The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, May 26, 1902, Page 1

VOLUME XCI-NO. 177. STATE RECORDS PRESENT PROOF THAT WARDEN M. G. AGUIRRE PURCHASED FEMALE APPAREL SAN FRANCISCO, MONDAY, MAY 26, 1902. WITH PUBLIC PRICE FIVE CENTS, FUNDS AND OBTAINED VAST SUPPLIES OF FOOD BY FORGERY AND FRAUD | 'wW roil, or 100 pounds of butter, during the month. |the bosom friend of Governor Gage, done with 81 dozen eggs and 100 pou |Quentin prison in one month? % | | | { | | Books of S:%lfi Quehtin Prison Show Falsification. URTHER proof of the gross frauds perpetrated by the ring ‘of forgers that is iq of rol of the finances San Quentin- Prison is pre- | orning by The Call. the scandal that has IG and Governor Gage treated dense in- part of the State of a general demand asscs 'that an 1m- orough investigation of i San Quentin Prisori be yard of Prison Directors T of the common- i he foul stain that on it by the punishment of the guilty members of the San Quen- tin ring, no matter what position they Another sample of the work of for- and fraund, hatched by the leading rembers of the corrupt ring and carried out by the aid of convicts, forced by their official guardians to commit crimes, is explained herewith. Again The Cz2ll charges Warden Aguirre and his.intimates with having ~obbed the State and that Gowernor Aguirre as one | Henry T.-Gage and his friends have been the beneficiaries of acts of frauds, | forgery. obtaining.goods by false pre- { tenses, misappropriation of public funds { and malfeasance in office. { In April of last year a verbal order for | goods was given to the firm of Levi | Strauss & Co. by ladies related by mar- riage to Warden Aguirre. The goods were duly forwarded to San Quentin Prison and charged to the penitentiary account Buys Women’s Gowns. | In the list of goods ordered was an item of one dozen ladies’ night gowns. Warden Aguirre is a single man and | ’ garments of feminine wear do not figure | in prison supplies sent to a Warden's | house.. Aguirre certainly did not wear |th<‘ robes de nuit, and the question | ! naturally arises as to the idefitity of the | persons for whom the dainty articles | were destined. Aguirre has frequently entertained Governor Gage and his family, in addi- tion to other friends. Tt would be a sight for the gods if perchance the chief executive ‘of the State retired to rest, while a guest of Aguirre, clad in a charming robe de nuit, trimmed with lace and other {eminine knick-knacks. | to Warden Aguirre’s The bill of goods rendered by Leti Strauss & Co. on April 13 of last year and charged to the Sap/ Quentin Prison account was as follows: $17 59 170 Five dozen napkins, at $3 8.. Two .dozen doylies, at 5 cents One dozen gowns $24 20 This bill was certified to as being cor- rect by Commissary Francis Foley, the purchase of the goods, however, being hidden up in the commissary stock book by the werk of the convict bookkeepers. An item of $2 for binding tape was added to the amount of the bill and en- tered up as a total of $36 20. The articles billed by Levi Strauss & | Co. on April 13, 1901, were entered on the commissary books and charged to the Warden’s house under the heading of “F. and F.,” which means “furnish- ings and fixtures.” The bill for goods, including ladies’ night gowns, was never sent to Sacra- mento to be passed upon by the Board of Examiners or the Comptroller. Prepare Forged Bill. Aguirre knew that these officials would never pass a bill that included “night gowns,” so the brains and pens of convict bookkeepers were utilized in order that the wearing apparel might be paid for by the State. To secure payment with public funds for the night gowns, deliberate forgery was committed by convicts, on the in- structions of their guardians. A forged bill was prepared, certified to as being correct by Warden Aguirre and Commissary Foley. The item for night gowns was changed to one of table cloths and the bogus document vas fpisted upon the Board of Prison ctors, the Board of Examiners and the State Comptroller. With the certification of Aguirre and Foley upon it, the forged bill was duly ordered paid by State officials. When a check was sent to Levi Strauss & Co. in payment for certain accounts, Aguirre sent the bill for goods, includ- ing night gowns, to be receipted for by the firm. The night gowns that were delivered house at San Quentin were paid for with money ob- | tained by forgery and fraud and the records of the prison and at the Comp- troller’s office at Sacramento show the damning proof of felony on the part of Aguirre, the bosom friend of Governor Gage. Steal Food Supplies. The systematic work of forgery and fraud by the San Quentin ring was not confined alone to obtaining articles for kousehold or personal use. Well know- ing that the State allowed him the sum of $100 per month for supplies and subsistence, Warden Aguirre has enter- tained Governor Gage and his friends and regaled them with bounteous feasts of food and liquors. The allowance of $100 per month for the Warden's subsistence has been ex- ceeded twice and three times over. The convict bookkeepers have been instruct- ed to falsify the prison records as to the Warden's subsistence accounts. The excess of his subsistence allowance has been charged to the prisoners’ mess. Time and time again; Warden Aguirre and Governor Gage have dined sumptu- ously at San Quentin and the dainties set ‘before them have been stolen from the State. The cloths on the tables were obtained by forgery and fraud and even the napkins on which they wiped their hands were secured by felony. The rules governing the issue of sup- plies at San Quentin Prison require that the commissary shall issue all articles on receipt of a requisition from various de- partments. These requisitions, when filled out, are sent to the Warden's office. There they are copied by a convict into a book called the “‘day requisition book.” The book is taken to the commissary de- partment and the articles and subsist- ence called for are issued and charged against the various departments. Prison Rules Broken. ‘Warden Aguirre has not followed the rules in the matter of requisitions for his own house. Supplies have been sent from the commissary to Aguirre’s house on verbal orders. The convict book- keepers in the commissary, department have made entries in the day book pur- porting to be a record of foodstuffs con- sumed daily. in Aguirre’s home. Al- though the entries charged against the Warden are far less than the amounts he received, they represent enough sup- plies daily for a large family and in some cases supplies were drawn sufficient to feed the guests of a large hotel. Where the supplies went to might be explained by a search of certain books of expressmen in Marin County. Even if Aguirre had entertained a dozen friends daily, the quantities of supplies drawn by him could not have been used up. The manner in which the convict bookkeepers falsified the records of the GENUINE BILL FOR WOMEN’S APPAREL AND FORGED DOCUMENT FOISTED BY AGUIRRE ON THE STATE. | IN FURTHER PROOF OF CHARGES URTHER proof is presented to-day by The Call to show that Warden Martin G. Aguirre of San Quentin prison certified to forged bills of accounts, prepared by convicts and foisted by the Warden and his associates upon the Board of Prison Directors, the Board of Examiners and the State Comptroller, thereby obtaining goods by fraud and other felonious acts. The records at San Quentin prison have been falsified by convicts in order to cover up stealing of State supplics of foodstuffs by Warden Aguirre, which have been enjoyed by Governor Henry T. Gage and other bosom friends of the Warden. As a sample of the vasi-amount of foodstuffs drawn by Aguirre from the commissary department of San Quentin prison, The Call publishes to-day a list of supplies drawn by Aguirre in March last and the cash values of the same. The items and figures were copied last week from the prison records. The docu- ments at San Quentin show on their face notations to charge the bulk of the supplies to other accounts. — ARDEN AGUIRRE in March last drew 81 dozen eggs from the State supplies and 50 rolls of butter, averaging two pounds to a Aguirre is a single man and his household is very small. nds of butter drawn from the State supplies at San What has Aguirre, was discovered by an investigation by representatives of The Call. The entries on the day requisition book are first tabulated in pencil by the convicts on s ;reg.:‘on sheets and the amounts carried out. These sheets show the amount of food supplies drawn by each department. Acting on in- structions, the convict bookkeepers. in copying the segregation sheets in ink, reduced the total charged against the Warden's house and increased other ac- counts. Books Are Falsified. A sample of this work was discovered by Call representatives last week in ex- amining the records for March of this year. The rough segregation sheets and the commissary’s 'monthly state- ment book showed that Aguirre had drawn food supplies in March amount- ing to $307 13. The segregation sheets and the statement book disclosed that the prison mess was charged with food supplies amounting to $3352 24. On the segregation sheet for the Warden's supplies, the following nota- tion was written in by a convict book- keeper: : “Charge $200 to prison mess and credit Warden's house.” On the segregation sheet for the prison mess the following notation ap- peared: “Add $200 from W. H." The initials “W. H.” represent “War- den's house.” When this evidence of fraud was pointed ou to Commissary Foley and his convict assistants, they hastened to explain that the whole matter was “an error.” For committing such “errors” there are dozen of felons in Sau Quen- tin Prison to-day. Felons Are Alarmed. Less than eighteen hours after this evidence of fraud was discovered by Call representatives, the commissary’s monthly statement was falsified. The jtem for “Warden’s house for subsist- ence” was changed from $307 13 to $107 13, while the “prison mess” ac- count was raised from $3352 34 to $3552 34- Acting Warden J. A. Aguirre denied that any alteration had been made in the entries in the books and said that he knew nothing about the matter. He refused to send for Commissary Foley or any of the convict bookkeepers to explain the falsification of the books. At the very time that Acting Warden J. commissary départme_flt and charged the | A. Aguirre denied that the accounts had averdrawing of supplics by the Warden | been tampered with, the pencil copy of the segregation sheets for March! bear- ing the true amounts, was in his pos- session. ) The books and records relating to San Quentin Prison disclose that War-| den Aguirre, in entertaining Governor Gage and his friends, has drawn an enormous amount of food supplies from the State. What he actually drew and what he certified to is shown by the fol- lowing table of figures: Commis- Aguirre’s sary Report to MONTHS, Ledger. Directors. — 1001 — July .. 225 32 101 47 August . 98 39 | Septemb: 99 88 | October 100 30 November December January . 287 56 100 8 | February . 212 69 100 9% March . L3 m7m Disclosed by Books. The “day requisition book” of the commissary department at San Quentin Prison shows that in the month of| March of.the present year the following | supplies were drawn for the Warden's house, the figures before the various items representing the quantities of pounds, pints or similar amounts: 1st—2 bots. olive oil. 6 Wor. sauce. 6 tollet paper. 4 doz. egge. 10 Ibs, beef, 3rd—1 bot. ammonia. 2 rolls butter. 2 doz eggs. 2 chocalate. 10 el (?) soan. 10 cube sugar. 2 rolis butter, 2 doz. emss. 25 cl. Soap. 4th—10 beef. 20 1ard. 1 doz. sardines. 1 roll butter. 2 doz. egse. 5 ered sugar. Sth—1 roll butter. 5 walnuts. 40 starch. 2 bluing. 6th—10 beef. 2 rolls butter. 2 doz. eggs. I Tth—2 doz. eggs. 2 chocolate. 10 cl. soap. 2 rofls butter, Sth—10 beef. | . - 2 rolls butter. | 4 doz. egss. 3 bottles mushrooms. ! 2 bottles oyster sauce, l 4 manila paper. 6 totlét paper. —— e l® 9th—Ttem is charged of $4 67 for this day (Sunday), when commissary’'s store was closed and there is mo entry om books for that day. 10th—2 rells butter. 6 cans corn. 1 bot. sweet bickles. 1 sack flour. 5 R. B. powders. 2 rolls butter. 10 cl. soap. 12 cakes sapolis, 11th—10 beet. 2 rolls butter. 1 ham. 12th—1 doz. eggs. 1 roll butter 4 packgs matches. 4 manila paper. 10 cube sugar. 32 box applee. 2 box oranges. 1 bunch bananas. 1 lot groceries. 1 box dates, 14 pounds. 13th—10 beet. 1 roll butter. 2 dos. eggs. 1 can lard. 14th—2 rolls butter. 2 doz. egss. 2 bots. olive oil. 5 wainuts. 15th—10 beet. 4 doz. egas. 2 rolls butter. 10 cl. soap. 6 sardines. 2 doz. spoons (F. & £ 3 doz. forks (F. & F.) 17th—1 orange. 1 apole, eating. 2 rolls butter. 1 mam. . 1 side bacom. 4 packs mafches, 8 jelly. 3 8 doz. egsn 1 apples. 1 oranges. 15th—10 beef. 4 doz. egss 1% dos. jelllea. 2 doz. egss. 1 bunch bananas. 3 doz. pt. brushes (F. & P) 19th—2 rolls butter. 1 doz. towels. 2 checolate. 4 man. paper. 5 powdered sugar. € doz. egss. 20th—10 beet. ~ 3 bots. mushrooms. 2 rolls Butter. 10 el soap. 12 sapolio. 1 box clothes pins (F. & F.) 21st—2 rolls butter. . 1 can lard. 2 doz. egss. 12 sapolio. 22nd—2 rolls butter. 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