St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-06-15
and law-respecting citizen must feel because
of yesterdays results should prompt him to
aid in this movement.
A RouTE SUIT.

Before Mr.. JAMES went out of the post
Office department he found on the statute
books law which required him to cause
suits to be brought for the recovery of
money paid out by his department Sin con-
sequence of fraudulent representations.
He had discovered that the star route
thieves had stolen millions by means of
such fraudulent representations, or, in the
words of the law, by procuring money from
the government ''under the pretense that
service had been performed therefor, when
in fact such service had not been per-
formed" The facts were collected by the
postmaster general and presented to Attor-
ney General BREWSTER, who promised to
prosecute civil suits against the robbers
upon the evidence furnished by the post
master general Year after year passed by
and nothing more has been heard of the
matter. The civil suits were left as a legacy
to the new adm inistration. Attorney Gen
eral GARLAND seems to have resurrected
them in some way, for news now comes
from Kansas that during this week there
will be trial in the federal court Of
a case in which the government is prose-
cutor and the PARKERS defendants. The
defendants are being sued for the recovery
of money which they drew from the gov
eminent and to which it is claimed they
were not entitled, on a contract for carrying
the mail on star route that once extended
from Vinita in the Indian Territory to Las
Vegas in New Mexico. 1t is said that this
route was one of the worst of the ninety
~, ~, in, lSt xrhi ol,
set forth for the information of the
public, four years ago, some OF the
miquitieS of star route jobbery. 1t was
about 500 miles long, and its course lay for
the most part in portion of the Indian
Territory where not even Indians could be
found. 1t was awarded to VIRGIL w.
PARKER, who agreed to carry the mails on
for SIS, $50 year. 1t was useless route.
On some trips the solitary hOrseman that
wandered over the plains in the service of
PARKER carried mail bag that was alb
soluUely empty. PostmaSters reported that
the average amount of mail was two letters
for each round trip. intermediate offices
were served more promptly by other lines.
Nevertheless, the annual pay for this route
was in nine months raised by BRADY from
Sc, $50 to $3.50, 591 by expedition" and by
increasing the number of trips. The con-
tractor had secured the assistance of the
two Kansas senators, of Mr.. CHAUNCEY /.
FILLEY and several other persons well
known in public life.
The government now undertakes to re-
cover part OF the money paid to the
PARKERs, and the trial is to begin this
week. The New York Times thinks that
the result of this trial will shape the course
of the government in regard to many other
cases of the same kind. The poStoffice de-
partment holds that there is due upon only
forty of the ring routes 50, 172, 1872, and be-
lieves it has evidence by means Of which
this sum ought to be recovered. There are
other millions due, but only in these forty
cases is the departments evidence regarded
as sufficient to warrant legal proceedings.
The prosecutors ought to be able to recover
enough of this plumber to pay the expenses
of the criminal prosecutions that so miser-
ably failed. AS the matter stands to-day
no member of the ring has been punished
and the government has nothing to show for
its work except the So, 600, 900 year saved
by Postmaster General JAMES, from which
the hundreds of thousands spent in vain by
the department of justice may be deducted.
The postoffice department did its duty
while Mr.. JAMES was at its head, but the
record of the department of justice is one
of failure from the beginning.