The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-02-11
EMPLOY ALIENS
TO CENSOR MAIL
Britten and Others Say
Work in New York Is In
Hands of Incompetent
THEFTS ALLEGED
TO HAVE OCCURRED
Illinois Congressman Repeats Story of
German Spy Evidence Being Stolen
Takes Seven Weeks to Get Letter
from u. S. to France

WASHINGTON, Feb ll-Represent-
alive Fred Britten of Illinois reiterat-
ed today before the huose committee
on expenditures in the. post Office dc
partment, investigating mail censorship
i'll New York, that there were aliens
among the government employees and
that evidence of the German spy system
had been stolen from the New York
postoffice. lie maintained his original
position despite official denials and as
serted that he based his statement up
on information given to him by James
V. Foster, former employee of the
committee on public information
Mr.. Britten testified that a great deal
of the censorship in New York city
was conducted by aliens, that there was
an appalling lack of system, and that
of the $50 employees engaged in this
work only 30 were experts in han
ding mail. Because of the lack of sys-
tenn and the employment of aliens, the
safety of registered mail, he declared.
was constantly endangered The con
fusion, said Mr. Britten, was increas-
ing rather than giving way to a sys.
tenn.
tThese facts were all given me by
James V Foster, who was formerly
connected with the New York office. :
said Mr.. Brittcn He was EMPLOYED
by the committee on public iuforma.
l finn hut -,
| Mr.. Foster is prepared to testify under
oath of the theft of evidence of the
| German spy system, and also to present
sworn atfidavitS of others to the same
| effect -
Criticism of the system at Chelsea,
| the New York terminal, where mail for
| the soldiers in France is handled, was
expressed by Gilbert L. Hyatt. lie
| testified that the employees were nearly
| all unframed, and that ''Conev Island
roughnecks were employed on i'm
portant work for which they were not
qualified, These men, he said, did not
I have any responsibility, and appeared
| to have no desire to expedite the trans
portation of mails to France.
:" There is understandable confusion
there, no preparation and no apparent
means being taken by the government
to remedy the condition, Mr. HYATT
| asserted
+. J. Ryan testified along the same
| line. He read a letter received by him
from railway mail clerk on duty in
France, III which the writer said he
| had never seen anything like it, ana
| II IS no wonder that the boys over there
| wonder what is the matter with their
friends at home. Mr.. Ryan said that
Christmas mail had been DELAYED 50
long in the Chelsea terminal that it did
not leave there until Jan Is.
Representative John J. Rogers of
| Massachusetts,, who recently returned
| from France, told the committee that
| the average time in getting a letter from
| the United States to France was seven
weeks He said that great deal of the
| inetficiency was due to the military
authorities in Europe, although he in
sisted that there were objectionable
delays IN transmission on this side.
| representative HuddleSton of Ala
bama said that the war department
had sent an order to commanding of
nicer dated Sept. %, ordering the dis
charge OF private named Gallagher
| The man had enlisted when under /
years Of age without the permission of
his parents. The orders were received
IN France on Nov. 6, by which time
Gallagher had been sent into the first
| llne trenches. Soon after going there
he was captured and is now German
| prisoner
/ The only redeeming feature of this
condition is that no favor is shown 10
officers of high rank continued the
witness, who told of visit to the CheI
sea terminal, where mail was piled so
! high that shovels had to be used TO
clear passageway.
One of the witnesses testified that