The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-08-19
FUGITIVE BANkE
STILL Al !. LIBERTY E
Chicago Police Fear British
Columbia Suspect Is
Not Their Man. ~:
keoinI to The Journal.

,&eoial to The Journal. -. -,.... :
Chicago, Aug. 1s.-That Paul o.
Stensland. president of the wrecked
milwaukee Avenue bank, may. have
British Columbia. and the Chicago po-
lice are anxiously awaiting details from
the far northwestern city.
Chief Collins and the officials who
have been conducting the search for
6tensland expressed confidence upon re.
ceipt of the news from Midway that
the report was correct, particularly as
this city led them to believe the fugi-
tive was headed across the northwest
ern border, but later information from
Spokane caused their confidence to be
shaken.
Theodore Stensland, son of the bank
of the report that his father had been
found in British Columbia. His big
frame shook, and he displayed more
emotion than he has shown at any time
since the bank crash which followed
his father s flight.
He denied. however, that he had any
knowledge of his father s whereabouts.
Stensland Bold Crook.
Springfield, H., Aug 1S.-Bank Elk
aminer Jones in his report to the audi
tor of public accounts on the Milwau-
kee Avenue State bank Of Chicago,
which was received by the auditor to-
day and given to the press, estimates
the total defalcations thru the manipu-
lation Of the affairs of the bank by
President Stensland to be 100000
and possibly more.
He says the closing of the bank was
the consummation of a career the most
remarkable and in his opinion the most
conspicuous in the history Of banking.
On, his examination of Nov. Is, 1905,
everything appeared to be prosperous
and satisfactory, but it has since de-
vel0ped that in the figures were many
questionable and forged notes, the exact
amount of which nobody but the presi-
dent Or cashier can determine.
He is of the opinion that Mr.. Ais
berg, the chief clerk; Frank Kawalski,
the assistant paying teller, who has
since committed suicide; John Gullin-
skin, the receiving teller, and Mr.. Es-
dohr, the paying teller, and without
doubt others of the employees of the
bank, had guilty knowledge of many
things which were not divulged by the
directors to him.
Mr.. Jones declares that Cashier Her
ing in swearing to the statement of
Jan. 80, 1906, periured himself to the
statement to the amount Of SEC, 1923. He
declares that the executive committee
and the examining committee OF the
bank never acted in an Official capacity
and had they done so each member OF
the two committees would have found
his forged note in the assets.
Cashier Herring, he says, denied forg
Ing the notes and failing to impicate
President Stensland gave him to under
stand that an Italian named Demario
employed in the bank, had been the
guilty party, and that Stcnsland had
given him $4,000. States Attorney
Healy learns that Demario is now in
Italy. s~
Mr.. Jones finds that the Steel Ball
obligations aggregated $1S0,0oO and
that they will not pay 10 cents on the
dollar. The P. o. Stensland paper ag
gregates $l45.0OO, according to his ex
animation and the paper Of the Milwau
kee Avenue Cooperative store and it.
xamifications the sum of $4,000.
Assets Wiped Out.
The capital stock of the bank
amounting to 900, and the surplus
wiped out, and there is still defcien
cy of $450,000. The notes which car
ried this, deficiency were forged paper
or at least paper, to say the least
which was questionable.
Three hundred thousand dollars
worm OIL SCeuSlduu b SUBDIVISION uOIe
were shown under the head Of "Rea
estate' At former examinations thes
notes were always shown, minus tn
matured coupon, and Mr.. Jones wa
always informed that the interest ha
been paid. Now he finds that this wa
not the case, and that the coupons ha
been put into package and kept il
the cashiers special box and never OK
hibited to the examiner on previou
examinations. The losses are divide
= as follows: ..
Forged and worthless paper. 1866
500; at least questionable paper, if no
forged. $20O,000; Steel Ball losses
$1SO,OO0; real-estate losses, $153, 900.
The report says that the examina
ton of the banks the years past hav
always shown it to be in fine condi
tion, and that the last examination
showed absolutely no suspicious circun
stances.
Jones considers it one of the mos
remarkable examples in banking tina
- crookedness on such scale could b
80 concealed. He says that even prio
to the organization of this bank it
now common report that many crooke
things were done by the Stensland
when they conducted private banl