The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-08-09
WOMAN TRAVELLER
REACHES CITY MINUS
BELT WITH $500
Afraid of Banks She Kept Her
Fortune on Her. Person and
Missed 1t JustBefore Leaving
Train-Returns Homein Faint
Hope of Finding 1t There.


When Mrs. Augusta Van Cerkee, six
ty-six years DID, whose home is al
Shewanee, Kan, alighted from a Rock
Island train at the union depot yester-
day morning at 8 o'clock with her six
teen-year- old granddaughter, she made
a discovery which almost Frustrated
her and caused her the keenest anxiety
Il must be crazy she remarked to
Officer Nick Bouse, Il can't find my
money"
How much did you lose, madame? %
she was asked.
Il had $500 in a belt around my
waist and I must have lost it in the
train for cannot find it anywhere"
The woman was in the Greatest dis
tress. She retired to the ladies' room
where she made a new search of her
garments in the hope of finding the
missing treasure, but the attempt
proved in vain. The $500 was no
where to be found.
Mrs. Van Cerkee and her grand
daughter were on their way from their
Kansas home to Little Falls, where
they were to visit Mrs. Van Cefs-ee's
son-in-law, William Thelin. Before
leaving home Mrs. Van Cerkee had
carefully sewed up $500 in bills Of de-
nominations of 81 900, 500 and $50 in
a small package which she sewed to a
belt.
Afraid of Banks.
She had recently sold some property,
and instead of trusting the money to a
bank preferred to carry it about on her
person. Her granddaughter, who was
travelling with her, knew nothing OF
her possessing the large sum.
When the disappearance of the
money was reported to the authorities
., -. Of+ he
Rock Island at Minneapolis was noti-
fled of the loss and asked to make a
search of the car in which Mrs. Van
Cerkee had travelled. Word was soon
received that the money could not be
found.
Mrs. Van Cerkee said that she first
missed the money when she reached
the union depot. Il was in the toilet
room when the train was short dis
lance from here" said the woman,
"and in arranging my garments might
have dropped the belt from about my
waist. / did not miss the package till
1 reached the depot"
The first impulse offthe woman was
to continue her Journey and with that
end in view she purchased tickets for
herself and companion to Little Falls.
Decides to Return Home.
A consultation was held between
Depot Master Farrell, Officer Bouse
and Detective King. Mrs. Van Cerkee
was then closely questioned concern
ing the money and the package which
she could not find, and it developed
that she was not positive that she had
taken the money with her. She had
been excited when preparing for he1
departure, and could not distinctly
recollect whether she had fastened the
belt about her waist or whether she
had left it under the pillow of her bed
where she kept it.
The hope that she might have really
left the money at her home, and that ii
might not have been lost after all, in
f1uenced her to turn about and return
to her home. The tickets for Little
Falls which she had purchased were
exchanged for tickets to her home and
she and her granddaughter left on the
returning Rock Island train just one
hour and half after they had arrived
in the city.
Mrs. Van Cerkee is the widow of an
old sea captain who died twenty years
ago, leaving her fairly we'll to do
Though she was much agitated over
the disappearance of he" money she
gathered new courage when it occurred
to her that she might have left the
money at her home. She had in her
purse, besides the money she thought
she had lost, a sum which amply pro-
Vided for the travelling expenses Of the
pair.
The greatest excitement prevailed
about the depot when it was noised
about that $500 had been lost. A
searching party was sent down the
tracks, but did not report finding the
money.