o & ten-hour d-')_r. but this condition Is likely to be tem- Rorary, Chal- Animals of The World verges from the animals that walk the earth to the animals that fly in the air. The last section [XII] of the first volume, prepares the way by tellr ing of and picturing flying mice, flying squirrels, etc, The early sections of volume II, take up the following very interesting subjects: Section XIII. Ostriches Game Birds Every Bird Photographed Every Page INustrated. Pigeons Grouse Etc Section XIV Gulls Auks Plovers Cranes Penguins Herons Storks Section XV. Swans Every Animal Ducks Photographed Geese Every Page Birds of Prey Ilustrated. Owls Etc. Each Section 10 Cents. By Mail 15 Cents. 24 Sections in all. At the counting room of The Omaha Daily Bee, Omaha, Neb.