Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1888-08-24
NAIL ROBBERS CAUGHT
Over a Million Dollars in Securities
Found in the Poss ,ssiou. of
Chicago Thieves.
The Railroad Millionaire of the Pacific
Coast Passes Away at
Monterey.
Amelie Rives' Tragedy-Author Of the
s<Quick or the Dead'' Ven.
lures Deeper.
[Chicago special dispatch:l


Two Of the most important arrests made I'm
Chicago in long time were those of Fred Ober-
kampf and Thomas F. Mack. The former is an
unmarried man, aged about go He ia we'll
educated, speaking several languages, and
DIR esses we'll He represented himself to bet he
assistant superintendent Of an insurance COM
pany to the lady where he rcomed. Running
behind on his rent, he gave his landlady q forged
check, which was the direct Gauss OF his arrest
and the examination of his effects. His two
grips" were found to contain a large amount Of
letters, packages, etc., evidently stolen from
the mails, us the stamps had all been torn of
and there were no postmarks. Several letters
one for 81, 900 and one for $3.50 At first the
prisoner denied everything, but finally
conhded to an officer the identity of his part
ner, who gives the name OF Thomas F. Mack
The latter was arrested when about starting on,
fishing launt with his wife and another lady
Mack submitted quietly, and accompanied the
bundle of papers, These papers proved to be
checks, insurance policies trust Deeds title
deeds, etc.. The prisoner declared that he knew
nothing about them and that he waR only TAX
ing care of them for Oberkampf He admitted,
finally that Oberkanpf had a key with which
he opened the postal boxes on the Streets and
also that he had shared with him the money OBJ.
tanned on the forged check.
Oberkampf has admitted having robbed the
Chicago mail boxes, and says he has only kept q
few of the letters and securities-that he was in
the habit of destroying them. The property in
checks, drafts, deeds, stock, etc., recovered,
represents about 81 900 O0O the checks and drafts
alone amounting to over 100000
Below are given the names OF some of the
makers of the checks recovered by the officers,
together with the amounts:
Leopold Mayer & Son. S., 600; Merchants L. &c
!; Co. Bank, 50, 600; Hollis & Duncan, S56. 10;
National Bank, S7s4.1S; Chicago First NATIONAL
Bank, S1,5O0; Chicago First National Bank
$4,000; State Savings Association $3.50. IA First
National Bank, 500; First National, $780, Let
ters OF credit on the Union Bank Of London e450 =
F. G. Jungbert, S5O5; Wagner Palace Car Co.,
S547.s6; Otis s. Favor, 3d. 4s1 ST Merchants Loan
and Trust Co., $40, 600; Ellinger Sons S1,95655 !;
Marshall & Illsley, Ss,465. 3d. First National
Bank, Chicago $50; First National Benk, Chi
cago, 1927; Union Trust Co. s437.96; Park Ma
tional Bank, $500; s. D. Kimbnrk, $1,000.
Postmaster Judd says the public will observe
that these letters never reached the Chicago
Office at all-never came into the Postmaster'a,
letters recovered there is no means of telling
how many thousand more these fellows have
destroyed"
Both were held in $500. and being unable to
secure ball were renanded to Jail
About Mack's career nothing is yet known.
but Oberka1npf belongs to a good family in
Berlin, Germany. He has been in this country
| nearly three years and has never worked a day
the mails, using the money he forl,d in the
letters and selling the postage-stamps. The
| stamps which he soaked off the envelopes he re-
mucilaged and sold at prominent drug store.
securities which the authorit. es have not ex-
anained and which will make the total amount
OF the robbery much greater. All the property
| is now in possession OF the Government and
| cannot be returned to the rightful owners until
after the trial of the prisoners.
| number Of letters found by the officers were
mailed in 1886, showing that the thefts had been
| going on TOR about two years.