The Corvallis times. (Corvallis, Or.) 1888-1909, 1903-09-12
PAY BIG TRIBUTE.
THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS
PAID TO FEW BELOVED
SURETY COMPANIES.
P1att's Sons Prominent ID One of
the Companies-New Scheme
to Put Bonding Business
into Postmaster's
Hands-Other
News.

s. da9de-OLl6f
News.
Washington. Sept. 6 Fifteen
thousand postofice clerks scattered
over the country pay tribute annu-
ally in the form of premiums on in
demnity bonds to half dozen sure
ty companies. Of these half dozen
corporations one gets the lone
share of the tribute. That corpor-
alton is the Fidelity and Deposit
Comr any of Maryland, Of which
one of United States Senator Platt's
sons, Henry B. Platt, is vice pres
ident and New York manager, and
the senator's other son, Frank, is
New York counsel.
The name of Henry Payne ap-
pears in the last annual report of
the National Surety Company as
one of that corporations directors,
although he himself declares that
he bas no connection with it and its
president, Charles A. Dean, says
that Payne was formerly director,
but resigned his position upon be.
coming postmaster general.
An act was passed by congress
during Perry Haa,h's maladminis-
tration of the Office of first assistant
postmaster general, authorizing the
postmaster general, at his option,
to put clerks of the first, second and
third class Offices under bonds to
the government, since which time
approximately $4,000 OF the 10000
such clerks have been bonded, re-
gardless Of the fact that many OF
them were already under personal
bond to their respective poatmast-
ers,- and regardless Of the injustice
of putting the remainder under no
bond whatever.
When the clerk. bonding regula-
ton was issued by the department,
postmasters were instructed, that
surety bonds granted by surety
companies were preferred, and a
"blank" bond, covering the clerks
to be bonded in an Office, was pre-
ferred to individual bonds. Post.
masters were also authorized to
"repretent" their clerks in "nego-
t:ating1 with surety companies.
By virtue of this regulation, how
ever, it is covertly said at the de-
partment by FIRST Assistant Post
master General Perry Heath that
the sudden bonding Of this great
army Of postofhce clerks was thrown y
into the hands of some half dozen
securities companies, of which the
Fidelity and Deposit Company of
Mary land was most active.
A clerk cannot change his surety
from one company to another. By
the policy of the department, he
must let his bond remain unchang-
ed SO long as the department is sat.
isfied. 7.
In the postal guide is published
a long list of surety companies, de-
clared by the attorney general of
the United States to be qualified
under the law to 60 on postofice
clerks bonds.
Postmaster. General Payne is au-
thority for the statement that only
two companies have bonded clerks
in the big postofice of New York
City, these being the Fidelity and
Deposit Company of Maryland and
the United States Guarantee Com
pany of New York.
By the most conservative estimate
$4,000 year is flowing from the
pockets Of the postofice clerks into
the Golfers of the favored surety
companies, and some well-informed
persons are disposed to estimate the
annual tribute at 500, 900.
This constitutes the greatest of
all the postofics scandals, and what
adds to it is that experience has
shown postofice officials that these
surety company bonds OF postal
clerks are not worth the paper they
are printed on, SO far as indemnify
ing the United States government
is concerned.
Fourth Assistant Postmaster
General Bristow has proposed that
the law be changed so that, instead
OF giving surety company bonds to
the United States, they give such
bonds to their respective postmast-
ers. This plan Auditor Henry A.
Castle of the postofice department
ard Postmaster-General Payne
both support.
It's Significance, SO far as the