The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-05-20
For Cheating the Government
According to One Witness,
DEFENSE SURPRISED
BY the Production of a New Wit.
ness in Heike Case.
He Is a Former Employe of the
Trust.

New York, May 20-Further import
ant revelations by government witness
es were looked for today with the re-
sumption of the trial of Charles r.
He1ke, secretary of the American Sugar
Rehnng company on a sugar under
weighing conspiracy charge, following
yesterdays sensational developments.
which amazed everybody by the new
features of the alleged widespread
cheating conspiracy laid bare.
Federal Prosecutor Stinson declared
before Heike's trial started early this
week that important new evidence was
IN hand. He made good his promise
by springing a hitherto unheard of wit
ness who had been living Quietly In
Jeffersonville, N. Y, during the former
trials of alleged sugar conspirators.
This man, Frederick Schwerdtfeger,
seemed to make all the greater impress
sion by his testimony from the fact
that he was drawn, so to speak. from
the ranks Of the enemy. He was for
merry sugar company elnploye and
claimed to speak with inside know
ledge.
Counsel for the defendants who in
clude, beside Heike, five former en-
DloyeS OF the company were visibly tax
en- aback by Schwerdtfeger's testimony
as he related how each of several weigh
ers he named had been supplied with
steel wire to be used as a spring for
retarding the action of the scales and
bringing about underweights through
which the government was defrauded
out of millions of dollars in duties
Schwertfeger testified also that even
before the wire spring was used to IA
cilitate fraudulent Weighing a cloth bag
with pieces of lead inside had been en-
ployed about the scales for a similar
purpose. The wire spring superseded it
Gfa Ir1of
ed up and the place where the weight
was formerly hung was put out of
handy reach. The government contend
ed that a written statement made by
Schwerdtfeger in which he stated that
he was not aware of the existence of
! any cheating devices was in part q
forgery, the exoneration having been
inserted in a space between his sigma
| ture and the simple statement that he
vas formerly sugar company em-
EIloye, that he signed.
The government demonstrated in the
court room how the action OF the steel
wire caused underweights to be regis
tered.
An Important New Witness.
An important new witness today
proved to be Henry H. Falkenstein.
now a hotel detective, but who said he
was a tallyman or checker on the sugar
docks when Oliver Splitter, who is serv-
ing a term in the Atlanta peniteutiary
for underweighing frauds, was dock
superintendent and Harry Walker, ona
of the defendants at this trial, was
SpitZer'S assistant. F'alkenstein said he
assigned the checkers and weighers un-
der the direction of Splitter and walker
After establishing his witnesses
knowledge of the conditions on the
dock, Prosecutor Stimson led Falken-
stein along to the day of the raid made
by Richard Parr, a government in
spector, on the docks in November.
1907. when the false springs and other
fraudulent devices <-ttached to the
scales are alleged to have been dfscov-
cred. Falkenstein said he was there
that day and saw what went on. He
connected Jean Voelker and James F.
HaIigan, jr., two of the defendants,
with the proceedings. They were
working as checkers. he said. and he
also identified their entries Of weights
on a day in the proceeding in April,
when the government contends a sugar
cargo was underweighed.
FaTkenstein said copies of the rec
ords of weights taken on the docks were
sent to Mr.. Benedict in charge of the
main office In Wall street and to Cash
| Ter BendnageFs office. The last copy
went to the office of Ernest Gerbracht,
| the refinery superintendent, BendnagePs
and Gerbracht are defendants in this
| trial.
| Falkenstein's testimony gave the first
indication Of the apparent course to be
| taken by the government in trying to
| show the inner workings of the alleged
| frauds through the refinery office to
| the main offices in Wall street of the
/ so-called sugar trust.
| F'alkenstein testified he was directed
by Walker, in Spitzer's absence to pay
! full time to men checking the govern
ment weighers, when they worked or
were away because of illness or other
reason. The city weighers, checkers,
he said, were docked for whatever time
| they lost.
Falkenstein's testimony was not
| shaken on cross examination.