The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1909-10-29
CUSTOMS FRAUDS
Government Employees In
League With Importers.
COURT CRITICISES COLLECTOR
Judge Holt Says Loeb's Action In
Y7eping Confessedly Dishonest
Weighers In Public Serv-
ice Is Wrong.

New York, Oct. 2S-Importers and
merchants who have been held up for
years by the grating of custom house
inspectors and weighers say that the
whole customs service in this city is
rotten from tile bottom upward.
Scores of merchants who deal in i'm
ported goods have been gouged for
years by the graft system in the GUS
toms service. They submitted to it,
they say, because they had to get their
shipments into their warehouses, and
strict honesty was not possible with
many customs men.
The Musica case came to an end in
the criminal branch of the United
States circuit court when young Philip
Musica, an importer. who had pleaded
guilty of participation in cheese weigh
ing frauds. was remanded for sentence
by Judge George G. Holt, who de-
clared that Collector Loeb's action in
retaining self confessed thieves in the
customs service was discreditable to
the government and an injustice to
honest men.
Judge Holt spoke very plainly from
the bench. Young Musicals guilt had
been settled by the testimony of three
men-George Brehm, George Berge and
William Hutchinson, assistant weigh
ers on the docks-all of whom have a
guarantee of immunity from prosecu-
tion and were retained in their Jobs.
They testified coolly that they were
dishonest men when they gave evil
dence against the importer
"At the end of this trial." Judge Holt
remarked. Il want to refer to the tes-
timony of these three government wit
nesses to the effect that in addition to
their being promised immunity from
prosecution they were promised reten-
ton in their offices in the custom
house. l have never heard before of
such practice as promising to con-
tinue men in the public service after
they have confessed the commission of
crimes in the Office and desire to ex-
press the emphatic disapprobation Of
this court of any such practice.
In my opinion" continued the
judge, lit not only discredits the gov
ernment, but is unjust to the honest
members of the public service in the
same class to compel them to continue
to act in the company of men who
have confessed that they have COM
mitted crimes in the discharge of pub
lie duty
William Loeb, Jr., collector of the
port, who granted immunity to the
three thieves, issued a statement de-
Tending his course on the score that
1t was necessary to keep the three lar
cenists on his payroll because that was
the only way the whole system of
graft could be uprooted. He said
"There was moral evidence before
me that wholesale system of graft
and corruption had been in existence
for years, by which certain merchants
entered goods on false invoices, ac-
cepted as correct, thus Swindling the
government out of large amounts of
duties. Unfortunately moral evidence
is not always legal evidence.
when the frauds We're discovered
all the guilty parties agreed among
one another to stand tight If they
orally the weigher could cook up a
statement about his tools being out
of order, his work being too rushed
for him to give it proper attention, the
cases being in bad condition and all
sorts Of lies calculated to throw dust
in the eyes Of the jury. The importer
; would make his testimony tit into this,
saving that the goods were CONSIGNED,
that he never examined the invoices,
etc. The government was getting no
where in its prosecutions, and the ras-
Gals were chuckling together over its
helplessness.
Under these conditions it was deem
ed imperative to break into this COM
bination to get the truth from some
body on the inside who knew; to get
; in an entering wedge and break down
this system.
Judge Holt says that while it might
have been proper to grant immunity
, 1t was discreditable to the government
to retain these men in the service
The answer is that without that their
, testimony could not have been secur'
ed. The weighers knew perfectly well
, that If they were discharged from the
: service and then testified In court tc
taking bribes it would be practically
impossible for them to secure employ
!. ment elsewhere, and they and thei
families might starve.
1T was not a question of choice
between having all honest men In the