Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1910-07-28
ROBBED 81 OWN MEN
Illinois Central Railway Probe sares
Astounding Secrets - Company
Charged With New Rolling Stock
When None Was Purchased.

chicago. jay ~ HAT l1lt- l4Iii4o49
Central Railroad Company was made
TO &C. as its own highwayman-fur-
nishing its own pistol, holding the
weapon 10 It's own head and plundering
its own pockets-in connection with
the alleged s1,500.000 fraud in the re-
pair Of freight cars, was disclosed yes
I terday at a hearing before Master IN
Chancery Roswell B. Mason.
A most astounding tale of graf; was
unfolded when Harold A. Sims. form
er travelling car inspector for the rail-
road and later in the employ OF one of
the FIVE car repairing companies that
are charged with the fraud, told in de-
tail how the railroad furnished new
cars to be torn 10 pieces for use in the
building Of one of the repair plants
and the repair OF old cars and then
paid padded bills, not only for the work
done, but also for the materials and
time consumed in dismantling the new
cars. To simplify the robbing of it
self the railroad company induced Sims
10 enter the employ of the alleged rob-
bers
Here are some Of the things, as dis
( closed by the evidence, that the alleg-
ed conspira tors did:
Z b4SlIld4!kitu teNlTdI
cars 70 procure material 10 put in to
the construction OF the plant Of the
Memphis Car Company and then
charged the Illinois Central road for
repairing the disnantled cars.
Took many parts from Illinois Cen
trail cars that were in good repair and
used the parts 70 repair cars that We're
! in bad order. charging the railroad
company for the stolen parts.
Repaired good order cars from which
/ parts were stolen to repair bad order
cars, charging the company with the
material used in both and for the labor
of robbing the cars as we'll as repair
ing them.
Secured materials from the Illinois
Central Company's shops at Memphis
with which to make repairs and then
charged the Illinois Central for the
material!
Had much Of the wood work neces-
/ sary in the repair of cars done in the
shops of the Illinois Central at Mem
/ piis and then charged the Illinois
/ Central for doing the work for itself
Charged for repairing one-half the
brakes that came in, irrespective of
whether or not any brakes were re-
paired
Padded the bills for labor approxi-
mately 40 per cent.
/ Made uniform charge for fourteen
( gallons OF paint to a car. irrespective
! Of whether any paint was used and re-
garcless of the fact that fiat car re-
quires only from two to three gallons
Sims, ii appears, was the man who
i had charge OF the repair yards of the
Memphis Car Company, which was the
/
| c. Osterrnann with the alleged view to
! defrauding the Illinois Central. When
the investigation begain Sims had
p, quarreled with the manager of the car
! company and was living in Kansas
! City. where detectives found him and
| induced him to agree to turn states
evidence. The story as detailed by
! Sims disclosed such raw" method
| of grating that it was declared to be
/ little short Of marvellous that the con-
| spiracy ran so long as 1t did without
being discovered
Makes Robbery Easy.
The testimony, which is being taken
| in the case begun by the railroad COM
pany to recover 100000 excess paid
to the Memphis Car Company, dis
closed the fact that J. NJ. Taylor, for
mer general storekeeper Of the Illinois
Central, and J. E. Buker, formerly as
sistant superintendent Of machinery
induced Sims to take leave of abb
sence from the railroad and enter tbs
employ of Osterruann. The Illinoi:
Central officials did not tell Sims VIII,
he was to work for Ostermann, bu
subsequent events showed that the!
had chosen their man wisely, for Sim
did everything Ostermann instructed
him to do to make 1t easy to rob tn
railroad company.