Omaha daily bee., 1900-01-23
ALBERT DAVIS BOUND OVER
Preliminary Examination Monday Afternoon
Before Commissioner Anderson,
GOVERNMENT OFFICERS TELL THE STORY
Evidence shows thnt one Drawer of
Snfc Had Been Tempered with
Trial to Ne Held
la May.

! The preliminary examination OF James Al
bert Davis, charged with stealing and en-
bczzling government money from station b
OF the Omaha postoffice, was held before
Commissioner Anderson in the office of the
United States marshal Monday afternoon
and at the close Davis was bound over in
the sum of $1,000 to appear before the United
States district court in May
The first witness introduced by the state
was Inspector ID. j. Sinclair, who stated
that he the money turned over to Davis.
There was SOS in the postofTlce fund, $Sl
in postage stamps and $195.O3 in the money
order fund. The rules of the department
provide that whenever there is the sum of
$40 in the treasury of a postoffice station
of this class in excess of the unpaid money
order advices on hand it shall be turned in
to the central office. When the money
was turned over to Davis Postmaster Crow
said that he would take the money order
fund to the main Office but Davis said that
| that was unnecessary, as he would make
out the report and send it in in the regular
manner. Inspector Swift took a blank re-
port and placed it near Davis hand. This
was on January 1G. The next morning
Davis called the witness up and told him
the money was gone. He went out and
scar on one of the drawers, as though an
attempt had been made to force the lock (;
this was the upper drawer.
Charles Grow, stated relief, now in charge
OF the station told of the events of the
morning the loss was discovered. He ar
rived at tho station that morning and un-
locked the door; no one else was present ;
before he reached the door he discovered
that the gas lamps in the station were
lighted and when Davis arrived few mo-
ments later the witness asked him II he
had been there in the evening or that morn
ing and lighted the gas Davis replied that
he had not. Witness then told of the open
ing OF the safe, as reported at the time Of
Davis arrest and said that as soon as
they thought the assistant postmaster had
arrived at the central office Davis attempted
to report the loss, but could not get the
assistant over the telephone; that witness
soon after called up the assistant postmaster
and told him that he would not do one
cents worth of business until some one
from the main office came out, as matters
were not right at station B, but refused
to tell what was the matter over the tele-
phone. The postmaster and inspectors ar
rived soon after.
Inspector Sinclair was recalled by the
defense and testified that he had heard that
the man living in the rooms over the sta
tion had said that he heard noise in the
station between 4 and o'clock on the morn
ing of the robbery.
Postmaster Crow told of the instructions
given to Davis and that after the robbery
the latter told him that the money order
furds, amounting to S199.1S, had been
placed in the lower drawer. This drawer
showed signs of having been tampered
with. but the money was gone; Davis said
that he had locked the drawers and had
taken the keys with him.
Richard Phoenix testified as to the work
OF the Office and to giving Davis the COM
bnation TO the safe, which he copied from
a paper which he carried in his pocket. He
was given the combination by Mckenzie
his predecessor.
The state rested and the defense intro
duced no evidence. Bond was signed by
Messrs. Kramer and Hughes, who signed
the former bond.