The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-11-27
Now that His Memory Has become
Fully Restored, He Claims to Have
Been the Victim of rlost I'm
fortunate Series of Circumstances
Imprisoned on Trumped-Up Charges,
Blackmailed and Driven lnSane.-Fis
Wanderings After Leaving Fruit
dale.

victim of series of misfortunes so
phenomenal in their character as to
surpass the production of novelist,
or else he is rascal, or is
insane and irresponsible for his state
ments and doings. This covers wide
range of possibilities. and it is difficult
to choose from the alternatives. Mr..
Hall, late Friday afternoon, made
a long and detailed statement to
FREE PRESS reporter, covering the
events of the recent years Of his life.
The mereSt substance was published
in last nights issue, as the hour was
too late to give more extended
account of his statement. Much that
he told the reporter was given under
the pledge of secrecy, and we are
therefore unable to give it to the
public without his consent, which he
said that no one could purSuade him
to grant. He said that what he had
: related to the reporter was more than
he had told any one else, and was
given for certain reasons. When
asked why he would not consent to
making the statement public, as it
was certainly very greatly in his
favor and cleared up many things
which have not been understood, he
said that it would only lead TO further
discussion and parties whose conduct
was reflected upon would probably
come into print with denials. He
wanted to have the entire matter
dropped as soon as possible, and
wanted to settle down and lead a
quiet life and work at something
which would not be strain on his
mind and upset it again. He would
like to find sufficient work in Mankato
to remain here, and if he could do so
he would not leave.
Mr.. Hall says that his memory has
entirely returned. He denied that he
had left Fruitdale with several
thousand dollars, last June, and said
that he had, possibly, $500 or $500
His disappearance was due to his
mental unbalance, and he had not de-
frauded any one, paid workmen in
imitation bills. or left them unpaid,
as has been claimed. He said that
not over a carload of the lumber of the
mill had been sold, as the stock had
been kept on hand to season, and there
was large amount ready for sale. He
said that it would be useless to re-
turn to Fruitdale, as nothing could
be saved from the wreck. After
leaving Fruitdale, he had wandered
from city to city, had gone around the
lakes, visited Winnipeg, and reached
Mankato just as his money gave out.
He then first realized his true mental
condition.
Some of Mr.. Halls statements re-
garding his past life were not given
under the ban of secrecy, and no con-
fdence will be violated in making
them public. AS stated yesterday, he
served term in San Quentin prison,
California, and claimed that his con-
viction was secured on trumped-up
charges. The story of this affair is
one of the matters which he is par
ticularly anxious not to have made
public, although if his statement re-
garding. it is true he was the victim
of a deep-laid conspiracy. After his
release, he went to Seattle and started
box factory, as related in the Seattle
dispatches. He did not defraud
cashier out of 81 900, or get ahead of
anybody, but on the contrary sunk all
of his own funds. He was in this
business when the hard times came
on in 1893, and time to make pay
mentS which had been promised him
was cancelled At the same time a
party who knew of his imprisonment
at San Quentin demanded money of
him and threatened to expose him if
it was not forthcoming. He refused |
to pay the blackmail, and the man
wrote to a number of Seattle people |
saying that Hall had served a term at |
San Quentin This and the hard |
times wound up his business career at |
Seattle, where he had been moving in
the very best Of church and social |
circles, SO he says.
Hall then went to Dallas, Texas, |
and started business, and one day a I