Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-11-19
VALLEY Of VIRGINIA
Family of Accused Mail Clerk
Claims Persecution.
SAY HOUSE WAS SEARCHED
Supposed Effort to Find the Missing
$4,000 Package.
ANCIENT MASONIC EMBLEMS
Made in England Two Hundred
Years Ago and Presented to
Winchester Lodge.
ANCIENT MASONIC EMBLEMS
ecsl Correspondence Of The Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Star
WINCHESTER. Va, November Is, 1911.
Ever since George f. Huffman, the rail-
way mail clerk Of Penn Laird Rocking
ham county. was arrested recently by
post office inspectors and charged with
the theft Of a package containing $4,000.
which was being sent from a small West
Virginia town to a Philadelphia bank, tile
home OF his father. Gerard L. Huffman.
has been watched by detectives, and a
few days ago about half a dozen secret
service men went to the house and made
an investigation, hoping, 1t Is said, to
find the money
In this they were unsuccessful, and
Huffman's father and mother, as we'll as
his young wife and all other members of
the family. declare they are being perse-
cuted. All of Huffman's relatives and
friends believe he is innocent of the crime.
1t developed day or two ago that Huff
man was really arrested at his home and
taken to Washington by the detectives,
ana thence to Lynchburg. where he re-
mains In JAIL while his father Is endeav-
oring to furnish the bond OF $4,000 re-
quired before he can be released.
Rigid Food Inspection.
The Winchester common council took
steps this week to have a rigid inspection
made Of all meat. milk and their products
offered for sale in this city, and two ex-
pert inspectors are to be appointed for
the purpose. All dairy cows are to be
subjected to the tuberculin test, and no
animals intended for the local marke;
can be killed until examined by the in
spectors, who are also charged with the
duty of inspecting the meat after such
animals have been slaughtered. An agent
OF the state department Of agriculture
and imn grafton was here recently and
summarily closed all slaughter houses,
since which new ones have been erected
by the butchers
A large automobile belonging to Charles
Muliikfn of Clarke county, Va. secretary
of the National Capital horse show, which
was being tested in a local garage this
week, caught fire, and when some one
mentioned that there were twelve gallons
OF gasoline in the tank there was, a quick
getaway on the part of all except a few
garage employees, who, after desperate
hight, smothered the flames with sand be-
lore the fire caused an explosion.
Escapes Jail Sentence.
The appeal taken by Henry Neville
Stephenson Of Winchester from the deci-
sion Of Hagerstown magistrate who
sentenced him to thirty days in Jail for
driving his automobile recklessly and run
ming over a Hagerstown man recently
has been withdrawn by Stephenson and
the Jail sentence changed to fine Of 500
and costs, which was paid. Frank +.
Smith. the man who was run down, COM
promised with Stephenson for $1oO
Henry Franks Of Frederick county, who
was. recently convicted here of attempting
to have cashed check he is said to have
forged, was taken to Fauquier county this
week and put to work on the public roads
as a member of the convict road gang.
Franks, who was member of Company
l. ID Virginia Regiment, of Winchester,
at the time Of his conviction, has been
dishonorably discharged from the military
service.
Masonic emblems In the form Of two
columns. surmOunted with globes, which
were presented this week to Winchester
Hiram Lodge, No. Fl. A. F. and A. NJ, by
Its chaplain, Rev. DR.. John p. Hyde. who
had received them from Al Davis, an
English Mason, who is now living in Bos-
ton. The columns were placed In the ban
quet hall of the local Masonic Temple
Hard to Keep a Mayor.
The thriving town of Strasburg. shen-
andoah county, has more trouble keeping
the office Of mayor occupied than all
other municipal problems combined. Z.
NJ. Borum. who has been mayor less than
a year, has resigned, as did his predeces-
sor, G.. W. Bushong. who was in Office
less than a year. The Office pays $25 a
year. and the mayor is also required to
sit as a magistrate and try small criminal
cases.
Mrs. Harry st. George Tucker of Wash
ington and Lexington has presented to
the Jackson Memorial Hospital. which is
owned by the Mary Custis Lee Chapter.
Daughters Of the, Confederacy, large
house on the corner of Washington and
Randolph streets, known as the Dawson
property, in Lexington. Mrs. Tucker
purchased the house for the purpose of
presenting 1t to the hospital as an annex.
John l.. Nicodemus, the most extensive
apple grower Of Frederick county. whose
crop this year was about 1850 barrels,
has completed a private cold storage
plant at a cost of $4,000. and will market
his own fruit. Mr.. Nicodemus has been
experimenting in this way for several
years. and he claims he gets much better
results than by selling to buyers, who IN
turn sell to others He ships many OF
his apples direct to Europe and runs lit
tie risk. Other large growers in this
section have adopted Mr.. Nicodemus'