Show Crooked Mall Contracts WASHINGTON May 22The postofflcc au lorities today began the hearing in the mal contract cases of W H Smith G W Underwood J Q Pigg and L E Chappell of Windsor Mo The respondents are the successful bidders for about five hundred and thirty mail route contracts the execution execu-tion of whirh on the part of the department depart-ment was recently suspended bv Second Assistant PostmasterGeneral Whit3eld upon what he regarded a evidence of irregularities nilarities in the execution of the contracts and accolpan ing indemnity bonds on the I part of the respondents A large number of contracts and bonds were not signet either by the actual principals or their sureties but one of tho pates in nterest signing for all The respondents through their counsel admitted that many of the contracts were not signed by them in their own proper persons but in all cases were signed by persons holding the proper powers of attorney at-torney to sign In their stead They expressed ex-pressed a perfect willingness t execute new contracts and new bonds in any required re-quired case and stoutly maintained their perfect innocence of any attempted wrong The case was continued until tomorrow |