National Republican., 1883-11-02
Commissioner Evans Explains Why Some Ken
lucky Men Are Making War on Him.
A Collector on Trial for Mlsusing Pen
atty Envelopes,
He Warns the Commissioner to Call OF His Dogs or
lie Will Defeat His Confirmation.
The Dogs Were Not Called oR-Hcncc the
Howling.


in the New York Times yesterday morning,
gives statement of w. E. Hughes, Of Bowling
Green, KY, a prominent republican editor,
in which ugly charges are made against Col.
Walter Evans commissioner of internal rove
nue. Mr.. Hughes says that Col. Evans man
aged to have his father in law, John Gowan,
made postmaster at Hopkinsville, KY, in
place of Mrs. Burbridgc, who had hold tho
Office some time. A dissipated brother of
Mrs Evans was made assistant postmas-
ter. Last June registered letter con-
tanning several hundred dollars was lost
on the way from Cadiz, Kya to Evansville,
Ind. Revenue Inspector Porter became con-
vinced that young Gowan had stolen the
letter. Revenue Agent Clark managed to
have the affair kept secret out of friendship
for Evans Gowan was discharged and his
fathers bondsman made good the deficit
Mai Crumbaugh, the collector, who was re-
Gently tried for using official envelopes for
private letters, heard of the affair and wrote
to Col Evans about it. He did not mako
public what he knew, but frequently said he
would do so. Col. Evans heard of this, and
therefore encouraged the prosecution of Crum-
baugh.
The above is the substance Of the Times
dispatch, and in reply to it Col. Evans yester-
In the midst of the vast work of this Office
in the month of June there arose u nasty
little war in tho second Kentuoky district
and charges were filed against Collector
Crumbaugh. Being in my own state, re-
gretted to see it, but my official duty COM
PEELED me to have tho charges made against
the collector investigated. The revenue
agents were all new to me, but referred the
charges to Agent Wagner who had long been
in the service and who was in charge of
Kentucky when was appointed, but
with whom 1 had no acquaintance
until afterward. He was directed to investi-
gate the matter fully, and to get at the
exact facts in reference to them. This was
tedious process in view of the nature of the
charges. In all that / did / acted under the
advice Of the secretary of the treasury, with
whom / often consulted. My other duties
absorbed much of my time, and only thought
OF the Crumbaugh case when was compelled
TO do so in its order. When the investigation
was about complete, and when the agents had
procured many private letters written by
him and transmitted in official envelopes
without the payment of postage, and when
the charge was apparently about to be proved,
the collector wrote letter, dated Sept 26,
1883, to Revenue Agent A. II. Clark lone of
the best men know and an excellent oilicer)
as follows:
[Confdential
owENsBoRo KY, Sept. 26-My Dear Clark: This
that J. 2. Moore. of this city is In Washington try
ing to be collector of this district. You had just
allows me to be put put out ut viii defeat i his con- n,
tirmaton IN December next to n dead certainty
can 40 u and Will 90 II. wont be triiled Win
that alone, to say nothing about the H. matter
will be enough To defeat his confirmation. l am
itthat way, but have no iayors to ask him.
don't really believe Moore Is in Washington, and
don't think Evans would let him, above
Kentucky. n
more sense than to allow Moore to DC appointed,
having been his attorney, and knowing the inside
OF all his transactions while he was registrar.
Find out II you can whether Moore is in or has
Did you see anything while in w. to show that
Evans intended 10 try to get me out, or that he
wanted me QUIT, lknow he would like to hit me
hard, but think he has got too much sense to try
II. II he waits until after he is confirmed he is
likely to do, before doing anything. then VIII
for. The best thing he can do is to let me alone.
Write fully to me OH all the points touched in this
letter. Very truly, you friend, s,k, G,
Revenue Agent Clark was then on duty in
North Carolina, and, feeling it to be his duty
and believingit to be the desire of the writer,
at once sent the letter to me, and | received
it some time early in October. 1t was the
first intimation l had that Collector Crum-
baugh thought he could intimidate his
superior officer in the discharge Of his duty.
at once informed the honorable secretary of
to Kentucky to bring tho investigation to q
close in the promptest possible manner. He
@:A so, and | soon had in my possession, in
cluding those obtained by Agent Wagner,
eleven of the official envelopes SO used by
that collector in writing letters about his
y being instructed for by county conventions
in Kentucky for the secretaryship of the
navy in Washington and other private mat
ters.
Meantime q bad tempered storekeeper,
named AXton, who knew nothing of the use
of such envelopes except from rumor, had
sworn out warrant against Collector Crum-
baugh, and the case was about to be tried in
the federal court at Louisville.
On the fifteenth of October made my re-
port in the case to the secretary, in writing,
summarizing the facts found upon the inves-
tigation.
On tho telegraphic request of Crumbaugh
1t was not given out to the public until after
the trial.
He was tried, and swore that in using oil
the very numerous official envelopes shown
in the trial to have been used, he had no in
tent to evade payment of postage, and was
acquitted.
Then it was he inspired the statements
made in the special to the New York Times
of to-day. As stated, came here in May,
and have never been at HOpkinsville KY,
since, nor havo seen Mr.. Gowau or any OF
his family.
ulu near that his son had been suspected
of something wrong, growing oui Nf intem-
perate habits, and | at once wrote Nj. Gowan
(whom l believed to be as honest man as
lives), that it would be best TO discharge his
son from the postofllce, and to see that no
wrong was done. 1t was an unpleasant duty
to give to father this advice about his only
son, but IL was given and followed.
1t was only after this that | heard n post
office inspector had been there and had seen
some friends of Mr.. Gowau who has many OF
them in the town he has so long lived in, and
that the matter was fixed up in some way
satisfactory to all, precisely how l never
knew, aud in the midst Of my work here |
forgot all about it until tho receipt of
the above threatening letter of the collector,
which / properly regarded as an attempt
at black mail / may also say that the term
of Mrs. Burbridge as postmistress had expired.
1t was, indeed, the close of her second term,
and nobody was more Jealous in urging Mr..
Gowan'e appointment than was Mr. Crum-
baugh, and il was the desire of the republi-
cans of the town also. The President ap-
pointed him, and the only motive | had in
getting the son out was to make sure that no
discredit was brought upon the office nor
upon the Presidents choice. knew nothing
of the guilt or innocence of the young man
] only knew II it was even suspected that his
bad habits were leading him into wrong
doing he must at once get out If could SO
arrange.
Collector Crumbaugh, who resides in Hop