Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1882-12-12
INSIDE HISTORY.

-----------------
INSIDE HISTORY.
Something About the Star Route Business
and the Duplicity of Prominent lndi-
viduals.
Correspondent of the Cincinnati Commercial.
Washington, November, 1S82.-The
Star Route robberies are not new sub.
jects for the reading people of the ooun.
try, but I think have dug up few
facts and points which are interesting
because they are new. The country
(and l clsss myself in that list) outside
Of this den of thieves, has believed for
the last year and q half that Steven w.
Dorsey was the principal and only star
route thief, and that he and Brady we're
tho sole conspirators.
went down to the post office depart.
ment the other day to see Just how much
they were alleged to have stolen, and
while there stumbled on lot of facts
which enlivened the worn-out subject. I
had been SO accustomed to reading of
Dorsey and Brady, and Brady and Dor
sey, that 1 was not little surprised to
find that several other distinguished cit
liens had inserted their little hands
much deeper into Uncle Sans
pockets,I and had also extracted
therefrom 30 much larger sums that
thought Dorsey should have blushed at
the insignificance of his operations
shielding the big rascals in order to
catch q big politician seems to have
been the ruling idea of Tommy James
and the son-in-law of Simon Cameron,
for assume that there have been frauds
on the postofiice ever since the govern
ment had postal service and I think
they still exist in the same proportiouate
degree they did under Brady.
If the prosecuting officers of the gov
ernment had really and honestly intend
ed to punish crime and bring to justice
all who by the same means had obtained
large sums of money from the govern
ment, of course all who had used these
means would be included. But the facts
show that such not the action of James
and MacVeagh, who seemed to be after
Dorsey instead of the star-route thieves.
Monroe Salisbury is shown by the de-
partment records to have been the larg-
est star route contractor in the country,
controlling nearly every route in Utah,
Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Cal.
ifornia, Arizona and Dakota, with many
Others in other sections of the west. I
don't know where he came from.
Many of the great star-route lines not
let to or controlled by Salisbury. are
owned by S. B. Elkins, son.in.law OF
Senator Davis, Of West Virginia. Then
some other large lines are controlled by
J. w. Parker, J. l.. Sanderson, r. G
Kerens or J. 3. Price.
l have before me table of some routes
belonging to Salisbury in 1879, and
find that on his route from Sidney tc
Deadwood the pay was increased from
S9775 to S29, 1926; on that from Bozemal
to Fort Keogh from S16,500 to SS5,655
on that from Fort Stanton to Fort Davis
from 50 500 to S31, 800; on that from For
Bascom to Trinidad, from SLIGO to SIG,
26S; on that from Willow Ranch to Reno
from S3,425 to S47,95O; on that from
Wlckenburg to Maricopa Wells, from
S4,999 to $50, ,492; on that from Prescott
to Monave City, from S7,44O to S66959
on that from Eagle Rock to Salmon City
from S4,750 to 1921
| Here are eight routes, originally Ie
for $52,l49, the pay on which was in
creased S279,79l, which increase alone
nearly double the entire mail pay o
Dorsey. But, IN addition to the tritlinI
sums given, Mr.. Salisbury had min
other little routesIunder contract, o.
which the pay was increased by the ad
ditional amount of $l43,453, making
total increase on these routes of S323,24.
or over three times the entire sum pal
in the name of Dorsey on mail contrnct
j. w. Parker is another patriot wh
had nearly 1000 of the 10000 star route
and one of them, that of Vinita to LIS
Vegas, his pay was increased from $500
: to S15O,OOO, which sum equals the entil
5 8 mail pay of Dorsey. increase and al
: And it was shown that the entire receipt
: from the Offices on this route except IL
. terminal, were only S2,377. while pos
I office agent, after going over this lin
closed his report by saying: "In fact,
q don't see any necessity for any part
= this line"
s. B. Elkins and r. G. Kerens are ne,
y on the list of large contractors, and
l. give few samples of their luck. O
!. the route from Fort Worth to Fo
a Yuma, from $4,000 to S299,O00. Fro
Las Vegas to Mesilla, from $4,000
l. 1000. The Black Canon route, fro
l. $3.50 to $4,000. Here are three routes
Q originally let for Sl43,650-increased
a S43l 900, or a net increase of S2S7,S5
and yet these two citizens are not il
= dicted or under trial, but have settle
r up with the government and have draw
e their pay. 1 don't mean to insinua
4 that they ought to have been indicte
only state the facts that they we
star route contractors, and had their ps
9, increased by Brady, and that Mr.. Tomn
!. James knew the fact all the time he ",
). in Office, because Brady included all of
in his official report.
j. l.. Sanderson is next ON the list
! large contractors, and the records sho
is that J. w. Dorsey turned over to him
10 the original contract price, and witho,
- = one cent of pay, nearly all the routes
ID had, and that after this was done Sal
,s derson secured an increase OF over $35t
It 600.
NO On page 191 of the report of the i
" yestigating committee, I find tab
e which shows on twelve routes held
% Parker Salisbury, Vaile, Elkins, and Il
,s gifted Walsh, on which the original pl
q. was $249,296, the increase was S939,9s
The entire increase on all routes duril
le that term was Sl,70O,0O0. Here was mo
r. than half of it given to five men {
in twelve routes, and not one of them b,
a been mentioned as star route thief
;" the late postmaster general or the 90
'e in-law of s. Cameron, nor by the hounc
le inheritor of the official deeds of t
Of aforesaid son-in.law.
The Dorsey routes which we're
creased numbered six. and the ent
er amount Of the increase was $l2O,OO(
d. mere petit larceny in comparison wi
ill the grand operations of the other &C
~ tractors. And that is what puzzles I
average statesman around here nov
'h why the men who got millions in
Mt mama IF U,vpa1ifiop apI ;poroos