The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-03-28

whatever with the laborers who were
supposed to have received the time
checks from the government, nor with
any agents of the labOrers.
Act of Friendship.
Southall always represented to the
men to whom he sold the checks that
he was acting in the sale of the checks
out of friendship and good will for the
men. He was trying to raise money
for them. and the men whom ne
sWindled thought they were helping a
work Of philanthropy.
Several persons who held old paper
asked Southall if time checks for an
appropriation made for 1895 would be
redeemed in 1898. They said they did
not think checks good after the eX-
piration of the year for which the ap-
preparation was made.
Southall was always ready for such
questions. He told his skeptcal vic
tins that there were two kinds of
work performed on the Mississippi riv-
er-one the appropriation work and
the other the emergency work. The
emergency work. he said, was not
provided for in the regular appropria-
lions, but as it had to be done, time
checks were issued to cover the ex-
pense. Congress was always depended
upon for appropriations to take up
!! the checks, and he explained that con-
gress was simply neglecting to per-
form its duty to the workmen who
had performed emergency work. but
appropriations were certain to be
made. With such assurances the in
quirers went away satisfied
Who Made the Money!
no
money on the time checks? AS near
as can be ascertained at the present
time, nobody except those men from
whom Southall redeemed the checks
within reasonable time of their is
sue, and who dropped them before they
began to run behind. But these were
few, for when they found that the
| checks were redeemed they continued
to deal in them and in the long run
lost heavily. 1t was a game in which
every player was bound to lose. and
Southall more than anyone else The
longer Southall played the game the
deeper involved in debt he became. If
he had been called upon at any time
to pay every obligation he had assumed
| he would have been swamped.
| For instance: He would issue checks
representing $1,000, for which he would
get $500. He would then issue 81 600
more also at $500. He would follow
| that up with another issue of 81 900 at
| $500. His first issue would fall due and
he would be called upon to redeem it.
| He would have to pay it in full, which
| would take 5000 more than he received
| for it. That would take 5000 from his
second issue. Then the second issue
| would become due and he would be re-
quired to cash that. That would take
| also $500 more than he got for 1t, and
his total receipts were reduced $4OO
| OF the total amount of $4,000, represent
| ed by three issues, he had only s24O0
| left, so he was $500 behind There was
only one way to make good the deficit
| to make another issue Of checks. He
would sell $1,000 more of the paper and
! then he would be $500 in pocket until
| called upon for more money.
Ran to the Million Mark.
So he kept on issuing checks until II
| became impossible for him to redeem
all Of them, and eventually the sum
| ran UP to the million mark. He was
so far behind that there was no hope
| of his ever being able to paw then.
| Then he invented the stories about the
failure of the war department to honor
requls1tions, and when the holders COM
| planned that the checks were too old he
| took their checks and exchanged new
ones for them. 1t is understood that
all time checks issued by Southall since
August, 1897, are Of that character.
| He had no money to meet them. and TO
appease the holders he gave them nice
crisp new checks in exchange for the
| old ones and they went away happv.
! Southall was bound hand and foot in
| forgeries. He could no more stop is
suing time checks than Niagara river
could stop going over the precipice.
No investigation thus far made has
disclosed whether any one shared with
checks. 1t Is firmly believed that
others had a guilty knowledge of his
| transactions and that they deliberate
| ly shielded him, but it is not vet GER
tain that they profited by his villainy.
Startling revelations Of a scandalous
nature are expected to be made in con-
| Hection with the case, and several per-
sons in the government service may be
| candidates for court martial, but it IS
not clear that they will be found GRIM
inally implicated with Southall. 1t is
| thought that a desire to protect the
department from scandal has led GER
| tain officials to conceal knowledge of
| Southall's frauds from the department
| in Washington, and that now they will
| be called to account.
Feeling Against Du Shane.
| Assistant Chief Engineer James D.
| Du Shane, who is now in charge Of
| the Office in the army building, has
| been accused Of having been In the
| Office on occasions when Southall was
| selling the time checks to men, and he
| is blamed for letting Southall remain
| in the office after his connection with
| the government had ceased.
The feeling in St. Paul Is bitter