The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1884-10-04
STAR ROUTE FRAUDS.
How the Government was Robbed by Con-
tractors, Who We're Let Go After
FarcicaI Trials.

tractors, Who Were Let 10 After
Farcical Trials.
The committee on expenditures in the Department
of Justice which during the last session of Congress
investigated the s,ar-route prosecutions, has COM
peted its report for submission to the House on re-
assembling 1t says: During the Hayes admins
tration certain contractors in the star-route mail
service entered into conspiracies to defraud the
government in the letting and performance OF mail
contracts The contract division of the Postothce
Department is under the supervision of the second
assistant postmaster general During the letting
and performance of the fraudulent mail service
Thomas j. Brady filled this Office Frauds upon the
service could not have been committed without MS
knowledge, cooperation and assistance"
The reports prepared by Mr.. Woodward, conf
Dental agent of the government" the committees
report says land reports of postoffice inspectors
made under his direction, the report of Mr.. Gibson
and the testimony of witnesses before your commit
| tee show that glazing and stupendous frauds were
| perpetrated on the government in the star-route
mail service and that not only the contractors but
that many other persons in high official position in
the government were either criminaly cosnizant Of
the frauds or guilty participants therein. The exact
amount out of which the government was defrauded
in the star-route mail service during the Hayes ad
ministration can never be accurately known"
| THE DORSEY ROUTES.
number of routes QS) controlled by the Dorsey
combination are cited, showing the amount Of in
| crease secured. The report says: "The evidence
showed that the receipts from offices on these routes
for mail matter carried over them were inconsider
able in comparison with the vast amount of money
required for the service. On the Mineral Park and
| Phoebe route, which was expedited so as to cost
about $4,000 per annum the emoluments of all the
offices on the route were but S76l per annum, and
1Ott1 to
During 80 days it appeared that not single letter
1 or paper passed over this route although the gov
eminent was paying nearly $4,000 year for carry
| ing the mails.
"On another route it appeared that the contractor
carried the entire mail in the leg of his boot over
the mountains and received $4,000 year for the
service. The original pay of the contractors on all
of these routes was S4 135 year. 1t was increased
so that it became Si4s67O year. The revenue from
| the offices depending solely upon these routes
amounted the first year Sl02 97 in the second year
to S1316S and in the third year to S11 CO. actually
diminishing during the third year. when the pay
| for the service was the greatest The government
was paying at that time nearly $4,000 year for
carrying the mails to offices that yielded less than
$1,000 of revenue
| Other expeditions cited, on one of which the
speed at which the service was let was hos miles an
hour, time much slower than horse could walk"
Relative to the routes from Las Vegas N NJ, to
Yina l. T., the report says the pay, begun at Sc $50
increased to Sl36ssS per annum; that postofice
inspectors reported that some of the offices could not
be found, and that several Others might as well not
have been found; that Mr. Bliss testified that these
offices were all established on the recommendation
of ex-senator Dorsey, and that Mr. Woodward testi
fed that the net derived from all the offices
which depended exclusively for their mail supply
on this route reached the sum of sl5l for the year
ended June 80 1879 s2l6 for the year ended June 3d.
1880 S232 for the nine months ended March 81 1881
| to offset an annual expenditure of sl5O,592'
| HOW EXPEDITION WAS PROCURED.
The report continues: 1.-THE manner of procuring
expedition reduced to a science. The athdavits
of contractors and others were used as the founda
| ton upon which expedition and increased service
were allowed. The brazen effrDntery and perjury
of these afdavitmakers is without parallel in the
history of criminal prosecutions. Afidavis signed
and sworn to in blank were kept on hand by the
contractors just they laid supplies grain for
their horses These affidavits the sole measure
of the cost of expedition and no other evidence was
required by the department for granting increases
of services and increases of speed which cost the
| government hundreds of thousands of dollars. >
A stock of these blank afiidavits was kept on
hand and the blanks filed when occasion was re-
quired to use them, and the papers filed with the
department were the basis of securing large and
valuable additions to the contract. This perjury
was made basis of all the frauds perpetTated
| THE COUNSEL FEES.
Relative to the employment and compensation of
attorneys, the report says: A. NJ. Gibson was en-
ployed.in April, 1881, upon the recommendation OF
! Mr. Woodward and that upon the recommendation
! of Mr. Gibson, VIM. a Cook was employed. Both
Messrs. Gibson and Cook formally terminated their
connection with the cases at an carly stage OF the
! proceedings. 1t appears however, that suspicious
of their fidelity and of the propriety of intrusng
evidence to them had arisen i'll the minds of their
associates earlier date that their actual par
ticipaon in the work practically closed i'll DeceIn-
! ber 1851
| BENJAMIN Harris Brewster and George Bliss were
retained early in September, 1881, by Attorney Gen-
eral MacVeagh. W. NJ. Ker retained January
! IL 1882 and Richard T. Merrick March %, of the
same year The total amount paid to the above
mentioned attorneys for services in these cases was
Sl4Sl6 of which George Bliss received the greatest
amount. his compensation being SoT,I32. In addi-
ton So ~ paid to Allan Pnkerton for the ser
vices of detectives $3.50 for other detective work and
s1,579 to james N. Semple for services in summon
ing witnesses. The report says in this connection:
Your committee find it impossible to ascertain the
whole amount of expense to which the government
has been subjected on account of starroute frauds
The amount paid attorneys and detectives is cor
recy stated above but it is impossible to determine
how much the expenses of the courts in the District
of Columbia were increased by reason of the many
| indictments considered and presented by grand
juries and by reason of the long and expensive
trials in the Dorsey Brady case.
There were also largely increased expenses i'll the
postofice incident to the investigation Of the star
route mail service through special agents and 9TH
erwse. The expenses of the trials and appearance
! of, baf, IL
creased from the fact that government counsel
could not intrust The service of processes to
United States marshals and their deputies but were
| compelled to employ agents for this purpose. They
sent to all parts OF the country, at great ex-
pensc, in order to serve subpenas, to procure the
attendance of witnesses and arrest the parties in
dicted."
| MIR. MERRICKs TESTIMONY.
/ A review of Mr.. Merrck's testimony before the
committee in explanation of the failure of the gov
ernm em to secure conviction in the two star route
trials is given in the report. Mr. Merrick said of the
first trial that the jury found the subordnates guilty
of having conspred with each other, but the could
not agree as TO the principals while the evidence
showed that these subordinates had had no particu
lar independent relation to each other, and that
their sole relation each other was one established
10y and through the principals.
Mr.. Merrick regarded the verdict as disgraceful TO
the records of the court and of the government and
felt it his duty allow it to stand On the Sec
ond trial Mr. Merrick said that the evidence was
even more conclusive than in the first, but the jury
was the worst he had ever seen summoned to the
box in the District of Columbia or elsewhere. ut
was bad in intelligence. and bad in every respect"
The report says the committee was unable for want
of time to pursue the line of investigation in refer
ence to attempts to bride jurors
In reference to contractors not indicted the report
says: From tabular statement from the Office of
the Second Assistant PostmasterGeneral the amount
which II is claimed would be recovered from the
Salisburys and Parkers is estimated at S564,423."
THE RESULT OF THE WHOLE MATTER.
In conclusion the report says: Your committee
is of the opinion that there many which
operated 10 prevent the successful prosecution of
star-route offenders. Whatever these causes may