National Republican., 1883-08-29
PENSION OFFICE FRAUDS.
What Commissioner Dudley Says About Them
and the Measures to Detect Them.
Interesting Information ss 20 Gould r..
Austin, Arrested Yesterday.

A reporter of THE REPUBLICAN called upon
Commissioner of Pensions Dudley last night,
and interrogated that gentleman relative to
tho arrest OF Gould p. Austin, an ex-clerk of
the pension Office, yesterday charged with
defrauding pensioners and general crooked
ness.
Commissioner Dudley said "Austin was
appointed to position in the pension office
at the time of the large increase of force upon
the recommendation of n member of congress
from New York. He was appointed in COM
mon with the others on six months proba-
ton"
Was he afterward dismissed from the SER
vicep asked the reporter.
Not dismissed" he replied, but in
making up the list Of six month appointees
for reappointment at the end of the six
months it came to my knowledge that Austin
had been gambler or an associate of gamblers.
therefore concluded not to recommend his
reappolntment, although knew nothing at
that time to indicate that he was dishonest
beyond the fact that l did not believe the
pension Office was flt place for the associate
of gamblers"
suppose" said the reporter, "you intend,
now that the fight against crooked pension
schemes has begun, to wage unccnsing war
fare against that class of offenders :"
Sos / an determined to root all su ch
chemes out of my office. As q general thi ng
the clerks Of the pension office are conscieu.
tous, hard working men. 1t Is only 0cca.
sionally that n crooked character gets in. The
pension Office has q forcd of 1,5O0 clerks, and
/ venture to say that IL is clearer now Of
crookedness than IL ever has been"
THE inducements for employees 90 commit
fraud are numerous, arc they notY queried
the reporter.
II believe they are, but it is q dangerous
experiment for them to try such things, as
hn Ant f..l.a 80 aaN
stantly on the lookout to detect fraud, either
in or ont of the Office"
Have you heard the circulated reports al
leging that large number of fraudulent
transactions arc constantly taking place in
your Office"
~ have heard of such reports, but they are
untrue. Such occurrences are only sporadic"
Can the government lose much by tho
schemes that are now IN voguet"
Tho government can lose very little, If
anything. Most of the swindling schemes
are designed to swindle pensioners, aud not
thg government"
"Will not your newly organized force Of
special agents act as u bar to many of the
crooked efforts Of pension sharpers2"
Decidedly so | have scattered two hun.
dred and twenty special agents about tho
country already. They are in charge of the
famous ex-secret service detective Rathbone
There Is a large number OF recruits also under
iuSlIuCtlOL, WHO VIII DB ScnD OuU lHUBr.
Are tho special agents detectives In any
sense of the word?' ,.
"Only slightly So Their duties are mainly
of a judicial nature. However they are al
ways on the alert to detect pension frauds |
am determined to purify the pension service
and to that end will leave no stone unturned.D
1t was reported last night that Austins
connection with gamblers was as a
"steerer," and that he entered suit some
time ago against certain well known
gamblers in this city for considerable
amount of money for Services rendered"
1t was also alleged that the suit was quickly
compromised, as II implicated certain promi-
nent people who frequented those resorts.
The latter class urged the compromise to pre-
vent publicity. and tho matter was patched
up without resort to the expose Of trial.
J Mr.. J. Thomas Turner. counsel for Austin,
is a claim and pension agent. He has had
frequent business before the pension Office
Among AustIn's effects letter from Turner
was found