The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-13
"MAN WAS MADE TO MOURN"
OTHER ALLEGED CONSTRUCTORS
INDICTED BY FEDERAL GRAND
JURY.

Alleged COnspArAtOrS have Tx
tended over Long Period of Time
and n Wide ENpanse of Territory.
The COnspiratOrs Gave All Their
Creditors a Chance to Remember
ACKNOWLEDGMENT Springs From
Arrest of j. It. Hammond, for Using
the Mails to Defraud-D. A. Tyson,
of Telephone Fame, said to BE the
Conspirncy's Head and Front.
Just before the discharge of the grand
jury of the United States Court yester-
dav. Foreman Mickey handed to District
Attorney Erwin an indictment for con-
spracy to defraud, by the use of the mails.
The indictment is a long one, charging
many overt acts under the alleged con-
epiracy, and about fourteen defendants
are named.
Those whom the officers of the court are
willing to name are d. A. Tyson, j. T.
Hammond, ]. II. Hutchinson and w. E.
hutchinson. II is well known that w. L.
Jones and c. B. Reeves are also named in
the Indictment, besides a number of 9TH
ers. probably six or eight, whose arrests
will shortly follow, and whose names it is
desired to keep secret until then.
The case before Commissioner Lewis,
out of which the indictments grew, has
been commonly and generally known as
the Hammond conspiracy" because of
the fact that j. T. Hammond was the first
of the defendants arrested and committed
on the charge. 1t now appears, though,
that 1.-The Tyson conspiracy would be a
more correct Designations in the view of
the officers of the postofiice and other gov
eminent departments, who have been
working up the evidence upon which the
indictment has been found.
The charges made at that hearing were
reDorted in full in the Morning News.
Briefly, they were that in Bulloch, TAFT
nall, Montgomery and other counties in
that section of the state, there was in eX-
istence an almost gigantic scheme to de-
fraud merchants throughout the country,
by the use of the mails. Hammond had
been arrested on the complaint of the
firm of Steiner, Lobman & Frank of Mont
eemery, Ala, who had sold Hammond a
roll of plaids, for which it had never been
possible to obtain payment. That case
was reported to Postoffice Inspector Paul
Z Williams inspector in charge of this
division, and Inspector Fred d. Peers was
assigned to the case. 1t was on evidence
furnished by Inspector Peer that the war
rant for the arrest of Hammond was
sworn out before Commissioner Lewis,
and on this warrant that the arrest of
Hammond by Deputy Marshal White fol-
lowed
When Hammond was given a hearing
before the commissioner on Oct. IN he i'm
plicated ]. H. and w. f. Hutchinson, and
warrants for their arrest were also issued.
After Intellectual efforts to secure the ar
rest of either or both of these defendants,
J. II. Hutchinson surrendered to the dep
uty marshal and gave bond for his appear
when he wanted II
possible to ascertain the exact where
abouts of w. e. Hutchinson al any par
tlcular moment and in consequence he has
since managed to escape arrest and even
before the Indictment against him was
found was a fugitive from justice.
All of the evidence thus secured and the
further developments in the case as they
came separately or collectively to light
through the Investigations of the officers
were turned over to District Attorney Err
win, who has himself made a thorough
investigation and is in apparent possession
of the full facts. Each day, it has seemed,
has served to bring to light additional in
stances Of the manner in which the al
legged conspirators have gone about their
work of getting something for nothing,
and there is evidence enough that they
have achieved a bowling financial sue
cess.
There were witnesses in great number
the case was under investigation during
the morning and afternoon. Mr.. B. Frank,
OF the firm of Steiner, Lobman & Frank
was a principal witness, as were several
agents of the towns along the line of the
Georgia and Alabama, in which the alleged
censpirators are charged with having car
RED on their operations There were, too
some of the men who have been connected
with the operations of the conspiracy,
though possibly without criminal knowl-
edge of its nature at that time, and it is
surmised that they gave up what they
Knew under the examination Of the dis
uict attorney, with great freedom. There
was evidently no difficulty in showing that
there was at least more than reasonable
ground to believe that there were a large
number of the conspirators and that the
operations In which the ccns piracy had en-
gagged were as extensive as its member
ship.
The manner in which the alleged con-
sprators are charged with having carried
on their operations involved the use of
the names of number of individuals.
These "stool-pigeons," for the principal
Offenders would permit the use of their
names, and letters would be written to
nrns and corporations, dealing in every
thlng conceivable and doing business all
over the country, asking quotations on
uelr goods. Attractive stationary was
used and the letters carried with them the
stamp OF prosperous responsibility, in form
ana style, at least. In this way the vic
uins would be induced to ship their goods
ana would then be left to mourn the i'm
possibility of making their collections.
Nhen the credit of one of the pigeons
was worn out, another was substituted in
IT Is said by the agents along the line
y. me Georgia and Alabama that the
tGepot warehouses are filled with an amaz-
"sF diversified collection of almost every
ing under the sun, from papers of pins
" grand pianos. One of the allegations
nale against the conspirators is that they
disc famed blind tigers In half dozen
srteIeht towns, and not the least con-
epouous among the articles said to be
o,eu now reposing in the warehouses are
vases of wines, beer and fine Iiorors of
o.ery description. AS these goods cost the
b,+. orators nothing, they could afford to
~ tne very best-and they did
,,lSSon Is said 10 be the head and front.
N"C bfdlDS and the chief avaotrtfxza Of tHa