The Detroit times., 1910-09-05
Nv N. wEtoENTHAL.


Bv M. WEpENTHAL. ~ @
cHICAGo. Sept. s.-Graft I'm low
~ and graft in high places-a
~ sraft-ridden city, from ward pol
6ans and jury fixers to high rail-
"a oficials--Chicago.
n1hibit-The s1.500.o00 Illinois
6tral railroad scandal. Just a SAM
~ of course. but sizable and worth
rsldering.
B1lree big railroad men are about
~ tried. The trail OF golden slime
h<hes beyond those present among
10 the dead and the fed.
he dead, Millionaire Ira G. Rawn,
40 president Of tile Monon. found
1oferiously shot In his own home.
Ihe fied--"Big Dan" Coughlin, OF
eonln case notoriety, an alleged jury
LIN fugitive from justice.
The men under arrest are Frank ID.
Xnrriman, former general manager or
- Illinois Central; John NJ. Taylor.
6rmer general storekeeper, and Chas.
~ Ewing, former general superintend-
& All three deny the charges. When
NY were arrested no ordinary patrol
|n4on backed up at the front door;
ut = big red touring car with few
o1lto and obsequious deputies.
Maximum penalty on the conspiracy
Ire is five years in stripes and q
1000 fine; on obtaining money BY
oans Of confidence game. ten years
meditate.
The confession of an official OF the
luo Island Car Repair & Equipment
brought on the deluge. 1t Is
.axGed that the Illinois Central mas
oon systematically mulcted OF many
ndteds of thousands OF dollars In
no repair bills, exorbitant prices and
ntorials actually stolen.
Thb railroad company even paid
1oors and roofs for coal cars
kioh have neither roof nor doors! :.
Numerous rich melons were cut
onx the stockholders In addition TO
x 6ividends, to prevent the outward
nnSrance Of too much prosperity In
= iopair business.
+ ~ q. Rawn was president of the
oofn and vice-president OF the Ill
1n Central. He was millionaire
<or many years the leading spirit
r61lroad movements to defeat leg
Nm favorable to the laboring man.
kaa chairman OF the. association
&a1k fought the employers liability
<< and he was a most effective
NV OF all legislation which would
nri6ye the condition of the worker.
~ ESpt M q magnificent home at
1mnnffn- aummer colony of the Chi
nrn mtllionaires, where his daughters
Sroeamoux the social leaders When
6 urobe had sunk deep In the sus-
&&cfSd graft cases, his family sum-
onod the police one day. Two hours
ofors Rawn had met his death In a
<ueI with burglars. they said. The
ntnl bullet came from his own re-
|16lyer. The coroners jury returned
~ open causes unknown" verdict.
kut the general impression is that It
won suicide.
After Rawn's death hurry Nelson,
Httorney for the Illinois, found that
ne road gave contracts for car repairs
~ means of fictitious accounts multi
|Dlied. ten times. Asked about Rawn,
Ne said:
"Rawn has nothing to do with the
prosecution; he Is dead, that's all.
have my own opinion about Rawn. but
N don't believe his name will be even
mentioned at the trial" s'
An interesting sidelight on these
graft In high life prosecutions Is the
xhoSt of Big Dan Coughlin. now sup
posed TO be q fugitive In Central
America. Years ago, the Illinois Gen.
trail defeated all litigants who were
! injured by the railroad, and investiga-
(. ton showed that gang OF profes-
1ional jury fixers, with Dan Coughlin
II the head, had been at work. When
things began TO warm up Coughlin
disappeared. The general supposition
4 q that the railroad company put Mrs.
& Couahlin on the pay roll at SIS n
month. She still lives I'm Chicago on
\ South Scoville-ave.
At that time the jury commission
{ erB nut the names OF ward heelers In
< the Jury box and the signal agreed
\ mon. SO II was generally reported
then, was for the juryman who was
the gang to wear two pins
crosfed on the lapel Of his coat
Coughlin has a crippled child living
IA Chicago, and he Is so anxious II
zee the child that he may decide II
come TO Chicago from Honduras anC
make important jury bribing revela
tiOns. should immunity be granted
& him. But this rumor cannot be traced
10 sources that are reliable. 1t 1.
claimed that Coughlin's escape was
made possible by the bribery OF M
less than % persons.
& And so the great railroad which
had led the pace In Jury fixing ant
(. lobbying against just legislation has
1nally discovered a hornets mes