The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1913-01-24
Sold Below Par Value.

whose operations were Investigated. 1t
was learned that stamps Of all classes
and denominations stolen by burglars
from postoffices and embezzled by en-
ployes from great business houses and
manufacturing establishments were
purchased and resold by the brokers
at prices far below their par value.
The postal laws make It a crime
punishable by imprisonment to sell any
stamp issued by the government for
less than its face value. Investiga-
tions disclosed the fact that. in ad-
dition to selling the stamps for less
than a price they could have been
purchased for from the government,
the brokers kne,. that the stamps
were stolen when they purchased
them. Inquiries showed that brokers,
spiracy with employees of business
houses to buy at prices agreed upon
all the stamps the clerks could steal
from their employers.
Several Indictments.
The first Of a series OF indictments
resulting from the Investigations was
yesterday. The men indicted were
Richard Fredericks. Irving "Ixzy" Sc
vel and John Frank. District Attorney
Whitman has informed the postoffice
department. that other indictments
will follow. =
stamp frauds against tho govern
ment and various business concerns
eggregattng hundreds Of thou1ands OF
dollars ANNUALLY have been unearthed
IN New YORK city alone. while illegal
|tramcking IN stamps IN Boston. Phil
adelphia. Baltimore. Pittsburg. Chi
cago. indianapolis. st. Louis, Minne-
|apolis. Cincinnati. New Orleans. Kan
sas City. Denver. San Francisco. Seat
tile; Portland, Ore. and many other
cities has reached large proportions.
In New York approximately twenty
.so-called brokers make business Of
purchasing postage stamps at a dis
count ranging from fifty cents to nine
.ty cents on dollar and selling them
ito merchants ct prices varying from
intnety-ive cents to ninety-nine cents
on . dollar. The stamps. 1t is said.
are obtained largely from ONCE boys
and confidential employees who en-
bessie them from their employers.
Purchase From State Employees.
One stamp broker In New York city
|of stamps a day to merchants. It is
alleged. has been purchasing some Of
his supply from an employee of the
New York state government at Albany.
The employee confessed to postofi1ce
inspectors that he remitted to these
stamp brokers from S25 to $50 q week
i'm stamps stolen from the state. An
official Of q foreign alliance association
with headquarters at Chicago. con-
fessed that for long time he had
been stealing stamps from the asso.
An employee Of large automobile
concern at Indianapolis admitted that
he had been hlching stamps from his
employers and disposing Of them to
brokers who knew that they were
stolen.
Once Boys Help Brokers'
One broker advertised by means of
q sign carried through the New York
financial district during the noon hour
that he purchased printed uncancelled
postcards. This resulted. It IL said. in
many Office boys stealing cards from
their employers and selling them to
him for IS cents hundred. The
printed portion Of the cards then was
covered by the broker with
a piece Of thin paper and the Ca ds
resold. The culpable broker. accord.
ing to his admission to the inspectors.
sold during the last two years more
than two million postal cards. many
of which were stolen by Office boys.
The department redeems postal
cards from original purchasers at rs
per cent Of their face value. A few
weeks ago a member of congress and
. former deputy commissioner of po-
lice Of New York city requested the
third assistant postmaster general to
redeem over a million cards for con.
stituent Of the congressman. Inquiry
by inspectors developed the fact that
the cards were the property of a stamp
broker. whose business is declared by
the department officials to be clearly