The San Francisco call., 1903-09-15
THE POSTAL INDICTMENTS.

IN their anxiety to justify their employment the
secret service men engaged in investigation OF
4 matters in the General Postofice seem to have
done great deal of dragnetting without regard to
the law or the facts as justification. Among the
victims OF this process is Mr.. Erwin, for sixteen
years responsible intelligent and Industrious officer
OF the department. Jealous in the discharge of his
duty, and intrusted in Cuba, the Philippines and
Hawaii with the most difficult work Of mail service
organization and nstallment In everything put in
his hands he has shown the faithful and useful
service He is now indicted for conspiracy in con-
nect;on with the purchase by the department OF the
collection indicating device used on mail boxes
Scarcely without exception the devices for i'm
proving and expediting the mail service have been
invented by postal employees The stamping machine,
the street boxes the country free delivery boxes and
even the sealed envelope and postage stamp were SO
invented. There is no law regulation to deprive
such an inventor OF the right patent and profit by
his invention 1t is nowhere denied that the collec-
ton indicator device is useful and necessary. But
the secret service men find that, in their judgment,
its price is too high An inventor however, is en-
titled to a royalty on his patent in addition to the
cost OF manufacturing the article This seems not
TO have been taken into consideration by the
service men, If every man is guilty OF conspiracy
who does not disclose to the Government the cost
OF producing what it buys of him. the will have
little else do for years except try conspiracy
cases.
AS stated the case against Mr. Erwin is that he in
troduced the patentee of the indicator device to
Machen. Now it is quite possible that Machen
acted fee for considering the matter If all that
is revealed about him by Mr. Brstow is true this is
probably the case since such conduct would be in
line with his alleged course in other matters. But
if all the gentlemen who introduced others to him
seeking business relations with the department are
indicted for conspiracy Mr.. Erwin will find himself
one of a great and rather respectable company
On the face of the Mr.. Erwin's friends refuse
to recognize any urpude in the acts alleged against
him. When enters the Government service
acts do not become criminal in him which were legal
and proper before he entered that service There
nothing in the law or regulations to make them So
He may deal in the stocks of corporations organized
undsr the laws of this State and not being himself
the public purchasing agent and such doing bust
ness with himself private citizen, he may without
offense take dividends and profits derived from the
sale of any article to the Government
AS for Mr.. Erwin, his hardly be said to be
of suspension Of judgment the part of all who
know him. 1t is rather delivery of judgment that
the dragnet has caught gentleman, a good citizen
and honest man. and that the attempt to convict
him will simply be the measure of some ones need
to hide himself behind the destruction of an innocent
man.
The postofice scandals happen to be all there is in
sight to partisan hue and cry against the ad-
minstration and the opposition press is making the
most Of it. Many in the Republican party have
wrongly judged that the best way to deal with the
matter is to fling victims innocent or guilty to the
Moloch of partisanship But there are others, rea-
sonabe men of both parties, who do indorse such
sacrifice of blameess and gentlemen, either to
clear the skirts of party furnish means of escape
for the guilty. Such men are calling "a halt to the
policy of indscriminaton, and they regard Mr. Err
win of its intended victims whose immolation
they will prevent