Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-02-10
THE FRAUDS TN GEORGIA
HOW THE GOVERNMENT WAS
ROBBED.

III LII ~ III AAN OAAOAAO4
HOW THE GOVERNMENT WAS
ROBBED.
The Evidence Before the Springer Com
mittee in the Case of Marshal Long
street.-The Marshal inefficient and
Lax and His Deputies Generally Dis
honest.
E. B. Wiegand, Special Examiner OF the
Department of Justice, says a Washing
ton special, dated February 7, to the Phil
adelphia Times, was on the stand before
the Springer committee to-day. He was
examined on several cases, one of them
being that of Marshal LOngstreet.
The examiners in their report say that
Marshal Longstreet is utterly inefficient,
and they further charge that his son, John
G. Longstreet, his Chief Deputy for about
two years, was wholly incompetent, and
that the United States lost thousands of
dollars through his ignorance or cOnniv-
ance. Marshal Longstreet's district is
one of the largest in the United States.
His force of deputies is also very large.
Like all Deputy Marshals they are paid by
fees. Examination has shown that
the Marshal has sworn to the cor
reetness of accounts which were
false. In such matters he relied prin-
cipally upon his son. To his son he sur
rendered the executive branch of the
service, and this young man was the eX-
ecutive officer OF that court, the Marshal
being a mere Ggurt-head. Not only has
the government been damaged and
brought into reQToach by the mal-adminis-
tration of the Marshars office under
Longstreet, but the citizens of the district
have suffered severely from arbitrary
arrest. Arrests have been repeatedly
made for frivolous reasons, and fees have
been unnecessarily multiplied by the So
called special deputies, men appointed by
the Deputy Marshals without authority
of law, who gave no bonds and who had
not taken the oath Of office required by
law. 1t is also shown by the examiners
report that in civil cases individuals
having litigation in the United States
Courts in this district have been charged
eXtOrtiOnate, excessive and unauthorized
fees.
SOME OF THE OPERATIONS.
1t was a custom in the MarshaPs office
to have all process issued in his district
by the courts or commissioners sent to
his office for record. He then mailed the
commissioners process to the deputies at
their respective homes, but caused them
to go to Atlanta to obtain the court pro-
cess, for the purpose, obviously, Of in
creasing the fees, for it can be plainly
seen he could as we'll have forwarded the
court papers by mail as the commission
ers' papers, and had he done so the gov
eminent would have been saved the mile
are between Atlanta and the respective
of which the IDENTITIES resided
Deputy Marshal GarTen was dismissed
and then succeeded by Deputy Marshal
Crawford, who was directed by Marshal
LOngstreet to be at his post of
duty by January /, 1882, and was
instructed to require Mr.. Garren to
turn over all the Official papers in
his (Garren's) hands. some hours after
wards, on the very same day, Garren was
instructed by Office Deputy a. r. Wright
to return all uneXecuted process to the
Marshal's Office at Atlanta, for the sole
purpose Of making unnecessary fees for
travelling. Garren lived at ElliJaY,
100 miles from Atlanta, where
Crawford was instructed to make his
Headquarters. Wright told Crawford
that he had instructed Garren to return
these papers to Atlanta, SO that Crawford
could charge m,,,e5ge Of Che process there
and back between Atlanta ana 'A''
to have had any personal knowledge of
this transaction on the part of Deputy
Wright, he shows plainly how little he
knows about his office when his orders
can be rescinded by a subordinate for a
dishonest purpose.
LONGSTREET OFTEN DECEIVED.
Marshal Longstreet is so unfamiliar
with the details of his office that he has
been frequently deceived by his son, who
~As,4o Al.
partment, and has submitted emOlument
returns in which false credits are claimed
to the correctness Of which the Marshal
made oath. John G. LongStreetiS report
ed by many responsible persons to be an
exceedingly unpleasant man to transact
business with. He is addicted to the eX-
cessive use Of intoxicating liquors, and
has frequently gone on sprees for weeks
at time, thereby neglectlng his Official
duties. He has also presented a false ex-
pense account for transporting q United
States prisoner from Savannah, Ga, to
the Auburn, n. 7 :, penitentiary. His re- /
moval was recommended by the eXamin-
ers Of the department, and the Marshal
suffered him to resign.
In another case DepU5y +. I. Clark |
also presented false account. This man
is now clerk in the post office at Macon,
Georgia, place for which he is unfit. |
Henry Cohen, n merchant. of Gainesville,
and particular friend of Marshal Long |
street, who resides at Marshal Long
streets home, also presented a false act !
ual expense account. In a large num- |
Der of the accounts rendered by Marshal /
LOngstreet the service was performed and |
expense incurred by men employed by |
the day or month by the regular appointed /
deputies. These sub-deputies had not |
taken the oath of Office and their employ /
ment was unauthorized by law.
ANOTHER KIND OF FRAUD.
The examiners found that in some civil |
writs a charge for mileage for returning a
writ is made. This charge is wholly |
illegal and unauthorized, and is never
made by a Marshal in a United States
case. This fact is a matter of record, and
can be verified by the taxation Of bills Of
costs in the United States courts at Sa-
vannah.
In examining the accounts it was posi-
lively ascertained that services were
charged for which had never been per-
formed, travel charged for which had
never been made, transportation of
prisoners charged for when no prisoners
had been transported, and charges made
for expenses in endeavOring to arrest
when none were incurred or paid. In some
instances such false charges were made
because the deputies received no instruc
tons from the MarshaFs Office. The ser
vice charged for was performed by late
Deputies Robinson and A. j. GRAVEYARD
and show a willful intent to defraud.
Robinson is now serving out his term in
the peni:entiary. Crawford is a fugitive
from justice, having been permitted to