The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1880-12-07
Startling Insurance Frauds.

a Reading letter says The arrest OF
four alleged insurance conspirators has
created great excitement in this section.--
Their names are DIR. L. G. b. Yorgey
DIR. Il. S. Herman, Wellington Shirey,
and s. Shiery. The prosecutor is William
q. Kuser, President of the Prudential Com
pany Harrisburg The doctors were the
medical examiners in the case of Mrs.
Reinert, who was heavily insured for about
$28, 900 when she was on her death-bed,
suffering with consumption. The doctors
were held in 1,OO0 to answer at the jan
uary Sessions this city. The Shireys are
first cousins, and had large interests in the
policies. The Doctors, it is alleged were
also heavily interested. The woman lived
in the backwoods and was not generally
known in the neighborhood, she having
been brought up from PhUnixville to her
fathers home to die last May. She also
had another loathsome disease. Within
few weeks of her death she was heavily in-
sured. The medical blanks of the compau-
les were filed by DIR. Herman. He says
he never saw her but filled up the paper on
the representation of DR.. Yorgey. The
examination set forth that the woman was
sound in health and only suffering from
slight cold that she was good risk. The
companies subsequently heard of the fraud
through the local news papers and hence
the arrests. Both doctors are young. Dr.
Herman is unmarried and located at Potts
vile. He is the sou of Clergyman
Other doctors have been exposed, and
among the number is DIR. Fretz of Fleet
wood, who is said to be more or less inter-
ested. He was popular Democratic
candidate for Congress against Senator
Ermentrout at the last election. DR.. fretz,
Of course, denies the charges, but it is
rumored today that prosecutions will fol-
low, not only against DR.. Devices of Myers
town, whose name is also published in the
local newspapers as being connected with
these So called insurance frauds. The ex-
posures that are quite new are unearthed
at Fleetwood, where old, decrepit, poor,
deaf and blind people on the brink of the
grave were recently insured for large
amounts Samuel Fisher aged 81 living
in squalid wretchedness, all alone in single
dirty room, is insured for $4,000 The
names of Drs. Devices and Fretz are given
by the old man as the medical examiners
in his case. Susan Everhart, aged S5,
near Fleetwood, is insured for 500, 900, it
all having been effected within the past
six weeks. Drs. Devices and Fretz are
again mentioned. The old woman is SO
feeble and demented that she has long
since failed to recognize her oldest acquaint-
ances. 1t is not known yet what the med.
lcal examinations of the woman set forth,
but the companies that issued the policies
explicitly set forth in their schemes that
the applicants must in all cases be sound
in mind and body. Old Mrs Everhart has
not been even medium risk for the past
twenty years, not withstaudng the fact
that she has lived that long.
The arrest of Dir. Yorgey is expected to
lead to the most startling revelations.-
Many men more high in position are very
extensive spectators. One man in Union
township Berks County, is carrying policies
to the amount of $1O4 900 on old and poor
people. These old and decrepit people are
paid small pittances, promised nice coffins
and respectable burials at their death. and
they consent to have insurance placed ON
their lives and then the policy is assigned
to the speculator, who pays all the costs and
keeps the policy up. From nearly every
nook and corner of the Schuylkill Valley
the most startling exposures are being
made, and if DIR. Yorgey tells all he knows,
which 1T is now threatened he will, his par-
rative will be among the strangest ever
placed on record w. J. Handy of Colum-
bus, Ohio, is in Reading to-day. He rep
resents number of Ohio companies
interested in the cases above alluded to-
Mrs. Reiner was insured in the State
Mutual of Columbus and in other compan-
les to the amount of $4,000. The Ohio
companies were informed that she was a
hrst-classed risk, and the full amount of
the policies would have been paid over had
not the fraud been discovered in time
All the policies will now be Cancelled. The
topic upermost in the minds of all in this
section is this subject, and the movements
OF the police during the week will be watch
cd with great deal of anxiety and in
terest.
gB General Grant was asked the other
day by Henry Ward Beecher whether in
tho course Of the rebellion he had ever
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