Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1906-1908, 1906-08-17
STENSLAND'S SON
SCENTS SUICIDE.
TELLS STORY OF HOW DEFALCA-
TON CAME TO LIGHT AND
OF THE ESCAPE.
G0TLETTERS FROM MINNESOTA
Last Word of Fugitive by Vice President
OF Chicago Defunct Bank Came
from Gopher State

oL MS hnoWIeUge or the circumstances
surrounding the flight of his father and
touching the colossal forgery fraud in
the bank.
He declares absolutely that he was not
only ignorant of the steals perpetrated
but that he never prohted in any way
from them.
Thinks His Father Is Dead.
The young man advanced the belief
that his father has not fed the country,
but has committed suicide. He also ad-
Vanced the theory that his father could
not himself have committed the forgeries
or notes because of an impeachment
through Il street car accident in his CON
troll OF the pen i'll recent years.
He thinks also that Cashier Henry w
Herring could not have sufficiently dis
gulSed his own distinctive chirography to
perform the limitations and that, there
lore, an outside expert was employed for
the purpose OF copying signatures on
blank checks
1t became known in the evening that
young StenSland late Oh Saturday had
given 10 Receiver John c. Fetzer for the
benefit of the bank depoSitors Il deed to
all the Cook county real estate held by
his father, who had given him power of
attorney.
Tells the Whole Story.
Young Stensland is Il man of giant
frame. IN tell you just how it was
from start to tinish,' he said In the
first place, | never knew anything was
wrong in the bank with the exception of
the stealings of Walter Frantzcn, the re-
c;eiving teller in 1901. When they were
discovered ErantZen was discharged
His theftS were about $4,000.
My father shOuldcred the responsible
lty for the shortage and refusing to pros
ecute Frantzen hushed up the whole
matter, because he feared Il run on the
bank.
Conference with His Father.
Now, to come down to present times,
let us go back to the Saturday before my
father went aWay-that was July II.
believe. My father sent for me to como
to the bank late that afternoon. | found
him busy near the safety deposit vaults.
1t appears that he had been telling Her
ing and Aalbery and some others that
day that he was going away for Il short
vacation. lie left me power of attorney.
Then my father called B0cdckcr, Gus
todlan of the vaults, and said:
'BOedeker, | guess Theodore had bet
ter give up his small box, and you can
put him down as part owner of mine. |
will give him one of my keys
He started to hand the key to me.
and then hestated in an absent-minded
sort Of way. | was in a hurry to get
home ON account of sickness III the fam
lily.
Departure of the Banker.
The next day-Sunday-I received
an urgent telephone message from nv
Park Immediately. When | got there
all my father wanted was to know if l |
knew where he would find a certain |
shawl strap. | thought this was Il
peculiar thing and got him one. When |
L returned | found my father had |
packed his effects in big grip and no |
longer wanted the shawl strap.
when | came to go away my father |
babe me goodbye. saying he would be |
away only a short time and that he
would go to Duluth to look at some dock |
Young Stensland said he returned
home and heard nothing more of his |
father until the next morning. when he
found q letter from his father. which |
had been mailed before he left Chicago. !
Letter from Minnesota.
THAT letter. continued the young |
man, "cautiOned me again concerning |
the Curtis property deal. My father |
said | would find the power Of attorney |
the key to the box The funny thing |
about it was that there was no key in !
closed. | suppose he forgot. The real |
estate deal was postponed. Later l got |
the key in a letter"
The letter which young StensIand |
thercupOn drew from a Sheaf of papers |
was an undated sheet OF hotel paper |
bearing the letter head of the Golden |
West hotel, Royalton, Mimi. The let
ter read
Dear Theodore: Just in from the woods |
and have to so back with the team when |
ready to start. ! hope everything is 0. X. |
at the bank Ask Herring to put i'll some |
hard strokes and ! will take hold with re-
newed vigor when back from my trip. More
later.
After this said Stensland, things ran |
along smoothly at the bank. though he
heard nothing more from his father I'M
til on Friday, August 3.
Debt Memorandum Mentioned.
''On that day" continued the young
man, 4 received Il letter from my IA
Their which was pOstmarked st. Paul. |
a safety deposit box key dropped from
the envelope. II was the companion key
to the one father mad sent me III the pre-
vioUs letter.
In III" letter father asked me how
things were at the bank Then he re-
ferred to having had bad luck i'll the real
estate deals and the less Of money gen
orally. He said that things at the bank !
had not gone as they should have gone,
tlIu IHGIN ne Sdlu mat L NbuIu ll!u III |
his vault box Il memorandum Of his il
iebtedness to the bank. After that he
devoted Il couple Of para raphS to re-
marks on the relation Of father and son.
List Shows 100000 Owed"
u went right over to the bank that
afternoon and opened the box. In the
midst of the mass | found Il long enve-
ope addressed Theodore Stensland.'
Above the address was Il notation il my
ather's handwriting:
Tie list of names i'll my own writ
ne is taken from notes which Herring
.laims are my oblGations.'
Below the address was this notation:
The little red memorandum book
Will show my Indebtedness in December,
1901. This OF course Includes E'rantzen's
tealngs.'
Lists Do Not agree.
Il opened the envelope and found two
sheets of paper. One was list of notes
II fathers writing. The other was a
list of notes il Eering's writing. Faith
RS list totaled 81, 0O3O00. Hering's list
vas not totaled, but it proved to be
,ome 100000 or $400. 600 less than
.ather's. There were lots Of names on
,ather's that were not on Herings. and
didn't understand then and don't now
he relation between the TWO lists"
MAKES SHROUD. KILLS SELF