Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-02-20
CITED FOR REBAT|NG KEPT LONG SILENCE
Two Theatrical Firms and Mr.. Wright Knew of Alleged
Three Railroads Indicted Irregularities in 1909.
FOUR INDIVIDUALS NAMED MADE REPORT MONTH AGO
Advertising Exchange Appears Before Moss Committee
Fares Alleged. the Everglades Case.
HEAVY PENALTIES PROVIDED WOULD NOT ACCUSE SUPERIOR
of
Two Theatrical Firms and
Three Railroads Indicted.
FOUR INDIVIDUALS NAMED
Advertising Payment in Exchange
for Fares Alleged.
HEAVY PENALTIES PROVIDED
System to Evade Law Discovered
After More Than Year Of In
quiry by I. c. C.

CHICAGO. February 2.-Four indlct-
ments for alleged rebating were returned
today by the federal grand jury the de-
PENDANTS being three railroad companies,
| two theatrical concerns and four individ-
uals. Excessive payments for "advertis-
ing in return for the purchase of rail-
road tickets is declared to be the medium
by which the alleged rebating was ac-
complished.
Discovery of the supposed system to
evade the law was made by the division
of inquiry of the interstate commerce
commission.
Those indicted are:
Harry J. Rhein, general passenger
agent of the Cleveland. Cincinnati, Chi
cago and St. Louis railroad, named in
two indictments; William Underwood, as.
sistant general passenger agent of the
Michigan Central railroad, named in one
indictment: Rudolph X. Hynicka Of Gin
clnnati. director of the Columbia The
atrlcal Amusement Company, named In
three indictments; James +. Tennessee,
or CINCINNATI, director and secretary OF
the Empire Circuit Company, named in
one indictment; the Columbia Theatrical
amusement Company of New York
named in three indictments; the Cleve-
iand, Cincinnati. Chicago and st. Louis
Railway Company. named in two indict-
ments; the Lake Shore and Michigan
southern railway, named in one indict-
| ment; the Michigan Central Railroad
Company, named in one Indictment; the
Heuck Opera House Company of Cincin.
hatl, named in one indictment.
Heavy Penalties Provided.
The federal act. which is alleged to
nave been violated. provides a penalty
or fine of not more than $4,000 for a
corporation and a fine of not more than
$4,000, or Imprisonment of not more
| than two years. or both, for a person
guilty of such violation.
inquiry into the case has been in
progress for more than a year. Large
sums OF money are said to have been
| involved in the alleged rebating. 1t is
asserted that during the theatrical sea
son of 1e09-1O Hynicka was paid
1929 by the roads and during 1901
vestigators allege Fenpessey received
1864. He is not accused Of being a
party to the alleged reba ting during
1901. The manner in which the re-
Dates are said to have been granted is
alleged in the indictments as follows.
In the summer of 1909 the officials OF
the Vanderbilt lines operating west OF
buralo and east of the Mississippi river
sought the business of the Columbia
Iheatr1cal Amusement Company and OF
quarters of the company which were in
New York city. The corporations operate
burlesque theaters east of the Mississippi
river, and. together. control about sew
enty-five theatrical companies averaging
thirty people each. -.
These companies are transported each
week, and the aggregate of their passen-
ger fares is large.
officials of the Vanderbilt lines. it is
charged, conferred with Hynicka. who is
director q
with Fennessey, who is: secretary of the
Empire Circuit Company, at their Gin
c1nnatl offices, with view to getting this
passenger business. The lawful rate was
two cents a mile for theatrical companies.
Percentage of Fares Refunded.
After several conferences it was agreed.
according to the charges. that the Van
derbilt lines would refund to Hynicka
and Fennessy for their respective corpora
tons % per cent of the lawful fares of
their various companies in considera ton
for their influence in giving to the rail-
roads the business. 1t is charged further
that Hynicka thereupon organized the
Cincinnati Railroad Program Advertising
Company and contracted for space in
theater programs in Cleveland, Toledo,
Cincinnati, indianapolis. ST. Louis and
other cities This space it is alleged,
was used by Hynicka to display an adj
vertisement Of the Vanderbilt lines, for
which he paid the publishers regular
price-ranging from 81 to 81 a week
and received from the railroads % per
cent Of the fare of the theatrical COM
pany transported that week to tine city
where the advertisement was published.
In some instances the railroads in
serted on their own account advertise
ments in the theater programs for
which they paid as low as So a week,
it is charged.
1t is asserted by the commission that
similar irregularities appeared in the
payments by the roads to Fennessey,
who is alleged to have collected the
amounts for the Empire Circuit Com
pany. The rebating device was pre-
cisely the same in both cases. it is
charged. except that Fennessey fire.
quently received free an allotted space
in theater program which he used
to advertise one or more of the rail
roads. receiving therefor the % per
cent refund on the transportation
charges against his companies