River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-12-08
MR.. G1BsoS's REPORT.

Only one Family False Certificates
| of Arrivals and Deposits Other
Washington waits
MR.. GIBsoN's REPORT.
WAsHINGToN, Nov. GA. NJ. Glib
son, special assistant attorney for the
United States, has prepared, by direc-
| ton of the late Attorney General Mac
Veagh, report on his investigations of
| the star-route swindles. The report
has been transmitted to the depart
ment of Justice. Mr.. Gibson deals
chiefly with Brady's administration of
the contract office, but the report con-
tains very interesting history of the
operations of the department in its
management of post routes from their
earliest establishment to the present
| time.
For manifest reasons it would rot be
prudent to disclose all the facts discov-
cred by the investigation, pursued by
representatives of two departments, or
Indicate 1.-THE of evidence which must
be reserved for the courts of justice.
The document would fill about TWEEN
ty ordinary newspaper columns exclu-
sive OF accompany ing exhibits, dealing
chiefly with the administration of the
contract office during the term of Gen.
Brady. Gibson in his report says:
In one of the most prohigate years
of Buchanan's administration, while
the maladministration of the postoffice
department became almost synony-
nous term for public thefts, | find one
case of expedition allowance made to
Geo. G. Happening. Coming down to
recent times it is asserted there were
only six cases of expedition involving a
total of $21, 23S in the fiscal year 1872,
and only seven,. amounting to some
SOL 900, during the fiscal years 1875
and 1876, when Gen. Tyner was in
charge of the office, and in each of
these cases the orders making allow
ances state that they are less than pro
rata. The ancient custom in accord
ance with the true construction of law,
was observed.
BRADY's VIOLATION OF LAW.
The report continues
Twenty-threc days after the begin
ming of the fiscal year 1877, Thos.
Brady qualified as second assistant
I postmaster general. During that fiscal
year | find on his orders sixteen allow
ances for the extension of mail service
on sixteen routes. The contract prices
of these sixteen routes aggregated
| 1854, 544 per annum allowances for
expedition were increased on these
routes $197 ,946 and made the total pay
1882, 400 a year, and in each one of
these cases the law was stretched to its
utmost in favor of contractors and the
instructions of that law disregarded, as
| likewise the time-honored custom of
the departments requiring customers
to furnish verified detailed dates where
by the exact proportion between the
original pay and compensation for ad-
ditional service required could not be
accurately determined. During this
same fiscal year, 1877, Brady made
orders granting additional allowances
to contractors for trips added and
speed increased in 250 routes, amount
ing in the aggregate to 1904 1856. The
original pay on these routes was
$1,000 $50, so that the increase was
about 58 10 per cent, while the addi-
tional duties required of contractors
were in the aggregate only about 333
per cent.
Gibson charges that Gen. Brady
thereafter deliberately advertised for
star service on such schedules as to
leave room for premedidated increases
of pay by means of allowances for ex-
petition, ETC., and says
In almost every instance he violated
the letter and spirit OF the law in max
ing orders for additional allowances by
which few contractors had been re-
ceiving more than $3.50 GOO.
IT Is STILL FURTHER CHARGED
that during the fiscal years 1879 and
1880 there were forty-four orders on
which allowances were made and mon
ey paid which were retroactive and in
direct violation of law According tC
this report, there were, during Gen
Brady's incumbency, seventy-four or
ders made in violation of law. Gibson
says:
San inspection of every case exam.
ined by experienced and impartial mer
| whose instructions were to ascertain the
truth and report it. was ordered. Near
ly all their reports have been received
A ndmber of men have been employed
in this work. Since May last they have
examined hundreds of witnesses who
had personal knowledge of facts. The
statements of those witnesses were writ
ten down and verified by their oaths
Sub-contractors, superintendent, dri v
ers, agents, and other employees of con
tractors have been Intercepted, anC
their dispositions taken. The result Ii
mass of evidence accumulated ky
explanatory reports ofinspectors, which
fill several thousand pages of legal car
paper. In addition to all this, the rec
ord evidence in the department ha:
been investigated and critically exam
ined, digested and collated. To do this
great work has required months of mos
arduous work on the part of Inspector
P. H. Woodward, myself, and officer;
and clerks of the postoffice department
assigned to this duty. | have examined
this evidence and weighed it carefully
and in many instances heard and reac
oral and written statements of contract
ors or their attorneys, and / cannot re
sist the conviction that in almost every
case allowance for expedition was
fraudulently conceived and corruptly
obtained"
The following are some extracts from
| Tie ItpOIC, SuOWlllS tllO HhOlSSdlC man
ner in which operations are alleged t.
have been carried out:
HOW THE ROBBERY WAS ACCOMPLISHED
''On June 80. 1879, the star service il
Arkansas, California, Colorado, Kansas
Louisiana, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon
Texas, Arizona, Dakota, Idaho, Monta
ma, Utah, Washington, Wyoming anC
the Indian Territory, which year pre-
vious cost only $2,009, $50, was swollel
to So 700 997, an increase in one yea
of 81, 697 ,7l7. How was this enormou
increase accomplished"
Extra allowances on routes con
: trolled by thirteen men added 81, 399,
: 1888; temporary contracts given with
out competition to the same thnteel
men or their representatives adde'
$168. 1855; reletting of extended ant
, new service to begin Oct. l, 1878, adde'
SAT, $3.50; extra allowances made dur
q ing the first half of the fiscal year 1879
so aggregate $761, $50 go This amour
was added tn the annual pay of route
: let during 1873 in the most part to thir
teen contractors or their dummies, VIII,
I obtained enormous allowances mad
during the fiscal year 1879.
During the same period, from July !
1879, to Dec. 81, 1879, there were award
ed without conpe ition to the SAM
men 217 contracts for temporary serv
! L