Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-10-10
GIGANTIC STEALING.
Vast Frauds Unearthed I'm the PEN
sion Bureau.

| Washington Cor. Charleston NeaUs and Courier
Reference was made couple of days age
in these dispatches to the probability OF
| the early development of a scandal in the
| Interior Department which would put tC
the blush the petty peculation recently ex.
| posed in the Treasury. On the 1st of Sep
tember one George W. Black, a former
clerk in the pension Office, was arrested and
brought before the Police Court on infor-
nation charging him with the presentation
Of a false claim for a pension. The man
Black had, short time ago, been before the
same court because of an affray, in which
he was sOundly whipped by being found
JtGgTGnte deLietO with one Mrs. Buckley, of
| this city, a scandal which resulted in the
separation of the Buckley family. The
character Of the man took away the force
of the character Of the offense against the
government, leaving the public to infer that
it was confined to one rascal.
new Commissioner Of Pensions (Mr.
Dudley) however, had just been installed,
and Mr.. Dudley could not understand how
it was possible for single clerk to success
fully get a false claim through. Blacks
false claim was filed on the 9th of June,
1879. The investigation was begun, there
fore, to include claims filed some time back
OF that The conviction Of Col. Dudley
that the existence of a ring was necessary
to the successful operation of gaining
money on false claim has been verified. Il
involves number of clerks In the examin-
er's branch and revising division and among
those some of the best men in the Office.
These have been working by cOilusion with
outside parties who will be soon uncovered.
The secret service officers have been
shadowing these suspected clerks for a
month. They know every one of them and
their circumstances and the money they
spend. They have traced them from the
restaurant to gambling houses, places Of ill
fame and stock broking bucket shops, and
can drop upon them now any hour. II is
not yet desirable to make the arrests, owing
to the incompleteness Of the evidence ne
cessary to convict the ringleaders.
The plan OF the procedure was 90 ascer-
tain what persons in the army had not yet
received or applied for pensions. This in
formation Of the pension ring was then
given to confederates outside, who got up a
claim to ht. This claim wss passed by the
ring inside and confirmed and paid, those in
the pool inside and out dividing the plunder.
Your correspondent, learning something
OF this, called on Commissioner Dudley TO-
day and inquired as to the facts In the case
Fhat gentleman admitted that extensive
frauds similar to Blacks mad been going
on, but refused to give the names Of the
suspected parties. "You think it the onera-
tion OF ring ?" was asked. 'T do, and |
am Just now investigating that ring, in
which am sorry to say appear to be some
trusted clerks. The names cannot be given
for obvious reasons. We are not ready: /
do not want to anticipate the newspapers.
1t will all come out in time. Until then l
do not wish to express my opinion"
1t is not improbable that the amount will
be somewhere among the millions. The
snare OF the clerks was probably but COM
mission compared with the shares that were
divided 20 those outside. The bulk went to
the men who did the forging Of evidence.