The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1894-08-22

Harry LEI eyre, the defaulting Insurance
Agent, who recently abscOnded from Raven
na stood so high with his employers that he
had the promise and sure realization of a
near promotion to the Stark County super
intendency, had he remained faithful to his
trust Indeed, if the statements of the young
mans assistants be true, the District Super
intendent is not blameless in the matter, by
any means, for they say that he relied SO
completely and implicitly on the accuracy
of his reports, that he made no investigation
of the books. The Superintendent claims,
however, that he did make a weekly exam
ination of the books up to within short pc
riod of the defalcation.
LeFevre has, it is said, served one year in
the Ohio Penitentiary, for horse stealing,
which fact the Company knew when they
employed him, but after investigations, be-
lieved him to have been uni justly sentenced,
and accordingly lent him a helping hand.
He had been practicing Irregularities for
some time previous to his departure from
Ravenna, covering them up by false state
mentS. He had numerous mythical sigma
lures to preliminary contracts of the Com
pany which had issued policies to the sup
posed applicants. For each policy delivered
LeFevre received a stated sum from the
Company, in addition to his regular salary.
On delivering" the policy, he would re-
ceiye the first payment from the fictitious
holder, which he of course advanced from
his own pocket When the time came for
the next payment he would report the sub
| ject as " lapsed." Thus the Company would
! be out of pocket the difference between the
commission paid LeFeyre and the original
remittance received on the policy. He also
had number of mythical agents whom his
| books purpOrted to have written the dummy
| contracts, and as all the monies taken in by
| the agents. and all the funds received at the
| Ravenna Office, had to be forwarded to Dis
trict headq uarters at Akron, from which in
turn was sent to LeFevre his own and the
| o1. 1.i,o ~ o114u 10 h
fnodus operandi will be readily comprehen-
| ded.
1t is one of the "invariable rules of the
| Company to require photograph OF each OF
its agents, for obvious reasons, and in COM
| pliance with the first part of the rule, the
Company had asked him repeatedly for his
picture, but had never obtained it, LeFevre
putting them off on various pretexts.
The cause of his hasty departure lay in the
fact that day or two previous to his going
away he received request from the Distrlc
Superintendent, that he forward to head
quarters the names of each of his agents
every township operated in, and other mi
nutia of his agency. This was in accordance
with the custom of the Company to call il
such reports at stated intervals. The astutt
agent, EforeSeeing the end from the. begin
ming" and realizing that he would of neceS
sity be exposed at any time after sending IL
the report, concluded that it was time for hin
to go, and he went. The report was due a
Akron by the next Monday, and hence hi
sudden fight.
The first intimation received here of any
thing wrong was a telegram from Akron
asking why the report had not been forward
ed, to which Miss Mantel, the bookkeepe1
replied by requesting the District Superin
tendent to come to Ravenna at once. TIL
bogus contracts were found by the Superin
tendent in LeFevre's room after he had com
to Ravenna in response to Miss Mantel's tel
egram
, The home of LeFevre is said to be i
Pennsylvania.
Last Sunday Excursion to Chautauqu
Sunday, August 26th, The Erie R. R. wi
run its last Special Excursion to Chautauqu