The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1903-06-25
Former Assistant Commissioner
at Ellis Island to Be Tried.
PRESIDENT ORDERED REMOVAL
Warrant 10 De Served and Reported Abuses
In immigration Bureau VIII
Hs Prshed.

New York, June 2b.-By direction OF
United States Attorney General Knox a
warrant is In the hands Of United States
District Attorney Burnett. OF southern
New York, for the arrest Of former As
sistant Commissioner Of immigration Ed
ward F. Mcsweeney. to be served at
once.
The prosecution will begin without de-
lay. President Roosevelt has ordered that
II be done with expedition.
The charge. that Of extracting public
records and documents from the files Of
the immigration department.. has been
pending for nearly year. 1t was In
sestigated by Gen. Burnett who sum
moned McSweeney before him.
A report on this examination was for
warded to the president. On the strength
OF this document the prosecution was or
dered.
In his report. the district attorney
says Of the removal of the records: 1T
Is hardly possible TO adequately describe
or characterize the whole transaction.
Mr.. McSweeney was reomved last July
by President Roosevelt's order Commis-
sloner rltcHle "ds ioiSSu W AcSieh hi
May, 1902.
When Commissioner Williams took
Fitchie's office he gave McSweenoy
vacation of thirty days. In his absence
an investigation was made by secret ser
vice agents from Washington. They
learned that McSweeney had packed up
mass OF documents, said to be more than
1000 in number. and removed them to
another part Of the building.
When asked by Commissioner Williams
what the contents OF the cases were. Nc
Sweeney said: Pictures. books and other
personal property" Some OF the docu-
ments bore the official file numbers.
CORRUPTION AND BLACKMAIL.
The investigation also disclosed corrup-
ton and blackmail In the department.
These disclosures only confirmed the
charges in a report made by Commission
er williams short time before.
One OF the charges was that railroad
and other passes used to be requested
and issued to demoralizing extent, and
even in the names OF officials or en-
ployes who never even knew thereof. and
some of whom protested.
What Is still worse, the use of these
passes was In many instances transfer
red to persons other than those whose
names they bore"
The district-attorneys report 10 the
president said that McSweeney furnished
to the railroads statistics, In violation OF
the regulations, in return for which ia
vors he solicited passes, which he used
for his personal benefit In going about
the country to deliver lectures.
Passes were lent to his friends, and
when a pass was taken up and Its re-
newal was refused McSweeney was
ready to state any number OF falsehoods
to exculpate himself and to induce others
to lie with him to secure the renewal OF
the pass"
The records OF these transactions are
said to be among the papers McSweeney
tried to remove.
Gen Burnetts report concludes with
Certainly the moral obliquity or absence
OF moral perception and sense OF Official
propriety and uprightness is very clear
Commissioners Williams, in his report OF
last June. says persons not qualified by
law were detailed to act as immigrant In
spectors. medical certificates on hundreds
OF immigrants excluded because OF IN
capacity to earn a living were removed
from the files: officials were in the
habit Of passing on immigrants detained
for special inquiry immigrants were
hustled about and addressed in rough
language" Kitchen methods and
methods OF serving food TO the
immigrants were filthy and unsani-
tary:" prices charged for food were ex-
orbitant.
He remarks. THE influence exerted by
the former holder OF the feeding privilege
In the face ot such facts is incompre-
hensble."
At the University club Commissioner
williams said last night: "Unoffcially.
heard that a warrant was out. The
matter Is entirely In the hands OF the
department OF justice"
McSweeney was appointed by President
Cleveland He came from Massachusetts
where he had been prominent In labor
movements. His salary was $4,000.