Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1804-06-30
CAMDEN, Is. c. June 10.


JOHN MDoNALD, young man lately
employed as a mail cari:eron the road be-
tween this place and Fayetteville, was ,his
day taken up and committee 70 gaol onthc
Information OF John Winfield. e>u. oFAiari-.
borough district ard Isaac Handy, ofFay-
ettcville, on su,picion of having rraudu-
len,ly opened the mail when in els custo-
dy, about the 2istoi January las,, and ta-
ken from and ont of the same, letters con-
tanning bank bills to large amount.
The circumstances discovered in the
Information given againsthim before i,i;lre
Brevard, appeared To be as follows On
or about the 23d of January last, when this
man was employed as mail carrier, on
tue road TO Fayetteville, great nun,brrof
letters, having post. office marks oil them,
were found scattered along the road, bro
ken open and torn in pieces not far from,
the North Carolina boundary line, in Marl-
borough district. Some OF the letters had
Ihe Augusta post mark others of them.
the marks OF other post office, in Georgia.
One OF the letters with the Augusta post
mark was from Seaborn Jones. ESQ. dated
Augusta, January i4th, 1904" and adj.
dressed 10 gentleman in New-York, i,o-
porting that he had sent therein enclosed.
IN divided bank bills considerable sum.
one fragment OF a letter had the marks Of
the Wnnsborough post Office. Mcdonald
was suspected; but the mail he carried
not appearing at any OF the post Offices to
have been broken open, or its contents
Heodled with, he was not molested Tor
some time.
On the 2sth of March following, in tra-
yelling with The mail, lodged at the house
OF VIM. Hawkins, near Pee Dee, where he
LETT IN a paper tied up, quantity of bank
bills, amounting to fourteeu hundred dol
lars or thereabouts, which paperwas found
In the bed where he slept. Two dsysnF.
forwards he called ard claimed he re.
ney, saying it belonged 10 a man in CAM
DEM and was sent on by him for man IN
Fayetteville.
Another post rider being present, h. re-
quested him not 10 speak cfthis affair. S.
threatened TO be rovengetl ofhim If he did.
soon afterwards M'Donald quit the en-.
Ployment OF mali carrier; appeared in We
iry gen'eei apparel, and took up his lode.
ing at one of the best inns in this place.
Before this time he was known to be very
INDECENT, and no one can tell by what no.
nest means, if any, he has in so short a
time been able to support himself in the
style he has lately done.
1t IS probable the mail was opened bv
him. by means ola false key, abou; the 2lst
OF January last. The persons who appre-
hended him, requested 10 examine his
trunk, which he consented to, and gave
up his key forthat purpose-Upon search
ing IN his trunk, nine hundred and thirty
dollars in bank bills, six half bank bills OF
one hundred dollars each, and some silver.
were found.
E@ The printers throughout the Uni
Tea otates are requested to publish the g.
boVe Information IN their several papers. in
ordsr that those Interested in his disco,e.
ry may have notice, ard may take steps TO
redress themselves. Those persons who
may be sufferers by the mails having been
iraudulenlly opened, are desired to make
known the particulars Of their respective
losses to DUNCAN M'RKA, of Fayetteville,
The contractor for Carving the mail, or To-
JOHN WINFIELD, esq. of Marlborough
district.