The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1906-11-22

THE RESULT BENEFICIAL.
MANY INTERESTING FACTS DE-
VELOPED YESTERDAY IN CON-
NECTION WITH THE AFFAIRS
SIMILAR MiSDEED HERE IN 1888.

When I. Dan Engelbert faced the
United States Commissioner at In
dianapolis yesterday G. the charge of
| rifling the United States Mails, he
was Immediately placed under a five
hundred dollar bond, and in default
of it, was locked in the Marion county
Jail, awaiting the conviction which will
surely come.
In speaking about the matter last
night, Postmaster Spekenhier stated
that the arrest of Engelbert had cast a
gloom over the whole post office force
and the men went about their duties
as though some person on the force
was dead instead of being arrested
for piltering the mails. He further
said that although all the men felt ex-
eremely sorry for the unfortunate man
the whole affair would work for good
in the long run. Not since 1883 has
any local man been arrested for pilfer-
ing the mails, and at that time w. L.
Huter, colored carried was caught
in the act and he served a term in the
penitentiary.
Was Speedy and Accurate.
w NJ Moor, one of the United
States Inspectors, who was in the city
to help trace the losses attributed to
the local office, stated before he left
the city, that he had followed Engel-
bert on his route with ne hopes of
catching him mutilating the mail on
his trips, but nothing of the kind had
occurred and he said never before had
he ever seen carrier with the high
degree of efficiency displayed by En-
colbert. He was both speedy and ac-
curate, while he was a general favor
lite among his patrons.
Unconsciously Sang FAREWELL"
A strange coincidence occurred at
the postoffice shortly before Engelbert
was arrested Tuesday, and POstmast-
err Spekenhier stated that he had new
er had anything to touch him so
much as when Engelbert began sing
ing Farewell in the rest room of
the building, little realizing how soon
he would be arrested and little realiz-
ing how soon it would be farewell to
his friends and family in this city.
This incident occurred about five
minutes before Engelbert was arrest
ed by Inspector Burr.
1t also came to light yesterday that
inspectors Moore and Burr had been
in Richmond for two weeks, and
knew all that time that Engelbert
was opening letters, but did not know
but that they were addressed to him.
When Postmaster Spekenhier was
called upon, the inspectors stated
that they would stay in the city a
year and spend thousands of dollars
but what they would bring Engelbert
to justice
Had Misfortune of Late.
Postmaster Spekenhier said last
night that when he confronted Engel- /
bert and asked him why he had COM
mitted the awful crime against IN
Gle Sam, Engelbert broke down and
said that he had every thing against /!
him in the past few months. He said |
that he had sickness in his family, |
and the doctors were pressing him
for payment as were many of his
other debters in the city, and stated
that ne thought of the work of robb- |
ing letters, and he fell to the temp |
tation. Postmaster Spekenhier said |
that altao - E.gelbert denied it. he |
thought that the man had been car
rying on a systematic robbery of the /
mails for the past several years /