Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-04-26
Another Branch Of the star Service
SNindles

THE STORY OF "Co-oPERATIvE' COMPANY
WHICH GoBBLED Up SMALL CONTRACTORS.
Wash. Special N. Y. Times.
One OF the side concerns Of the ring which
has disgraced the national government under
the manipulations Of Gen. Brady is 'sThe c..
operative Mall and Passenger Transportation
Company" This company was organized July
l, 1877, and its principal object seems 10 be to
take from the smaller contractors of star routes
whose lines are not valuable except to furnish
sufficient brlbe money, portion Of their earG-
ings In the shape OF commissions for collecting
the sums due them from the government on
their contracts. Andrew Langdon is president
OF this company, and j. ID. Emerson superIn-
tendent. The other officers are Chase Andrews,
Armstrong, general agent; j. b. Hender-
SOD, general travelling agent; ]. w.
Baker, general purchasing agent, and
company advert1Ses list OF 702 postal
routes over which they claim to carry the mails
and passenger On some OF these routes they
but by far the greater number are run by sn Ill
contractors, VINO engage the company as
broker to settle their claims with the Govern
ment under the contracts awarded to them Dy
Brady. How much Brady and his pals have
realized from this ingenious scheme OF broker
age will probably never be known to the puo-
Of our Post OfHce department is not so stmpIe
as to render it unnecessary for small contrac-
tors to prosecute their just claims through
Passenger Transportation company. This com
pany has had as many as 1,5os routes on its
list at one time, and Its commissions have
amounted to fortunes.
But this is not all the business In which the
cooperative company has engaged. 1t issues
circulars to postmasters and ex-contractors all
over the country calling for Information as 10
the various postal routes and this Information
is used as basis upon which to make its bids
to ruin small contractors. The railway mes
seDger routes are the short routes from railroa
StAft0nG pYfQndfQO ar
q distance OF few miles. When the company
found. by means Of its infOrmantS, that there
was composition for route Of this kind they
generally managed to secure the contract from
Brasy at the highest figure, and then suulet it
at the lowest price, pocketing the difference. A
s61f so1f e fs agG mere m was r
Ing to do the service for $3.50 as against $500
demanded by another. The cooperative COM
feI il for $3.50. This is only one Of hundreds Of
1ns stances in which this game has been played,
and the profits OF the ring from this source
alone is estimated by those who should know
at upward OF 900 a year.
Another branch Of industry piled by the Co
operative Company is the providing OF item
porary service" When contractor falls in
the performance Of his work, a temporary con-
tracI is made. OF course at higher rate than
would be allowed on regular competitive bid.
A one-thousand-n i've hundred dollar contract ts
worth usually 81, 500 to the man who accepts
the temporary service upon the failure OF the
contractor, and Gen. Brady actually appointed
one contractor who had failed messenger over
the same route at an increase of 1000 compen-
sat1on. Most of this temporary service under
Brady rule has fallen into the hands of the
Co operative Mail and Passenger Transporra-
ton Company, and 1t has proved veritable
bonanza. In Short this company seems to
have been formed to gather up the odds and
ends Of the star route swindles, and 1t has
served Its purpose admirably. Having agents
all over the country, 1t was in possession of
the earliest information In regard to the work
ing of all contracts. and was thus ready to
take advantage OF every opportunity for fraud
ulent gain.