The morning call., 1893-12-08
SHE WAS IN DEEP TROUBLE.
Exposure and Disgrace Were
Then Inevitable.
MORE OF THE poTRERo FRAUDS.
The BensIey Case Closes After a
Series of Startling Develop.
mentS i'm Court.

Inc celeDrateQ BenS'ey case was con-
Guided yesterday in the United States Dis
trict Court before Judge Morrow. Toward
the close ii transpired that Mrs. Bensley
turned to spiritualist mediums for advice
and consolation when it appeared to her
an exposure was inevitable.
When Mr.. Pierson resumed his argument
in the afternoon, Mr.. Friedenrich repre-
senting the defense suggested that for the
sake of brevitv and expediency he would
admit that oil the property involved in
this suit had come into Mrs. Bensey's
hands, though it was not on record under
her name at the time OF her death. 1t was
subsequently placed in her name. An uD-
derstauding was reached by the attorneys.
and Mr.. Pierson came down to the time of
Mrs. Bensley's trips to the East and what
he called the "McMahon matter"
Bensley died on Juue 19. 1889, when all
seemed clear for his widow with her
schemes and intricate complication of con-
~veyauces, deeds, records, etc. But cloud
arose on the horizon. Bensey's kinsfOlk
in Chicago claimed all the property held by
Mrs. BensIey. John Fl. Bensley of Chi
cago took out letters of administration,
and his people began clam0ring for
division of the estate. This put Mrs.
Bensley on her mettie. and she set out to
throw dust in the eyes of those who were
endeavoring to get the estate which had
been covered up and held out of creditors
reach.
In the latter part of 1889 about thirty
blocks of real estate in the Poirero were
transferred to Edward A. Mcmahon from
Marion l.. de Tarente for a consideration
of S21, 600. During those months a per-
fectly bewildering correspondence passed
between Mrs. Bensley and Mcmahon.
Every letter from the woman EXPRESSED
dread of discovery aud persistent chicanery
and scheming to hide fraud after fraud.
Don't drop word" she wrote, cor you
will get into trouble. No fear if you do as
| tell you; but don't talk" In another
letter she said. Burn this letter, as it
would expose a conspiracy, and con-
spiracy is States prison offeDse."
In such nervous and self-condemning
vein were the wOman's thoughts expressed
on paper TO Mcmahon. She had sold the
Potrero property to fictitious Marion l..
de Tarenie, then secured a power of at
torney from this myth, and acting upon
such p0wer. sold the land. Mrs. Bensley
Mcdonald Bensley for some time previous
to her death. She occasionally figured as
Louis McDonald-behiud the scenes, of
course, as customary in Tarente affairs
for she told people that Louis Mcdonald
was another person. After selling the
Potrero property to Mcmahon it was again
transferred tc Louis Mcdonald and then
it reverted to Mrs. Bensley
But all this risky plotting began to tell
on Mrs. Bensiey's mind and body, and in
her despair she invoked the spirit of Hall
McAilister through medium to give ad-
vice on her tangled case. The spOok letter
which purported to come from the late Mr..
McAllister WAS read in court, apparently
for what It was worth, as the attorney re-
marked whether 1t was practical joke he
could not say. Mrs. Bensley died before
the prophecy was fulfilled, but while con-
sulting the sp0oks she carefully copied
every letter from the states into her copy
ing book. The note, which is as follows,
was taken as evidence that Mrs. Bensley' 8
con science was not at ease:
Dear friend: / want you to know that your
business matters Will come out very satiSfae-
tory. But il will be next January before you
will r. alZe much from it. You will be very
prosperous next year. HALL MCALLIsTER.
Noy 20. 1889.
"The evidence shows that in this vast
mass Of exhibits. said Mr.. Pierson. there
is MT single stroke of pen or pencil to
indicate a transaction between Mrs BeDs-
ley and Mrs. Tarente. 1t is an absolute
indication that DE Tarente was a mask
for Mrs. Bensley, and. so successfully was
this done, she conveyed property year
after year lnder the De Tarente power of
attorney. 1t was clever and adreit
scheme TO cover up this vast estate"
Attorney FrledeDrch made an argument
for the defense. He confined himself to
the law a. plicable to this extraordinary
case He passed over the salient features
in very concise and clear review, and
then argued on the technical points, which
he supported with precedents and laws
from all manner of sources. Il submit, I"
said he. there is nothing contained In any
OF these letters which would indicate there
we're any representations aui horiZed TO be
made by John Bensley to his creditors" /"
Questions of jurisdiction and limitations
were considered exhaustivsly. and it was
left to the court 10 decide whether the
creditors were misled and deceived. Sew
eral other points of law were submitted
for decision and the case was concluded.