The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-12-07
HE USED SLIPS
FOR Cash BOOK
Evidence in the Meighan Case
Resumed in Federal Court.
TESTIMONY FOR THE DEFENSE
FORMER ASSISTANT POST
MASTER RAPP ON STAND.

A LII the evidence is in for the pros
n ecution in the Charles Meighan
case. Testimony for the defense
was commenced yesterday morning.
and it is probable the trial viii occupy
another day. AS on the day before, the
one overshadowing feature of the evil
dence yesterday was the careless meth
DDS of keeping accounts practiced at
the Ogden postofice while Meighan was
postmaster.
c. S. Rapp. former assistant post
master at Ogden, was the only witness
for the defense examined before the
adjournment. The witness stated that
he succeeded George J. Kelly in Feb
ruary, 1902, who remained two days to
faminarize Rapp with the affairs of
the Office. There was no cash book and
the two men counted up the cash at
night and made a memorandum on a
slip of paper. Subsequently Rapp, in
going over the accounts, discovered a
shortage and called Meighan's atten-
ton to it.
Effort was made to show by whose
influence Rapp was appointed. An OBJ
lection was raised and sustained. Rapp
said that he and Meighan were the
only ones besides Kelly who had the
combination of the safe. An objection
was raised to this question before it
was answered. The witness was asked
if he had discovered" that the safe
had been tempered with, and answered
in the negative.
Entries in Cash Books.
Rapp stated that entries should have
been made into the cash book every
day, but he made them only once a
week. The entries were made from
slips on which the business of the day
was jotted down through the week. The
WI ( 10
was kept for the purpose of keeping
check on the auditors department at
Washington, as all applications and
Cancelled money orders were forwarded
to the auditor. Some of the daily slips
used in the office were offered in evil
dence.
In the examination of Inspector
Fredericks the evidence showed that on
Jan. the years balance sheet at
Washington showed a discrepancy in
Meighans accounts of $50. Subsequent
ly the deficit was found to amount to
, $2,603.12 OF this shortage 81, 1882 ap-
peared in the money order department
and $1,447.S0 in the postal department.
During the investigation leading to
the discovery of this shortage the in
spectors found the cash book so mixed
up that it was discarded with the mem
orandas, and the men began at the be-
ginning by checking up the money or
| uments representing cash.
How Deficit Was Found.
The witness also explained regarding
the December deficit of $621.S5, and how
he found il. He said that to the best
of his recollection he got il from the
cash book and the weekly reports
When he called Meighan's attention 20
| the shortage, the latter asked to be
arrested that the matter might be in
Vestigated in court.
The witness was asked if Meighan
complained that he had not sufficient
help, and that the witness had said that
the government would not allow him to
have bookkeeper, although Meighan
had offered to pay for one out of his
own salary. An objection to the ques-
ton was sustained.
The witness also testified that checks
amounting to s274.S4 were not allowed
by the government because they rep
resented an overdraft on the post
masters bank account. The money
which the checks were to cover repre-
scented salary accounts of the railway
mail clerks. A check for $780, drawn
by the defendant to cover the deficiency
! discovered by the inspectors in Novem-
Der. 1901, was offered in evidence by the
defense.