The herald., 1895-09-14
THE ROBBING OF
'WSTOFFICES NOW REDUCED
TO A SCIENCE

Inc recOrJS OF tne pOStomce Depart
ment of the United Sattes are blotted With
crime. More than 100 postmasters go
wrong every year. Over 1000 pers ons are
annually arrested for trying in some way
OF other to pilfer from the mails. and on
the average more than two postoffices are
robbed every day, year In and year out.
Last year there was an increase of 80 per
cent in postoffice burglares, there being
26 more such crimes during that time
than in the year preceding, and during
the past ten years there has been an in
crease OF 247 per cent in postal robberes.
The indications are that the present year
will break the record and that it will
show more burglaries than any in our
history.
The robbing of postoffices is now re-
duced to science. There are in the
country class of professional burglars
who devote themselves to rob bing post
offices. They are expert in their line and
their stealings equal fortunes. They have
their fences through whom they get rid
OF the stamps they steal, and everything
connected with them seems co be syste
maticallv organized. They operate in
all raits of The country, though the
headquarters of one OF the biggest gangs
seems to be IN New York. During the
past two or three years they have become
bolder than ever. The postsf1ice depart
ment has for some time known of tn cir
existence and the inspectors are working
night and day to wipe them out. Two
years ago the matter was taken up 10y
congress and an appropriation of $40, 900
was made to be used by the postoffics de-
partment in the shape of rewards for the
arrest and detection OF such robbers.
Last year this appropriation was in
creased to $25, 200, and the result is that
the department now has standing re-
wards for noted postal burglars. 1t is
now sending bills announcing such re-
wards to the different detective offices Of
the country, andu two Of which lately
issued, liesbefore ME as I write.
One OF these bills offers $4,000 for the
capture of the three great postoffice burg
lars-killoran, Russell and AIlen-who
escaped from the Ludlow street Jail in
New York on July 4th last and the
other offers $1,000 for the arrest and con-
viction of Sidney Yennie and George Car
thieves. 1t is thought that all the men
belong to the greatest Of these gangs of
professional postoftioe burglars. The
posters describing them contain half-tone
portraits of the men. Below these Is the
offer of the reward and underneath that
is very full descriptions of the men.
The other poster offers rewards OF $1,000
each for the capture Of Joseph Kllloran,
Harry Russell and Charles Allen. These
men are the princes of post0ffice burglars.
fhey stand At the head of the profession
and belong to gang of which Killoran
is supposed to be the leader. Killoran
has been robblng postoffices for years.
and il jS aaid that q IN efOIap from twn
pcstoffices alone within the past six
months more than $4,000. He was ar
rested for robbing the postoffices at
Springfield, ILL.,. ahd Hoboken. N. j.,
and Russell and Allen were taken at the
same time. The three men we're entomb-
ed in the Ludlow street Jail May 81 1895.
They escaped on July 4th last. These
men are worth $1,000 apiece. Uncle Sam
will pay that to iany one who will arrest
them and hand them over to the govern
ment officers. Their pictures on the post
ers are good, but the men were shaven
Just after their arrest, and this will in
crease the difficulty OF identifying them.
M. D. Wheeler is the chief postotfice
inspector. The inspectors may be called
Uncle Sans postal detectives. There
are about 100 of them and they are scatter.
ed fall over the country. They have
charge OF all crimes CONNECTED with the
postOftice and may be ordered by the post
master general to go to any part of the
country at a moments notice. A number
of them are on duty along the line be-
tween the United States and Canada, and
they are especially busy now in keeping
track OF the robberies in the territories.
Every day or so there is a telegram from
Oklahoma or the Indian territory asking
for the detection of some new postoffi ce
crime. The inspectors are under the
charge of Mr.. M. h. Wheeler who directs
them from the postoffice department.
The registered mail is said to carry
about $500, 900. 900 year. 1t handles
abont 10, 00O. 900 letters ana packages an
nually, and last year it was alleged that
over 2500 of these were opened and their
contents stolen. There were several thou
sand other cases, some of which embraced
the entire loss of the letter or package.
OF the cases investigated, it was found
that losses actually occurred in only
about $500 instances, and that in half Of
these the money was recovered by the IN
spectors. AS to the annual ordinary mail,
it is impossible to estimate its value. At
the rate of 25 cents per letter, it would be
wor6h $500, 900, 900. Complaints in this
division amounted last year to about ST.
900, and the loss was comparatively
small. The chief increase in crime mas
been in postoffice burglaries, and con-
nected with them the nnmberous defalca-
tions in the territories.
The action of Killoran. Russell and
Allen In holding up the Jailers at New
York is nothing new in the records of
psstotfice crime. The men who rob Uncle
Sans postoffices are among the most
dangerous OF our criminal classes. They
are usually men of more than ordinary
tellgence. and they seem to be adopts
in the art of getting out OF Uncle Sam s
jails. There is a man now in the peni-
tentlary at Joliet, ILL.,, who held up five
men and succeeded in making his escape
after he had been arrested by the postal
inspectors. This mans name is lie Roy
Harris. He was formerly in the employ
of the New York postotfice. About year
ago he got possession of some money or
der and postal note blanks of Connecti-
cut postoffice. With these, by means of
forgery, he succeeded IN obtaining about
$4,000 fiom the postoffice funds. He sent
his bogus money orders all over the
The inspectors soon discovered
his fraud, and within six weeks after the
theft of the blanks they had arrested
him. He was taken to Buffalo, N. Y,
and was brought before United States
commissioner. While that officer was
issuing the necessary papers. Harris drew
his revolver, made the five men in the
room hold UP their hands, and escaped.
He was captured, however. the same
night at little town in Canada, and
Was sent to jail.-New York Herald.