The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-02-07
COURT CLERKS ACCUSED
Wholesale Indictments Found by q
Federal Grand Jury.
Judge Thornton, of Brooklyn, Re-
ceives Startling RepOrt-FOrty-
Securing Illegal Naturalization of
Foreigners-COmm Blamed

NEW YORK, Feb. Indictments
against forty nine men for aiding in Sc
curing illegal naturalization for foreigners
in the Federal courts, of Brooklyn, have
been found by the Federal grand jury, of
! Brooklyn, for January, and a startling pre-
sentiment was handed up to Judge Thorn
| as with the indictments. The names Of
| forty seven of the indicted men were not
made public.
Adolph Hoffman, was arrested yester-
| day, and in the presentment he is held
| to be the chief agent for the naturalization
mill said to exist Richard p Morle and
| Percy G. p. Gilkes who are clerks of the
court and also United States commission
ers, are charged in the presentment with
incompetency or recklessness.
1t is further stated in the presentment
that naturalization methods described cam
not be charged to incompetence or care
lessness only but was a simple matter Of
making money, in which were concerned
the clerks office, the witnesses for the
applicants twhere they had become pro-
fessional witnessesl and the man Hoff-
mann. who was always in the clerks Office.
anu WIN dNtSu DIS ~ StSuic
business in matters of these naturaliza-
tions."
In the presentment attention is called TO
the great number of naturalization papers
issued from Brooklyn in 1899, and that
many of the applicants lived on the east
side of Manhattan. Many applicants, as
is shown, were examined by the grand
jury who found that they could not read,
speak, or write English, and in some in
stances were not even required to
write their ages or the dates of their ar
rival in the United States; that many did
not know the names of their witnesses;
that Clerk Gilke had sold to many appli-
cants a book containing the Constitution
OF the United States and the questions 10
be asked at 10 cents a copy; that the
clerks were by law permitted to charge
$3.50 TO each applicant, and that the clerks
refused TO answer questions asked by
grand jurors.
1t is further said that kdolph Hoffman,,
who belongs TO many societies in Manhat-
tan, and lives at - Manhattan Avenue,
Brooklyn. was daily in the corridors OF
the Federal Building, and used a desk in
the clerks office to write postal cards and
letters to persons TO come and be natural
lied: that Hoffman, always acted as In
terpreter for applicants: that he wrote 10
officers OF associations to send applicants
to him; that he represented himself as the
official interpreter of the court; that about
ten men were witnesses again and again
for 500 applicants: that partnerships eS
listed among these ten men for the diyis-
ion of money they received from appli
cants.
This grand jury recommends that the
court appoint as officials of the court only
such men as will cunscentiously and i'm
partially supervise matters of naturaliza-
ton, and adds that if the court has not
power TO eradicate these practices, the
matter should be brought to the attention
of the President and Congress of the
United States for their action.
All Clerk Morle would say yesterday
was. My friends and all who know me
know that there is no truth in the charg
es"
Jacob Marcus was ARRESTED al his home
in Grand Street last night. He is indicted
for perjury and is one OF The men indicted
yesterday.