Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-12-31

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| ing them sign theirsnan4es to papers the
| contents of which they did not know, and
| having them executed afIerward. that is,
| the 1urat and seal Of a1sexecuting officer
| placed upon them by tool, who was un-
der pay. and under his influence in his Of
| flee; of making and causing to be made
| false and fraudulent fafiidsvits in support of
pension claims, and making and causing to
! be made false and fraudulent vouchers for
! the purpose of obtaining payment upon al
| lowed claims: Of fling at different times
| hundreds Of false powers.2f attorney in the
pension office, TRANSFERRING his business: of
| transferring his bustnessI to two different
| parties, and In both transactions filing false
| and fraudulent powers of attorney In each
case; of causing member of his own fami-
! ly to be disbarred before this bureau be-
| cause of his obtaining the consent of this
member of his family to the filing of false
| and fraudulent powers of attorney and af-
| fdavits in the pension office.
The files Of this man and the evidence
| therein will bear out this statement, and
! would, If thrown into printed form, fill at
| least five hundred pages.
Misdeeds Would Fill a Book.
| stool pigeon Of an attorney disbarred
before this bureau. and member Of said at
| torney's family, both residents of New Or
leans, La. This man caused to be filed
| in the pension Office hundreds of false and
| fraudulent powers of attorney and affida-
Wits relating to certain transfer Of bust
| ness in which he himself had never seen
one of the claimants, in which no one of
the claimants remembered to have seen
him, in which no claimant wanted him as
attorney, he not being known to the claim
! ants who signed the different papers.
This mans files and the evidence as to
his misdeeds and irregular and illegal prac-
tees. covering period of only about six
months, would fill volume Of two or three
hundred pages. He was disbarred for these
irregular and illegal practices.
Connected with these two attorneys above
were certain notaries public and justices Of
the peace who were convicted of forgery
and of perjury, and who have served peni-
Tertiary sentences therefor
Filed Claims for a Dead Man.
An attorney admitted to practice before
the department from Norfolk. Va, who
represented claimants as an attorney be-
fore this bureau. and who represented GER
tain Washington attorneys as subagent.
This man made and caused to be made
vouchers for pension, and forwarded the
same to the United States pension agent
when the pensioner was dead. He post
dated and forwarded to the United States
pension agent hundreds of vouchers for
pension. thereby violating section 4I46.
Revised Statutes United States. He made
and caused to be made and caused to be
filed with the commissioner of pensions
false and fraudulent aff1davits and vouch-
ers. He was notary public in and for
received illegal fees for services in the
prosecution of certain pension claims.
Were the cases in which the irregular and
Illegal practices of this man prevailed fully
set forth with the evidence 1t would fill
book Of hundreds of pages He also caused
to be made and filed and caused to be filed
in the pension Office, false and fraudulent
pension claims This man was convicted
for these Illegal acts in number Of cases.
his conviction being Of record in the
United States district court for the dis
trict Of Virginia at the present time.
Swindled Client and Government.
A pension attorney located at Newbern,
N. c., colored man, who, in connection
with and under the direction Of a disbarred
attorney. white man of, the same place.
He made and caused to be made, filed and
caused to be filed in the, pension bureau
false and fraudulent claims for pension.
causing, In one particular case, a loss to
the government of over 5000 This was
a certain widows claim in which it was
alleged that she was the widow of a Union
soldier. when. in fact, her husband was
never in the service Of the United States,
and the service that he was represented
to have performed was shown to have been
performed by man who is living at this
time. Through the Vaccinations and the
help of this white disbarred attorney, this
claim was worked up and allowed. Ihe
white attorney obtained the entire amount
of the $1,000, the negro woman obtaining
only about 500 of the amount paid, which
was between $1,000 and s., 800
This colored attorney also made and
caused to be made, and filed and caused to
be filed in the pension office, a number Of
false and fraudulent attidavts in support
of pension claims. The papers in these
cases are in nearly every instance in the
handwriting of the attorney, but were
executed before and bore the seal of the
white man, who was manipulating the en-
tire transaction.
In the above named case the old colored
woman was convicted, and served Jail SEN
tence. The white man, through technical
ity of the law, went free; and the stool
pigeon 0he coiored attorney, through a
technically of the same kind was not con-
victed.
He was also guilty Of demanding and re-
ceiving, in p T1un Der of pension claims, IL
legal fees. before the office aware Of
this fact. thu ste ute Of limitations had run
in number # cases, and prosecution was
barred.
Barely Escaped Prison.
An attorney of Rome, Ga, admitted to
practice before the bureau, is another case
He represented claimant ian old woman)
before this bureau. and upon the allowance
of her claim for pension, amounting to
some $1,000, through the ignorance Of the
pensioner and his influence over her, he de-
nanded and received from her some 81, 800
OF the pension money and has never re-
turned the same to her. He was tried and
convicted fighting the government and the
pensioner. even taking his case to the
United States Supreme Court, where the
judgment of the lower court was sustained.
He escaped with a light fine. He should
have served penitentiary sentence.
The files of this man, showing his mis-
deeds in lhSg and in other cases in demand
ing and receiving Illegal fees and charging
excessive fees for his work, would fill a
volume Of several hundred pages His
practices were to demand fee, or to COL
lect from the claimant a certain amount of
money When called upon by the bureau
to show cause for these irregularities and
nlisdeeds, he would claim his charges and
receipt of TIE money were for legitimate
expenses 'in behalf of the claimant in the
adjudication of the claim.
An attorney of Bolton, Ga admitted to
practice before the department. In a num-
Ter of claims this man demanded and re-
ceived illegal fees. He attempted to cover
up his irregular and Illegal acts when call
ed upon by this bureau to show cause WHY
he should not be disbarred. and when in
d1cted before the United States district
court for these acts. he filed in this bureau
certain expense accounts, setting forth that
the expenses were legitimately incurrc
the prosecution and adjudication of ne
pension claim that he represented RI.