New-York tribune., 1918-06-20
Four Indicted for Trying
to Collect Twice on
$4,000 Bill
Duplicate Payment
Returned by Firms
Scheme to Defraud Gov
eminent Revealed by Un-
identified Soldier

WASHINGTON, June 19.--Employes
of the War and Navy departm ents to-
day were drawn into the net set by the
Department of Justice for war contract
brokers through indictments returned
by Federal grand jury here charging
four men with trying to collect on a
duplicate bill for s1s7 900 submitted by
drydock company for repairs to a
govern,n ert vessel. The case does not
involve contingent fee profiteers. but
grew out of the investigation into their
practices.
The four indicted are Clyde G. Walt
man, a yeoman in the Navy Depart
ment's bureau of supplies and accounts;
Charles E. Waltman, his brother, a bust
ness man Of Victoria, Va; Benjamin w.
Peake, soldier stationed at Fort
Meigs, WASH, formerly Of Berea. N. c..
and D. Malvin Mowery, a stenographer
employed in the Signal Corps Office, fog
,nerly Of Lancaster, Penn.
Plan Successfully Tested
Clyde C. Waltman and Mowery, who
are roommates in Washington, are al
legged to have conceived scheme for
getting the Navy Department to pay
the same bill twice and to collect one
Of the payments through a confederate
in the Offices of the company rendering
the bill. They successfully tested the
plan twice, it is charged, but did not
try to actually collect the money, and
the firms returned the duplicate pay
ment to the government.
Finally, with free access to Navy De-
partment files, they were said to have
obtained bill for $4,000 rendered
April % by the Morse Dry Dock and
Repair Company, of New York, for re-
pairs to the government vessel Canaan
daigua between March l and March Is
this year. After the bill was alleged to
have been taken from the files the com
pany was told it was lost and was
asked to submit a duplicate, which was
paid Before the men presented the
original bill for payment they were ar
rested.
Soldier Informs Government
The scheme failed it is said, be-
%HooC IhC iAiCH u iSO LII iOuSu cant W
get in touch with confederate in the
Offices of the Dry Dock Company, and
an unnamed soldier. who heard Of the
plot informed the government. Charles
Z. Wa.tman became involved through
some correspondence with his brother
on the subject. All four men have
been arrested and released on bail.
The significance of the disclosure,
officials explained, lies in the sus-
picion tnat similar attempts to defraud
the government may have been planned
by others, who are expected to take
warning from the detection of this al
legged conspiracy.
Definite proof of specific payments
to contingent fee agents was gathered
to-day by Assistant Attorney General
Huston Thompson from records seized
by secret agents in the raids Monday
on these agencies headquarters in
Washington.
Close scrutiny Of all shipbuilding
contracts has been under way at the
shipbuildirg board for two months, un-
der the direction Of Miles Dawson. q
lawyer, of New York, who was asso-
clated with Charles E. Hughes in the
insurance investigation. Commission
agents undertook to negotiate some
contracts for shipyards, officials said,
and general overhauling of the de-
Tails of all contracts was decided upon
20 make certain that they complied
with the law