Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1904-04-15
FOR R0BBING THE. MAILS.
Ed. Griffith Arrested at Nevada, no.
Charged With Taking $4,000.

The greatest shock that has hap
pened to this community came this
morning when the papers announced
the arrest of Ed. Griffith, at oNeva-
da, Mo-, for robbing the omails of a
package of $4,000 in currency early
in February, and his reported confes-
sion of the crime. Postmaster Crit
fthe family is held in the highest
esteem by this community, and this
terrible charge will be deeply deplored
by every citizen of our town and county,
The Kansas City Journal of the 18th
says; .
The mysterious disappearance Of
$4,000 registered package, Sent by
the Traders bank9of Kansas City, to
a banking house at Great Bend, Kas.,
on February 9 last, was unravelled at
Nevada, Mo-, yesterday when secret
service officers gave out the particu-
lars of the pursuit and capture. The
arrest was made last Friday, but for
reasons of their own, the officers
made public nothing concerning it
until yesterday. ess
The man who is accused of the
crime and who is said to have con-
fessed it is Edward Griffith, son of
Theedores Griffith, postmaster at Great
Bend. and there is a woman in the
case-0la Cramer, 26 years old of
Hoisington, Kas.e It is said that she
Betrayed young Griffith to the officers
Edward Griffith is 26 years old and
was at one time an employe of the
Great Bend officeao
The package of currency was de-
livered by the Traders bank of Kan
sas City to the postofice on the after
noon of February 8. 1t was duly
registered at the, Kansas City post.
Office and as is customary in such
cases was recorded, receipted for to
the bank,s and given a registryonum-
Der. In addition the package was
insured of safe delivery before it was
turaed over to the postofice. The
package was then sent to the Union
depot for mailing and was receipted
for to the main Office. A railway
registrys clerk then took the package,
receipted for it and pouched it for
Great Bend. But with all the receipt
ing and the cross-registering, some
two or three days elapsed after 1t had
been safely started for its destin alton
on the Santa Fe fast mail on the
morning of February 8. before the
package was, missed by the, Great
Bend postmaster. A hurried but
careful search for the missing money
revealed the fact that it was lost.
Inspectors were detailed On the
case andinspector Harrison went to
Great Bead in search of a possible
clue about the middle of March.
Certain facts that came into his pos
session caused him to suspect young
Griffith and the Cramer woman and
they we're constantly shadowed by
postofice inspectors, who first traced,
Griffith from Great Bend osHoising-
ton, and then followed the pair
through the greater part of the states
of Kansas, Colorado and Missouri .
The officers were close upon him.
several times, but he always managed
to eIude them untiblast week when a.
postofice Inspector noticed in the
I, Nevada postof1ice letter addressed
to Ed. Graham, which0was known to
be- Grifffh's alias. The postofice
inspectors went 10 Ef Paso, Texas,
where it was found Griffith had been,
and trailed him from there to Car
thage, Mo. but failed to locate him.
They returned to Nevada and found
their man, where he had gone9to meet
his paramour, andfnrned over to. her
it Is said, great part of the $1,000.
Griffith ran when the officers under
took to arreste him, but was quickly
overtakenS The woman was also
arrested but was allowed to 60 when.
she turned over the money and told all
she knew about the robbery. %
After the woman's confession to-
her sharedn the theft, Griffith, the;
secret service officers say, Confessed
that he had gone into the postofice,
where he had been aeclerk. and see
ing the package. had dropped his coat
over it and then carried it away. AT
the time of che arrests Griffith and the
Cramer woman itS Is said by secret
service men, ,sturned over about 5000
of the money and it is intisaated by
inspectors that great deal more Of
the money has now been recovered,
The package, which was addressed
to the J. V. Brinkman bank of Great
Bend, being insured for safe delivery,