The Portland daily press., 1896-04-03
SHE PLEADED GUILTY.
Mrs. Annie Morton Used the Mails For
fraudulent Purposes.

Mrs. Annie Morton Used the Mails For
Fraudulent Purposes.
She is a Young Woman Most Respectfully
Connected-She Pleaded Guilty BEFORE
Commissioner Bradley-Gaye Bonds for
Her Appearance, April 23d,
| Inspector Snow, of the Post-office de-
partment, has been satisfied for some
time, that there were suspicious ciroum-
stances connected with the fire that took
place in the West Newfield post office, a
year or so ago. He asoertained that Mr.
Frank w. Corson, the postmaster, was
| busy on other matters at the time and
the office, and that there was shortage
in the accounts. The inspector wrote q
letter addressed to r. II. White & Co.,
put it in one of that firms envelopes
| with four dollars in bills and fifty cents
in silver and mailed IT, He also sent q
package containing unmarked pocket..book
but not containing any money. He fol-
lowed the pouches from West Newf1eld to
East Wakefield and back and ascertained
that the deooy letter and package had not
been forwarded. The inspector then
went for the woman and her answers to
questions were unsatisfactory. Her
money order cash book was requested and
it was found she was $446. 50 Short she
producing only $50. Letters were re-
oeived from the postmaster generals
office stating that letters received there
from j. j. Gone of Canon City, Col.
gave the impression that Mrs. Morton
was using the mails for fraudulent pur-
poses. she claiming to them to be post
master at West Newf1eld when Mr. Corson
was the postm aster. These letters es-
pecially relate to the matter:
The Third Assistant Postmaster General,
Washington, d. @:
The person writing the endorsed let
ter purporting to be postmistress at West
Newfeld, Me-, is writing to a number OF
people OF means such letters as the one
now sent you. If your office wishes to
take cognizance of the matter you can
easily find out whether she is fraud or
not.
Your,
JAMES j. CONE
The annexed correspondence follows:
To the Hon. r. A. Maxwell, Fourth
Asst Postmaster General:
Dear Sir:-"I send you herewith a
letter dated the 18th of March, addressed
to me by James j. Cone of Canon City
Col, with an accompaniment which he
seems to think involves the use OF the
mails for fraudulent purposes by one
Annie Morton of West Newfeld, Me.
Mrs. Morton in her letter processes to be
postmaster at West Newfield, but this
seems to be misstatement, Mr. Frank
W. Corson appearing upon the records of
your. Office as holding that position. /.
Respectfully
MADISON DAVIS, 3
Third Asst. Postmaster General.
Canon City. Feb, 4th, 1885,
Mrs. Annie Morton, West Newfield, Me-
Dear Madam Your letter to Mr.. Dahl
at Anaconda has been handed to me. Will
you kindly write me about your neessi-
ties and what security you could offer for
the loan OF $500 for one year al. 10 pei, cent
interest &A
! fear that rate is usurious. Your
handwriting is SO much like a young
man just emerging from writing school
that am slightly suspicious that | am
doing an imprudent, thing in answering
your letter, but let that be as it may, the
truth will come out sometime am
sincerely sorry fol- on who lost her hus-
band and is in financial distress and
would like to aid her If it is in my
power.
Yours very truly,
JAMES j. CONE,
West Newfield, Me.
Mr.. James J. Cone:
Dear S1r-Yours of the fourth inst. at
hand. I hasten to reply.
One year ago l was burned out and lost
all had at the same time. l lost over
500 worth Of government property and
since then l have been borrowing a littis
at time aid am trying to make it up
and get Strengthened out but this Is a
little one-horse town and the post office
only pays $3.50 per year, and / have a
little confectionery business that pays me
$50 more.
Now when two women come to live
ON that it is slow business saving up
$3.50; and have looked over all IF my az
counts and find that $500 will free me
from all obligations here, and can go
away to a larger place where can make
that amount easily in the year besides all
of my living expenses. have position
offered me in Chicago where they will
pay me $3.50 per year including all CLOTHES
and expenses. They wrote me that they
would keep the place open until the 10Th
Of this month (February )and since .reoeiv-
ing yours l have written asking them
to hold it until the 18th Of March. If
there is anything in Colorado as good or
better, I would rather come there Now
l answer the questions which you ask.
All the security l have to offer is nv
note or notes, and will give you security
on small building and contents worth
about $3.50, which stands on land that
hold four years. lease of, but l would
rather have life insurance policy for
$1,000 running to you and keep it paid up
until the notes are paid of. If l live
every dollar will be paid, and If 7 die be-
fore this year you will receive the insur-
ance.
The reason offer 10 per cent is because
it is a hard thing to get money much
less on life insurance. You think NV
handwriting like young mans. You
make a mistake. am widow 81 years
old and read in the Sunday Herald
what wealthy mine the 'Doc tor mine
was. thought it might be way for me
out of my trouble end so Iwrote you. l
send you a small picture of myself. OF
course you mustfknow that small pictures
are not very satisfactory, but you seem
so afraid that am not what seem to bs
that 7 enclose the Dhnto