Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-25
Post Office Investigation Discussed
The Manifold Registry Books-1n-
dictments Found at Baltimore.

| Postmaster General Payne is placed IN IL
| peculiar position, that of having to IN
vestigate conditions that were brought
| about under former administrations OF the
Post Office Department.
| The President is assured to the fullest
| extent that Postmaster General Payne, as
| soon as he found there was suggestion
| of anything wrong in his department. has
tened to pursue the investigation and mas
| been relentless in his efforts to bring to
Justice any one who has been guilty Ol
| wrongdoing.
| Many stories have been printed of late
that would tend to the belief that President
| Roosevelt had taken from the postmaster
| General the active direction of the investi-
CATION; that the President was displeased
| with the way the investigation was being
| conducted.
| 1t is only justice to every one concerned
| to say that President Roosevelt is more
| than pleased with Mr.. Payne's Sagacity and
ability in directing the investigation.
The Postmaster General has given salts
| factory evidence to the President of his
desire to clean out thoroughly any corrup-
| ton that may exist in the Post Office De-
partment, and the President has given the
latest demonstration of his interest by hav-
| ing appointed Mr.. Charles ]. Bonaparte of
| Baltimore and Mr.. Holmes Conrad of Vir-
ginia as assistant to the Department of
| Justice in preparing cases for trial.
Mr. Madden's Letter.
The letter of Mr. Madden, the third as
sistant postmaster general, to Postmaster
| General Payne, was discussed considerably
about the Post Office Department today.
First Assistant Wynne and Fourth Assist
ant Bristow are as yet unable to under
stand the animus Of Mr.. Maddens letter.
Postmaster General Payne is understood
to have taken official cogn1zance OF the let
ter sent to him by Mr.. Madden. Mr.. Payne
conferred with his assistants late yester-
day the subject.
Gen. Payne in Poor Health.
Owing to ill-health, Postmaster General
Payne did not go to the Post Office Depart
ment this morning, although he sent word
that he expected to be at the department
a little while this afternoon. Mr.. Paynes
health has been unsatisfactory for several
DAYS and he was unable to be at his desk
yesterday except for couple OF hours
The Manifold Company's Books.
Mr.. Madden is said to have written a let
ter February IL of last year to William M.
Johnson then first assistant postmaster
general recommending the purchase of
manifold registry books for the Post Office
Department from the General Manifold
Company of Franklin, Pa:
The correspondent of the Detroit Free
Press who seems to have been responsible
for Mr. Madden's open letter to the Post
master General, telegraphed Mr. Madden
at Detroit last evening asking If he was
willing to let his secretary give out copy
| of the letter to Mr.. Johnson. Mr. Madden
replied that he would give out any infor-
| nation bearing upon the controversy from
| Detroit. Mr.. Madden has not the letter
with him.
In the first session of the F'ifty-seventh
Congress there was passed, as a part of
the sundry civil bill, a paragraph which
| may now be found in volume 30, part l,
Statutes at Large, 19O1-19O3, page 4S1, and
| which is as follows:
| 1.-THE public printer is authorized here
| after to procure and supply, on the requisi-
| ton of the: head of any executive depart
| ment or any government establishment,
| complete manifold blanks, books and forms
| required in duplicating processes; also pat
| ented devices with which to file money or
| der statements, and other uniform official
papers, and to charge such supplies to the
| allotment for printing and binding of the
| department or government establishment
| requiring the same.
The act containing this provision was ap-
| proved July 2, 1902
| This is said to have been done subse-
| quently to visit paid to Mr.. Louis, chief
! of the division of supplies of the Post Office
| Department, by former Representative
| Loud of California, then chairman of the
| House committee on post Offices who first
| directed the attention of the department to
the General Manifold Companys work
| The visit of Mr.. Loud is said to have been
| made after Mr.. Madden wrote to First AS
| sistant Johnson recommending the pur-
| chase of the General company's registry
| books. 1t is charged that making it man
datory upon the public priter to furnish
| manifold blanks, books and FORMS put
| the government at the mercy of the Frank
| lin establishment, as the only one of its
| kind in the country making that particular
| kind of goods.
| Representative Sibley was then member
| of the House committee on post Offices
Discussed at the White House.
|
White House today and presented Holmes
Conrad who has been selected as special at
| torney for the government in the matter
| of the post office prosecutions. Mr.. Con-
| rad had a long conference with the Attor-
ney General at the Department of Justice
this morning regarding the work that is
| to be done. He and Mr.. Knox also talked
| on the same subject with the President.
Indictments at Baltimore.
A dispatch from Baltimore this after
noon says:
lin the United States district court here
today indictments were formally presented
against c. Ellsworth Upton and Thomas
| w. McGregor. employees in the Post Office
| Department in Washington, for participa-
ton in the mail pouch frauds. The ac-
cused men are now under 5000 bail"
The Money Order Blanks.
| Wynkoop, Hallenbeck Crawford & Co of
| New York, who hold the present contract
for printing money order blanks, have sub
mitted their briefs in opposition to the low
est bid, that of Paul Herman Of Rutherford.
N. j., and the legal questions involved in
the case. which recently resulted in the
removal of Superintendent Metcalf of the
money order bureau. are before Assistant
Attorney General Robb for decision The
award probably will be made by July /.
briggs Indicted.
Four indictments were found by the fed
eral grand jury, in Brooklyn. yesterday
| against Edmund H. briggs, former rep
resentative in Congress the result of his
having, while a representative, acted as
| agent for the E. ]. fraudulent Company
| in the sale of go cashier machines to the
Post Office Department. On two of the in
dictments briggs was jointly indicted with
a man who was also involved in the sale of
| the machines, and for whom a bench war
| rant was issued.
Mr.. briggs had been informed that indict-
ments were to be filed against him previous