The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-05-13
Another Enormous Fraud.

|
Driven to desperation by an empty treas
ury and an approaching presidential canvass,
the administration has assailed the whisky
ring, which, since the reelection of Presi-
dent Grant and the appointments made by
him in the revenue service, has gradually
grown stronger and stronger, until it dared
defy the government itself. Revelations in
regard to this ring, recently smade, will be
found in full on the seventh page OF the
| Sentinel.
1t there appears that the treasury.has been
defrauded of twelve hundred thousand dol
lars annually by the dishonesty of admins
tration appointees. The head of the inter-
nal revenue department, If not party to 1t
directly, was indirectly responsible through
incompetency. A year ago that official was
notified that the revenue system
was rotten, and that there WIS
an immense leak somewhere. He held
that such could not be the case, and failed
to find any fraud. A few days since, the
announcement was made that Mr.. Douglass
had been requested TO resign the Office of
internal revenue commissioner. OF course
the Washington correspondents set to work
to learn the reason. They soon struck the
scent, and it led them directly to the
treasury department. Secretary Bris
tow was at the bottom of it.
For SIX or seven weeks he had established
throughout the country a system of espion-
age over the doings of distillers and dealers
in distilled spirits. and also over the acts of
agents of the government whose business it
is to see that the tax is paid on all of the
article manufactured. He had thus as
sured himself that there was a series of
startling frauds being perpetrsted by the
former through the connivance of the latter.
So direct was the connection between the
distillers and the department that the cor
respondence was carried on in cipher out
side of official circles. None knew of the |
investigation that was going on except Sec |
rotary Bristow, Solicitor Wilson, Chief of
the Secret Service Wasbburne, and their |
most tried and trusty detectives, though |
the ring operators were Informed by |
their spies in the department that
there was trouble brewing. Some one sent |
a dispatch to the st. Louis headquarters |
from Washington. Saturday night, that
lightning would strike Monday, but the
ring managers didn't know were to look for
it, nor in what shape to expect the electrical |
shock of exposure and consequential dam
ages. Meantime revenue officers from |
the East were en- route to st. |
Louis, Chicago aud Milwaukee to seize
the stock of spirits on hand, and also the
iistillers with their books. One of the |
strange and startling features of the affair |
was the necessity of assigning Eastern |
revenue officers to the duty OF seizing West |
ern distilleries. This was an admission on
the part Of the administration that the |
appointees at those points could |
not be entrusted with the exc
cution of such responsible tr1ss. |
Another development made by the investi- |
cation. as admitted by administration or
gans, Is to the effect that the whole system /
Of frauds, in so far as the completely OF COL
lectors, etc., is concert Led, had its origin in
the demands on them for money for
and other political purposes
These remarkable revelations can but lead /
to the most radical reconstruction of the
revenue service. The administration has at
last coma to comprehend that the people |
will not continue in power, a party that per-
mits such plundering on the part of
its parasites. The head OF the party in |
power can clearly see through the cloud OF
smoke that everlsstingly envelopes him,
that another campaign can not be fought
and won on the war cry. People |
Of all parties have learned to
their satisfaction that the war
IS over, and that their proper pursuit is
that of peace, and will no longer listen to
stuff aud nonsense. What they want
now is an honest and economical admins
sration of the government, and the party that
gives greatest promise to accomplish the
desired end will be surest to receive their
support. This therefore may be regarded as
: spasmodic attempt of the republican party
10 ingrstiate itself into favor with the pub
lie prior to the campaign that is coming on
IN the immediate future.