The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1892-10-29
Continued from 4h Page.)

fortably. Any bank in the town
would have lent him money on his
note. What did he want
of the money! To buy lottery tick
ets He was buying them at the rate
of 800 per month, hoping to make |
a big strike. When his house was
searched we found 165 one -dollar |
tickets for the current drawing, but |
he intended to make the number an
even 200. In six months he had pur-
chased over zoo tickets, and vet all
his prizes did not foot up 500. 1t
isn't six months since he left the De
troit House of Correction, where he
served his sentence.
/ believe, and it is the belief of all
the officials of the Postal Depart
ment, that that lottery did more to
dishonor postal employees than all
other temptations combined. Thou
sands of letters containing ST and 81
bills were constantly passing through
the mails. A percentage of the EN-
ployees who handled them argued
that the lottery was dishonest and
under the ban of the department.,
and that the money would be lost to
the sender even if they didn't steal
it. There can be no just argument
in favor of dishonesty, but such
arguments as above probably helped
to stifle conscience. In two years |
alone detected fourteen dishonest
employees and brought them to
justice. | will relate one case which
had some special features.
A railway mail clerk on certain
run south of the Ohio River was
under suspicion. The suspicion
arose from a singular circumstance.
He was single man, 30 years old,
and had only his salary to live on.
Among the list of donors for fund
to erect a church edifice was he, and
he had given S725. When | found
this out | dropped all other clues
and concentrated on him. While |
was watching he turned in S275
more, thus bringing his subscription
up to $1,000. One day after had all
my plans laid | entered his car and
held him up. He had thirty letters
in his pockets, all of them contain
ing money and addressed to the lot
terry. He attempted no defence,
and urged only one excuse. He
thought the money had better go
into church building than into the
Golfers of the lottery. He had not
converted penny to his own use,
and he frankly acknowledged that it
was his intention to steal $500 and
then quit. | can mention another
singular thing which occurred at
about the same time. A man in
Pennsylvania ordered two one dollar
tickets by mail. As the tickets were
on their way to him they were stolen
by railway mail clerk. When the
drawing for the month came off it
was discovered that one of the
tickets had drawn $1,000. The clerk
had not preserved the address of the
rightful owner. He slipped down to
New Orleans to get the money. The
lottery company's books showed tC
whom the tickets were sent, and as
the clerk gave different name anC
address suspicious were aroused anC
he was run down. He had burned
up the two tickets before being ar
rested, and the lottery company wa
5000 ahead.
OF all postal employees the lette
carrier has the most temptation
thrown in his way. There is no on
to watch him. He goes out over hi
route with hundreds of letters, ant
is sorting and resorting until he cal
give pretty good guess at the con
tents of each one. If he fails to de
liver an ordinary letter, who car
charge him with embezzling it
There is, however, but one course TO
him to pursue. He must make VI
his mind to be strictly honest. |
he cannot withstand temptation h'
is doomed. He may escape detec
ton for few weeks or even months
but there is nothing surer than tina
he will be caught in the end. On
of the most powerful weapons of tn
Post Office inspector is the deco,
letter. | know that judges, lawyers
and the press have inveighed agains
it, but it is nevertheless the safe
guard of the honest and the terro
of the dishonest employee. 1t trip
up more rascals in the service tina
all their schemes combined. | ha
a rather curious case in wester
New York last year. A man in Gel
tain town was advertising cureal
and letters came to him from al
over the country. There were com
plants of losses, and | traced tn
matter up until sure that the faul
lay in the home Office. 1t final
narrowed down to one clerk | sen
in six decoy letters and four of then
were gobbled. He was young MAJ
and spent considerable none
around town, but none of my mark
ed bills turned up. He was follow
ed to saloons, billiard parlors, liver
stables, and other places where h
paid bills, but it was noticed tina
he invariably paid in silver. Will
trying to solve the mystery | drop
ped into place within step of tn
Post Office, where an old woman
sold root beer, lemonade, sand
wiches, and the like. After drinkin,
glass of the beer found / had III
change, and rendered her five-dol
lar bill. She gave me four one
with the change, and two of ther
had my mark on.
"What drink does Charles
seem to prefer" | queried, givin
her the full name of fine clerk | wa