The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-09-12
Sensational Charges Against
Beavers and Others.
MACHEN GETS HIT AGAIN
The Others Indicted are James W. Erwin, San
Francisco, George W. Huntington and Isaac
McGishan, New York, and Eugene
SchebIe, Toledo.
(By the Associated Press.)

(By the Associated PreSS.)
Washington, Sept. 11.-United States
District Attorney Beach today announced
that the six persons named in the seven
indictments returned by the grand jury
last Tuesday are:
George w. Beavers, former chief of the
Division of Salaries and Allowances, Post
office Department; August W. Machen,
former General Superintendent of the Free
Delivery System, Postoffice Department;
James w. Erwin, former Postoffice In
spector, with headquarters in San Fran
cisco; George H. Huntington and Isaac S.
Mcclellan, both of New York City, own
ers of the Columbia Supply Company,
of that city, and Eugene D. Scheble, of To-
ledo, o., dentist and interested in the
firm of Maybury and Ellis, of Detroit,
Mich, letter box manufacturers. Beav-
ers, Machen and Erwin are named jointly
In one indictment for conspiracy to de-
fraud the United States Another indict-
ment is against Mcclellan, Huntington
and Machen for conspiracy to defraud the
United States, and still another is against
the same three for conspiracy to commit
bribery, both under Section $40, Revised
Statutes; Scheble and Machen are indict-
ed jointly for conspiracy against the Unit
ed States and again for conspiracy to COM
NIT bribery. Another indictment is
against Machen singly for accepting bribes
under Section 55O1, Revised Statutes.
All the indictments are based on transac
tious relating to the supply of letter boxes
and package boxes and devices. Some sen
sational charges are made. The indict
ment against Beavers, Machen and Erwin
alleges that the Postal Device and I'm
provement Company, of San Francisco,
formerly the Montague Indicator and Let
ter Box Company, was composed almost
entirely of Western postal employees; that
in 1889 it set aside one thousand shares
of stock for forwarding its interests and
that armed with this authority its presi-
dent, Daniel S. Richardson, and Inspector
Erwin came to Washington, saw Beavers,
Machen, Heath and others and got an or
. der for equipping 2,0S9 letter boxes with
their device.
The indictment says the company was
systematically relieved of it's obligations
in the way of paying freight, crating
painting and printing cards for the de-
charges that Beavers and Machen owned
stock under assumed names. Most of the
thousand shares of stock set aside, the
indictment says, went to different postof-
flee officials.
Mcclellan, principal owner of the Co
lumbia Supply Company, of New York
is charged with agreeing to pay Machen
fifty cents for each dollar and quarter
paid on the package box contract by the
government. Specific payments to Machen
are cited in consideration of increased
compensation under the package box con-
tract, ostensibly for attaching different
support to the boxes. Scheble became in
terested in the firm of which Mayor May
bury, of Detroit, Mich, is a member and
which furnished letter boxes to the gov
ernment and Schebe, and Machen, in a
joint Indictment, are alleged to have
schemed to defraud the government by
the supply of excessive quantities of
boxes. The Indictment says that May
bury and Ellis paid Scheble to the extent
of the latter's interest in the company
and that he in turn paid large sums to
Machen. In seventeen counts the indict-
ment cites specific payments to Machen
by Scheble. The other indictments in
volve practically similar transactions
Montague, whose name figures in the
Montague Indicator and Letter Box Com
pany is postmaster of San Francisco.
A number of other postal cases are now
pending before the grand jury which will
resume its sessions here next Monday.