The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-11
ENDLESs-CHATN SCHEME SFOTLT.
Post 0flce Department Issues Fraud order
Against q Brooklyn Concern.

Against Brooklyn Concern.
WARRINGTON, July lO--The Postmaster
General to-day issued an order denying the
use Of the mails to the American Street Car
Transportation Company, Thomas W.
Bollas, president; NJ. Neuman, treasurer,
and Adam kessel, Jr., secretary, with offices
in the Temple Bar Building, 40, AZ and A
Court street, Brooklyn. The company is
Incorporated under the laws Of the State
of New York, with capital stock OF $780,
600 and has been making thousands Of dol
lars operating one OF the most remarkable
endless chain systems ever brought TO the
attention of the Department
The company offered for sale tickets
good on any street car line or elevated
railroad in the United States, at a cost to
the purchaser of one cent each, explaining
that all that was necessary was to obtain
an introduction" from friend or agent
at cost of rs cents and send rs cents to
the company for three additional intro
auctions, which the patron was TO sell to
his friends. The money received he was
to retain and when the friends to whom
he had sold the Aintroductions' had each
remitted rs cents to the company, 1t was
promised that he should receive book OF
twenty-five tickets.
The company claimed in its literature
that the scheme was not an endless chain
system, and that it was honestly conducted
and within the law, The Assistant AT
torney General held this to be an abso-
lutely false stateme mt.
When the company was asked some time
ago to show cause why fraud order should
not be issued, the officers n sponded witha
defiant letter to Assistant Attorney-Gr nerel
Robb, declaring that former Assistant
Attorney-Ge Tyner of the Post Office
Department, who was summartly dis
missed some time ago and whose office
is now under investigation, had passed
upon the scheme and declared it to be all
right, and that letter in the files of the
Post Office Department would prove this
statement. This letter was found 10 be
substantially as stated. This phase Of the
case il now baing investigated along with
other alleged Irregularities
Assistant Attorney General Robb in his
opinion says:
required to continue the chain progresses
geometrically by multiples OF three, while
at the same time the field OF available pur-
chasers narrow5 correspOndingly with each
step Of progression. An. ultimate break IN
the chain is a mathematical certainty. In
deed. in order to entitie persons OF the SIX
teenth series, numbering 100, 1878. to re-
ceive. twenty-five tickets each there must be
found 3s7,39S,5l0 persons who will each
purchase coupon and send IT to the
company with rs cents. and 1t is TO be
noted that not only these i2s, 1888 persons
but in addition all their predecessors in the
chain, numbering 4304420l, have been re-
moved from the field Of available purchasers.
Thus. if these i2o, i32,s73 persons are each
to receive twenty-five car tickets they must
find 9S7, 39s,5l0 persons, exclusive OF the
i72,l77, l84 who have already purchased
books. to buy coupons.
The foregoing, however. contemplates the
operation OF only one chain. and the company
admits il has issued thousands of books and
must have a large number OF chains In opera
ton We will assume however that 1t has
in operation only 200 chains and that all
have been advanced to the sixteenth series
To become entitled to receive twenty-five
tickets each. the purchasers of these books,
aggregating Is, S2G 81 900. must IND TIs479-
7O3 500 persons who will buy coupons. They
would receive in the aggregate total OF
CAS- 6el, 1906, 900 car tickets. or over 5000 for
every man. woman and child ,c,omposing the
So 900 COO population of the United states.
To the ordinary observer it would appear
that this supply would be more than, sum-
ceut TO meet the demands for rides on
street cars for a considerable period.
The reports of inspectors assigned to the
case show that the company received on
an average 20 cents each for the car
tickets it distributed.