The evening times., 1900-05-26

In the PostofTice Department this morn
ing the utmost silence was maintained
| concerning the charges of irregularities in
| the matter Of carrying on the payrolls Of
| the Washington City Postoffice the names
of persons who performed no service for
the pay received and of others who were
permitted to draw more than one salary on
/ account Of the postal service in Porto
Rico.
Postmaster General Smith declined to see
newspaper men. a score or more Of whom
sent in cards 10 hiIa before noon. The
Postmaster General" said that officials
private secretary 10 all but a few neYsPa-
per men who represent journals that are
/ supposed TO be eager TO defend the Ad-
minitration. says you will have to excuse
him today. He has nothing 10 say about
! the charges Of Irregularities in the De-
partment or in the Washington City Post
office. and refers you to the Comptroller OF
the Treasury"
Senator PIatt of Connecticut, the most
| vigilant champion in the Senate Of the Ad-
| ministrations colonial policy. and Chair
| man Loud. Of the House Postoffice Commit
! tee, were in conference with Postmaster
| General Smith for more than an hour this
morning. Immediately after they left his
| office Mr.. Smith sent for First Assistant
! Postmaster General Perry S Heath and
! Postmaster Merritt. Of the Washington City
Postofiice- These officials remained with
their chief about half hour, and when
/ they emerged from the Office recessed to dis
cuss the subject Of their conference with
the Postmaster General
Chairman Loud seemed willing to talk
freely about the matter, but he claimed
! that he was unable to see that there was
| anything in the charges. i called 10 see
! the Postmaster General on another mat
| ter" said he 20 a Times reporter. but Of
! course We informally discussed the
! charges Of irregularities growing out of
the early establishment OF the postal sery-
ice in Porto Rico. ! am prepared 10 be-
lieve that some abuses crept into the
service at first. but ! am satisfied that
! they have all been corrected since the ser
vice in Porto Rico was established on an
/ independent basis. I do not believe how
! ever, that these abuses at any stage Of
! the establishment Of the Porto Rican ser
! vice amounted TO anything more than a
! too eager. but natural desire to put
! friends into easy berths. That is a form
] OF abuse that creeps into all departments
I OF the public service Public officials are
| nothing more than human beings. and are
! apt 10 permit their friends TO impose upon
| them. Still, I an not ready 10 believe
| that grave abuses have marked the ad-
! minisITatiOn Of the Washington City
P0StCfiice or the POstofice Department.
| At the same time IL anybody has specific
| charges TO make l think they ought 10
be carefully and searchingly iEvestigat-
| ed
MIR. Heath Declines to Talk.
First Assistant Postmaster General
Heath sent out word that he was too busy
this morning to see reporters. and referred
his callers to George Beavers who IS car
ried on the rolls as Chief OF the Division
OF Salaries aud Allowances. but who. in
the absence CT Private Secretary George
| A,en, is acting in that capacity sor Mr.
! Hath. Postmaster Merritt had told The
Times reporter that Beavers. as Chief OF
the Division Of Salaries and Allowances,
ought 10 be able to throw all the ght de-
sired on the alleged irregularities. Not
word-not a word, snapped Beavers
! when questioned by Times representa-
tive. It's up TO the Postmaster General
10 talk If he wants TO. You'll get nothing
out of me. No Stree, you'll get nothing
out of me-"
Postmaster Merritt stated this morning
that he courts the freest and fullest inves-
! tigatlOn Of his office I have he'd this
position less than a year" said he. and
you viii observe that the charges ante
date my induction into Office. About the
first thing | did when l was appointed
Postmaster OF Washington was 10 dis
| charge a man named TullOch from the pc
sition Of cashier Of the Office, and put in
his place a man whom L knew. / made
| no charges against Tulloch. He was not
protected by the Civil Service rules. ard l
| only exercised my privilege in dizChaTging
him l suspect that he is responsible for
| the newspaper charges of Irregularities il
| this Office, and in the Department The
pOstoffice has not been Inspected since l
1 have had charge of II. But that Is not ny
fault. / wish the inspectors would come
! here now, and carefully examine every ac-
count in the Office If there is anyth ng
! wrong l want TO know 81. When / took
! charge here on July l. 1899. a man named
JOnes-JOhn E Jones. / think a newspaper
! repOrter-was being carried on the Iol.s as
| a physician at a salary Of S1.7O0 a year
| Jones resigned on July 81. and has no been
! on the payrolls of this Office since.
| DID you force Jones TO resign -
! The question caused Postmaster Merritt
| to hesitate for a moment. Well" he
finally said. Jones resigned a month aft
er l took charge of the Office. and that is
all / care TO say about it. I don't want
to be quoted as claiming to have caused
| Jones 20 resign"
''The Postmaster General told me this
morning" said Congressman Loud later
| in the day, that several weeks ago he
| NdS lulN AuaN a AAAtptI NL women were
being carried On the payrolls of the Wash
| ingtOn POstoffice as cleaners who did no
work. He investigated the matter and
found that the charge was partially true.
As ! remember the name, he told me that
he discovered that a newspaper woman
| named-James-Mrs James-had been re-
ceiving a salary as a scrub woman at a
| sub station and that she was physically
unable to perform the work. He had her
name dropped from the rolls. II seems
| that this lady's experience typihes the
small abuses, if any. that have crept inc
! the service. Some friend OF hers in M
! Postohice Department had her name put
| on the payroll to tide her over a hard pc
| riod in her fortunes. / think you will find
that If there are any other abuses which
! have not been corrected they are similar
to that of this newpaper woman"
Around the Postoffice Department TODAY