The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1884-05-18
QUESTIONABLE ENTERPRISE.
The Missouri Pacific Railroad Com
pany Swindled on a Gil
gantic Scale.
By Corrupt Bargain With the Weigh
master Of the Road One Firm Gouges
$4,000 in Nine Months.
Other Firms Known to Be in the Pool,
and Evidence of Big Ring
Coming to Light.

ST. LOUIS, Mo-, May 1.-THE arrest of
Weighmaster Frank McGlnnlss of the
Missouri Pacific, on charges of defraud-
ing railway companies, has developed u
mine OF fraud that seems to involve many
business houses heretofore ranking as
| highly respectable. The arrest reaches o
pool Of short weight shippers, not only in
st. Louis, but throughout the country,
and developments of to-day prove that a
comprehensive system of robbery has
been in operation by which the railroads
have been swindled out OF large sums Of
money.
DETECTIVE FURLONG
informed a reporter this morning that
| White, the young man who acted as a
"go-between" with McGinniss and the
Eau Claire Lumber Company, had made a
full confession, which settles the guilt Of
| McGlnniss. "About five months ago, j" he
continued, 81 began to suspect McGin.
mis- of crookedness, and the change In the
management of the Eau Claire Lumber
Company, started the present case. Mr..
| Muncher, the new manager, was ap-
| preached by McGinniss, but failed to un.
derstand his hints. Finding that cars
| OF the company were being
| detained In the yards, he
complained to j. j. O'Conn r, CONNER.
cial agent of the Miss ouri Pacific. Nc
Ginniss, think, had been dealing with
the Eau Claire previously, and had gone
to the new manager to have his sugar
continued. My reason for so thinking is
that the cars of the Eau Claire had never
before been detained. McGinniss then
sent White to the manager. His connec-
ton with White began last summer,
when that young man was in the employ
of Knapp, Stout & Co. White was the
agent of his company In transaction
which during nine months has defrauded
the Missouri Pacific Railroad out of
NEARLY $4,000.
White did not make anything from this.
| He was acting in the interest of his en-
PicJNipb w opphii tilCll laNOls luC. NOlh-
| pany itself may not be responsible for
the frauds, but a man, whom cannot
| name-thcir manager, think-instructed
| White and paid McGinniss $40 per month
for rendering false weights. Figures in
my possession show that the Knapp
Stout Lumber Company shipped an aver
| age of about fifteen cars per day during the
| past nine months, on each Of which
| McGinnss saved them eighteen dollars,
| or a total Of $270 day. Whoever is
| responsible with McGinniss for this
| steal will be made to suffer. We
have evidence to show that this
Is not the only company which
salaried McGinniss. There Is clique
of five or six politicians, men quito
prominent during ward elections, who
have used McGinniss as lever for
their gain. They have made arrange
ments for short weights on the twenty
per cent basis and then
PAID THE wEIGHMAsTER
a salary The scheme is an old one, and
do not believe it is confined to the Mis-
souri, Pacific. All the roads would id
well just now to investigate their scales
and weighmasters. The six warrants
sworn out against McGinniss yesterday
concern the catch deal between himself,
White and the Eau Claire Company, but
as soon as our evidence is more complete
we intend to proceed with the deals be.
tween McGinniss and the Knapp-Stout
Lumber Company. White will testify
against both"
WILD WITH GRIEF.
When White read the exposure in the
Chronicle of last evening he was over.
whelmed, and this morning he is wild
with grief, bordering on suicide. He
claims he was first placed in the position
of shame by the man for whom he worked
in the Knapp-Stout Company.
The Missouri Pacific asked that in con-
sideration of the fact that White was led
into the business and that he had rem
dered the company valuable assistance,
his bond be placed at low figure, and
Judge Noonan fixed 1t at 81, 900, j. d.
johnson going his security. In the other
warrant his personal security was ac-
cepted. The company state the business
started when the Gould system in
augurated what Is known as the Western
Weighmasters' Association to systematize
things, The weighmasters then formed
a pool, including Chicago, Hannibal,
Quincy, Kansas City aud st. Louis. They
tried for awhile to work cotton and grain,
but for some reason the scheme fell
through. The lumber business, however
was such a success that all the prominent
lumber shippers at the points named are
said to be involved.
One of the railroad men said this morn.
ing that for year every car that passed
over the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy
was reported 10000 pounds less than
its real weight, making loss to the
Company of eighteen dollars on
each car. The whole business will
be laid before the Grand Jury. Points
at distance We're untouched by the
pool as there was danger of reweighing
and consequent detection. Arrests
throughout the country are expected
this afternoon as the whole matter Is
before the Gould officials. Weighmaster
McGinniss is out on bond of $4,000.
NOW In EUROPE.
Nelson C. Chapman of the Eau Claire
Lumber Company said to-day that he
knew nothing about White, had never
had any transactions with him, and II
White and McGlnniss had attempted to
involve the company in system of false
weighing under the old management, the
only one who would know about It was
the former vice-President, who Is now In
Europe.
M'GINNISS WAS THERE.
MIR, Dorsey, of the Knanp Ctout ~