The sun., 1894-11-25
BANKROBBERY.. Y..SUICIDEI
The Shoe and Leather Plum
dered of $354,000.
BoOKKEEPER SEELY FLEES.
Deposition Frederick Baker Drowned
at His Country Home.

Betwss- The- They NAE ri-,aersa ths
Bank fsr Te- Years, Tski.g ss0o or 30
Every Dsy-seeiy Declares that NE Get
O-iy s11 200 ef It and thst Baker Teck
the Rsst-seeiy Supposed 60 Have Sailed
for Europe . Week Age ssturs.y-Ds
Lawyer Has HAD /. Corfe.sie. r-e. Wi-
In Conadence si.ce the Isth-Bsksr ssia
that He Was Too ola 60 Run Away.
The National Shoe and Leather Bank At
broadway and Chambers street has been robbed
of $354, 900 by Samuel G. seely. one Of its book
keepers, and Frederick Baker, q deposition.
Seely fed q week ago Saturday, leaving oon-
fesson in his lawyers hands. 1t is supposed
that he fed by steamship.
Baker was drowned yesterday afternoon at
his country homo at Sands Point There II OF
course q strong suggestion of suicide. Baker, who
was a supposedly wealthy and respectable
lawyer in this city, past 90 years OF age had
told his accomplce before the latters flight
that he was too old TO run away himself and
would stay and face the music. II is alleged by
seely that Baker got all but $1,000 Of the
| stolen S354,00
After searching all day for Baker TIE Sun
reporter found last night that he had been
drowned from q rowboat In Long Island Sound
| Just in front of his country home. His two sons
| were out on the Sound cunning. and he entered
boat ostensibly to row out after them TO see
what luck they were having. He never reached
them, and when about o'clock the sons started
for home they found their fathers body floating
| face upward on the water beside his overturned
| skin. They towed It ashore and a. there had
been, so far as known. no Witnesses Of the
drowning, and the news of Mr. Bakers implica-
| tion in the Shoe and Leather Bank robbery had
not become publicly known, tho Coroner's jury
| found that tho death was accidental.
HUNDRED ACCOUNTS rAMPERED WITH.
The thefts have extended over period of nearly
| ten years. and were accomplished by means Of
fictitious balances, false credits. and corresponds
| ing debts entered In tho ledger. Seely tam
pered with more than 100 accounts, II II be-
lieved, and credited the money debited upon
them to Bakers account. and tho money
| was drawn out Of the bank bv Baker. The
bank officers had tho utmost confdencoin In Seely.
| who wis Q quiet, home-loving man, and the
| Treasurer of the United States Guaranty Com
pany, which was Seely's surety, said, whom told
| of his defalcation: "There was not q man In
| the bank about whom We felt safer than about
Seely." Baker had been depositor In the bank
/ more than twenty years.
Tho stealing might have gone on for an In
definite time had not the bank officers decided
! TO institute . new system of bookkeeping. The
now system was to be put in operation on Thurs
day last, and Seely knew It. The business of the
bank was moving on in the usual routine on
Friday, Nov. 1e, whsn Seely asked for days
leave Of absence. He was tired Of living in
Brooklyn, he said. and wanted 70 go out and
| look for q country home. His request was
granted, and on Saturday another bookkeeper
was put at his work.
sEELY FINDS DISCOVERY IMMINENT.
Seely had had charge Of ledger A TO X. Tho
accounts, of course had to be gone over every
day. Sesly's substitute soon reported to Prcsi-
| dent Crane that he could not make them bal
ance. He was told TO try again, for Seelys rep
| utation was so good that no suspicion was
| aroused in the officers minds at first But the
| confusion of the accounts could not be untAn-
| gled. and when, on Monday morning, Secly did
not appear at the bank, the officers went to work
at once on his books and found them hopelessly
confounded. That money had been taken
| fraudulently from the bank soon became appar-
| ent but how tho books had been muddlod was .
puzzle. so elaborate the system Of fAlAincation
had been.
On Tuesday the directors were convened and
| they were in almost continuous session until
| yesterday evening. The bank force worked day
| and night on the accounts and on the pass books.
which had all been called in. On Wednesday
the amount OF the defalcation was found TO be
1854, 200. and on Thursday morning the di-
rectors called In National Bank Examiner KIM
| ball. Mr.. Kimball confirmed the findings OF
| the bank officers, and on Friday, which was the
regular meeting day the Board Of Directors de-
| cided TO call on the stockhol for an amount
sufficient TO cover the deficit Tho banks sur
plus Is about $4,000 President Crane says.
so the impairment of Its capital Of $l,000,0o0 II
about $4,000.
LEFT A CONFESSION WHEN HE FLED.
When seely failed TO appear at the bank on
| Monday morning tho bank officers sent 10 his
| n
for him. He was not at home, ana had not been
| at home since Friday, and the messengers were
| referred 10 Frank w. Angel, his attorney and
| confidential adviser. Mr.. Angel has oftces at
los Fulton street and lives in Jersey City.
"Mr. Angel told u.s." said Vics-President
George l.. PeAse yesterday afternoon, that Sssly
| had seen exposure coming and had confessed
| his predicament and asked for advice. do you
want advice from me In this 2 said the lawyer.
| Well, go and blow your brains OUT
"whAt Seely did" Mr.. Pease continued. I'VE
know nothing about He may have chosen Sat-
| urday TO look for hls country home because Il
was the day that the steamers sail. or he may Be
within thirty minutes OF this ONCE now. Some
| times we think he Is. But We hope 70 get his
accOmplice, the depositor.
ssslv told Mr. Angel that from the large sum
1000, the depositor getting the remainder
seely lived in Halsey street with his wife and
| one child. He is-orwas-3S years old. and loved
| 10 stay at home. lie was not ciuo man. lie was
/ q pewhOlder In the Rev. DIR, Behrends's church.
| but was not an active member OF the church HIS
| brOther-in-law who is also a book keeper In the
| shoe and Leather Bank, said yesterday that
Sealy was a man OF quiet life without known
| vices and that no suspicion had ever attached
| 10 him. He was not known to speculate. and
his property consisted, the brother-in. law said,
| OF half interest in the $4,000 house In Halsey
street. -
plOyed in the bank since 1850, and the United
States Guaranty Company Was on his bond for
81 800.
The system OF bookkeeping in use at the shoe
| and Leather Bank was modern one OF daily
| ledger balances Two ledgers were kept the
| regular one which was complete In its record.
| and a skeleton ledger. The skeleton ledger WAS
intended 70 show 20 tho bank omcers ~
| glance the daily balances and IL WAS AlsO 10
give the book keeper instant information for the
presented.