Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-11-30
to be present in person himself and plan

| the agreement
On May / Strawn wrote Baldwin. stating
that Brandt would like for him to come to
/ Washington for consultation In response
to this invitation Baldwin came to Wash
| ington and held conference with the par
| ties interested. and as a result on May ..
lS@, an order was given by First Assistant
| Postmaster General Heath for $50 machines
| at $50 each. The machines were exactly
| the same as those that were selling In the
| open market for 1925, with the exception
OF slight change in the base. After the
30 machines had been disposed of addi-
| tfonal orders were given. until 527 machines
| had been purchased, PIT of which were
| shipped to postmasters without requisltion.
| The postmaster at Chicago. on May 81.
| 1879. stated that he could use but one In
his ohice. yet on July D. less than two
months later, nine Of these machines were
sent to him and he was ordered to pay $3.50
Iowa, advised the department that the ma,
chine was not practicable and of no value
to his office. On June Is, 1900 Beavers
| wrote him as follows:
| Relative to the automatic cashier in your
ONCE, you are directed to put the same
INTO active use, as 1t Ia the desire of the
department to have uniform system in
the matter Of handling cash in the larger
post Offices"
1t Is difficult to understand what interest
.he department could have in a systematic
| Offices. 49, ee
| N'Aiio VI THESE InacnlneS were sent to Bali
timore. and only four of them are in use
| twenty We're shipped to Boston of which
| oHiy TWO are now in use, the other eighteen
o oeins stored In the basement of the post
oiHee' twenty were sent to New York only
one OF which is used. the other. heir, ~
membranes to the office
| " the OF machines purchased 17o orc
tale, many OF them have never been taken
IRON the cases In which they were shipned
The aggregate amount of money nafd ~
the Brandt-Dent Company for these mseless
cashiers was S74.275. o'eiess
eliminating from consideration all ind;-
callons OF fraud and passing upon the case
wholly as a question of administrati.,e
Judgment, 1t appears to me that this trans.
action would have justified the summer
renoVai from office Of First Assistant Post
Beavers N'oie sc W.
But the element of fraud cannot be elfmi
nated. Men of ordinary intelligence rarely
waste the public revenues in such a man
e nUr Without personal motive A bride of
Sl2,oOO was paid Congressman Edmund TT
briggs to secure the order for $50 machines
a part or this money ha- been traced to
the bank account Of Beavers
Drlggs, Beavers and Miller have been In
ulcted by the federal grand jury in the CITY
of Brooklyn, N. Y. '
During the investigation of this case In
spectors Little and Oldfield secured evil
dehce indicating that Ernest Z. Baldwin
assistant United States district attorney
Tor the southern district of New York. had
knowledge of the transactions between this
company ana the officers of the department
he was the attorney for the company in
a suit then pending in the southern district
OF New York and had In his possession the
original $4,000 note.
The inspectors were given a written or
Ger by the president and treasurer of the
company directing the firm of Boothby &
Baldwin, of which Ernest F. Baldwin is a
member. to give them access to any papers
in their possession bearing upon the sub
iect. When the inspectors presented this
order to Baldwin he refused to recognize
it, became very angry. and with violent
and profane language ordered them from
his office.
There is reason to believe that Judge
George E. Baldwin knows as much about
this fraud as any other party not even
excepting Beavers and briggs. He is at
present consul at Nuremburg. Germany.
and was not in this country at any time
while the investigation WAS in progress.
The inspectors therefore did not have an
opportunity to interrogate him.
Elliott &, Hatch Book Typewriters.
The Elliott & Hatch book typewriter is a
machine intended primarily to write in
record books. A company was organized
to manufacture and sell the machine with
Walter p. Hatch as general manager. H.
]. Gensler. one of the stenographers of the
United States Senate. was in August, 1897.
given the agency for Maryland, Virginia
and the District of Columbia.
The machine was not a success. On jan
uary o. 1899. the postmaster at Brooklyn,
n. Y, to whom three machines had been
sent. wrote. asking that they be taken
away, stating that they were useless and
an fncumbrance to his Office. The post
master at chicago notified the department mem
that the clerks could do the work better
and faster by hand.
The work done upon these typewriters
was of such an unsatisfactory character
that the clerks in the inspecting dlvis on of
the auditors Office protested against their
use. Their protest was transmitted to the
first assistant postmaster general by A l..
I.awShe, acting auditor, suggesting that
the use of the typewriter be discontinue.
On September %, 1898, Gensler wrote
Hatch as follows:
have Mr.. Eylar's letter of the ODD. con-
corning the No. 3 machine which was deiiv-
cred to the postmaster at Allentown. Pa,
who only wants to pay S175 for same. He
does not ''cut any ice" You will notice
from the copy of the letter received by me
this morning from the'Post Office Depart
ment, sent you under another cover, that
the postmaster has been authorized to pay
5000 for that machine, and you can bet that
he will pay 1t p. d. q. or he will be hauled
up with a jerk.
Gensler's correspondence plainly indicates
that he had understanding with Beavers
to furnish his machines when requested by
postmasters. But requests did not come in
fast enough, and Beavers furnished the
Elliott & Hatch when other machines were
asked for.
The postmaster at Erie, Pa, requested an
allowance of S150 to purchase a Fisher book
typewriter, but it was declined and one
week later he was furnished an Elliott G.
Hatch, for which he was ordered to pay
$500.
On October 80 1899, the postmaster at
Council Bluffs. Iowa, asked permission to
buy Remington machine at $11O His re-
quest was declined, but in March following
he was forwa; ded an Elliott & Hatch and
ordered to pay $500 for it,
On June u, 1899 the postmaster at Ashe-
vile. N. c., made a similar request with
the same result.
On October %, 1899. the postmaster at
Decatur, ILL.,, asked authority to purchase a
Smith Premier typewriter at $100, which
was declined. He then asked permission
to test Remington, which was also de-
clined, but on January % following he was
ordered to pay $500 for an Elliott & Hatch
The postmaster at Elgin H.. asked per-
mission to buy a Remington machine stat
ing that it was cheaper than the Elliott
Hatch. and did his work more satisfac-
torily. but his request was declined and he
was ordered to pay $500 for the Elliott &
Hatch.
The postmaster at Elgin, ILL.,, asked per-
mission to buy Remington machine, stat
ing that it was cheaper than the Elliott &
Hatch, and did work more satisfactorily.
b,,t nd he