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Show CONGRESSMEN PREY OF MANY GRAFTERS How the Pompous New Member Is Taken in and Separated Prom His Salary. BY A. P. PHILIPS. WASHINGTON, D. C. April 9.- This is the mccca, for grafters. Each year AVhen Congress is In session the slickest members of the art commercial make pilgrimages pilgrim-ages to "Washington. Perhaps tho most persistent and insidious in-sidious of all is that clasy which selects se-lects for its prey new members (and old ones for that matter) of the. Senate and House. One is justified in acknowledging acknowledg-ing a rare ability in those whot employ ingenious methods1 of separating Senators Sena-tors and members from their money. The easiest mark Is tho new Congressman, Con-gressman, both from the city and the country districts, Avho comes to Washington Wash-ington puffed up by his self-lmportunce. He is very chesty, hence he falls an easy prey to fake newspaper men who would wrlto him up, print his picture and say good thing3 about him for a few dollars. Nor Is this particular class of work confined to fake newspapers. Magazines Maga-zines of precarious existence and pssudo circulations are equally importunate. Heeds Only His His Photograph. This Idea is a general one and: Its ramifications take in a number of other schemes, the basic principle of each being be-ing graft! For Instance, a magazine represents, through one- of Its sllver- lnnrllll vanrauuntolhrin.' thnt (I lino o complete collection of photos of the particular body to which the member belongs and only needs his photograph to make the collection, complete. This silver-tongued individual la particular to explain that no cost is attached to this and all that the gentleman need do is to visit a certain photographer and pose for a picture. "No, an ordinary photograph Avon't do," the grafter says. "It must be of certain size to correspond with other pictures." So tho first thing a Senator or member mem-ber knows he gets-his foot Into the web so nicely arranged, and the spiders proceed to bleed him. How they suck hiy financial blood! The photographer, of course, is in the game and gets his percentage for he rarely falls to make an excellent portrait which he Avorks over into a crayon. Then he makes the life of a Senator or member a burden until the picture ia purchased. The publication of the picture is followed with a highly colored sketch, then more importuning, and rarely does the grafter graft-er fail to make a sale. The Blackmailer's Graft. There are blackmailers in "Washington, "Washing-ton, a lc-glon of them. A Congressman is loath to have his name associated Avlth any shady transaction, no difference differ-ence how innocent he may be, and he willingly parts with some of his shekels shek-els to get well out of it. There is another class of blackmailers, a class entirely distinctive and as contemptible con-temptible as they are successful. They are the newspapers whoso entire columns col-umns aro for sale and who write you up even if you do not pay. There papers pa-pers have no standing in the community where they circulate but can and do exert ex-ert a baneful influence Avhen sent Into a Congressman's district in other states. A simple truth may be distorted into a slanderous article Avlth just enough of fact to give it color and carry credence. Congressmen, Senators and public officials, of-ficials, generally, appreciate the advantage advant-age that theso publications have over them and the blackmailing sheet pros- ners linrlr thfIn Rimnnrf A case in point happened only a few days since when a prominent "Western Senator was approached with a proposition propo-sition to subscribe to an "anniversary number" of a certain Eastern weekly. His picture was to be printed and a biographical sketch used while the columns col-umns of the paper were to bo open to him to exploit his prowess as a legislator. legis-lator. All this for the sum of $250, He Paid for Silenco. Tho Senator was a good student of human nature. He sized the situation up Avell and said: "Here is a check for 550. I give it to you Avlth the distinct understanding that in accepting it you agree not to publish my name nor use anything concerning con-cerning me until I give you authority to do so." The grafter eagerly took the check and as readily agreed to the conditions. Now this Senator knew that he Avas being held up and the representative of theh unprincipled Aveekly knew that he was accepting hush money. It Is such Instances that make It possible for the grafter to live and his nefarious methods meth-ods to flourish. Columns might be written of the graft of book agents. This class of grafters forms an army at the capital and they are very persistent in their purpose. Their scheme Is easily worked. First of all they want the recommendation of a Senator or member for the purpose of advertising their Avork, a copy of which they Avill present him. Alas, too often this great generosity has a string to it. The recommendation in writing Is secured and this is then used as an advertisement among others, It being represented that so and o has purchased tho book and the Indorsement is shown. Not infrequently a number of books are sold in this way and Avhen the agent has to make goodMils promises, prom-ises, he usually sends in may be one-half one-half the number of volumes and later comes back with a proposition- to sell the remainder. This usually succeeds, for one does not care for a part of a literary work and tho remaining -ol-umes are purchased. The Member's Picture. Then there is the man who Avants to paint your picture. Just to give him a. little reputation he will do a nice crayon for 55, tho price of the raw material. This is a most ingenious and seducth'e proposition and few miss it. Nearly every man grabs at this golden oppor-tunlty oppor-tunlty Ho gots the crayon portrait all right. At least it looks like one. In reality it Is a sdlo print an enlarged picture taken with a regular photographic photogra-phic negative upon sensitized paper. An electric light of great power will accomplish ac-complish the same result. The cost of this A-arles, of course, according to the size of tho picture, but a head, say fourteen four-teen by twenty, can be made at a coat of $1.50 and shows up pretty Avell. An amateur who knows the process can get the same result. Tho picture, however, when presented the A'ictlm is always ' framed and the grafter, of course, expects pay for the frame. It is usually a cheap affair doclssiff to represent gold leaf and is expensive at one-fifth Avhat is charged. Yet it is a rare occurrence when the grafter falls to make the sale of the frame. Wine Sellers Are There. There is still another class Avhich might well be mentioned in this connection, connec-tion, although, strictly speaking, they cannot be" termed grafters, per sc. Theso Individuals aro representatives of the big champagne houses and their victims, selected for plucking, are the Senators and members Avho entertain considerably. Every prominent Avine house in. tho , country Is represented at the capital and It Is the duty of the representatives to popularize their goods. These men aro the most suaA'o and the shrewdest of any class and are usually good fellows fel-lows who are supplied with ample expense ex-pense account to show their Avares. Indeed, In-deed, they arc the most popular of all hangers-on for through them, at least, is an opportunity to get something for nothing, Later when the A'lctim gives a dinner, one of his convivial friends turns up with the suggestion that his wine be used. Having partaken of his hospitality it is embarrassing to refuse, and the brand is ordered. The national capital is a paradise for grafters, as the E. Z marks abound here in great numbers, more so than in any other city in the country. |