The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-01-11
MONEY MADE EASILY
RATHBoNE, REEVES AND NEE
 LY WERE PROSPEROUS.
Government Witness absolves War field from Complicity in the
 Frauds.-The Government
 Finishes it's Testimony.

Havana, Jan. 10.-The government has finished the examination of Reeves in the embezZlement cases and tomorrow he will be cross-examined by counsel for Nicely and Rathbone. It was evident through Reeves's testimony that the charges against all the defendants is based on Reeves's statement, for the Fiscal conducted his examination ques- ton by question from lypewritten copy of the acrnsation, slne !. r qeveH,s testi- mony sibstahtlated ttie eolfcfustoils drawn from the accusations.
 Reeves said that Rathbone had ap- pointed him chief postal accountant. but that he had originally been appointed to this position from Washington. He said that he had conversation with Nicely about the destruction of stamps, that Nicely told him Rathbone was willing to do business, and that the stamps had been burned at the suggestion of Neely, Reeves, Marfield and Neely acting as a commission. Marfield did not know of the intended fraud. He figured up the amount of the values and marked each package of stamps, amounting to a total of $3100OO. Reeves testified that Nicely made up a declaartion and that some days afterwards he, Ncely and Marfield signed it.
 Rathbone, he said, ordered him to CTeOiL the OT tuC DOOho 1JtIc Senor Lanuza called attention to Reeves's statement in Assistant Post master Bristow's report that Reeves did not know fraud had been committed, when he had made the credit in the books. Reeves refused to recognize the printed statement as his. Reeves said that before burning the large unchanged stmaps, amounting to $S2,0oO. Neely told him that the amount credited for the first burning was wrong and that there was $15,OOO to be divided up between him, Nicely and Rathbone. Reeves testi- fled that NeeIy told him that Rathbone had paid off mortgage in Cincinnati with this money
 Shortly after this Reeves said that Rathbone. in referring to the burning of the stamps, said that 1t was an easy way to make money. He also said that Nicely told him that Rathbone would be civil governor of Cuba and that they would benefit thereby because Nicely would be treasurer of the island and Reeves auditor. Reeves also testified that Nicely had credited $l2.000 in his own department in changing accounts to the Northern Trust Company and that he, Nicely. had appropriated this amount.
 Regarding Rathbone's trip to the United States in October 1890, Reeves said that $1.5OO had been drawn for expenses and that Rathbone returned him $673. He said that he thought Nicely gave Rath- bone $4SO of this amount and that Nicely said that Rathbone was hard up and that he would return it when he got an increase of salary
 When the question of daily expense allowance came up, Reeves testified that he told Rathbone that in the absence of any instructions discontinuing this allowance, he should continue it when Neely when to the United States. Reeves said further that just before his arrest Nicely left an envelope containing A.6OO upon his (Reeves's) desk, telling him to fix up the accounts. Reeves said he afterwards gave this money to General Wood telling him that Neely had been stealing.