The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-12-28
Two Anonymous Letters
Reach HOidale
PUTS SLUETH ON THE CASE
Communications Were Mailed at
Springfield; Man Accused of
Au horship Makes a Denial.

Two anonymous letters written to
County Attorney Einar Hoidale at New
Ulm, were the cause of visit to this
city last week of Detective Chandler,
who figured so conspicuously in securing
evidence in the Gerhard murder case,
says The Springfield Advance.
The detective came here for the pilr-
pose of running down the author of two
anonymous letters, one purporting to
have been written Sept. 18th, 1906. and
the other October 81, 1906. Both of the
letters were postmarked Springfield,
Mimi. and addressed to County Attor-
ney HOidale. The first one contained a
picture of DR.. Gerhard, which had been
clipped from German newspaper, con-
tents of the letter referred to the pic
ture as the victim, while the writer of
the epistle assumed the title of the VIC
tor.
The second letter called the county at
torney's attention to the fact that no
attention had been paid the previous
letter and not having had reply, and
in view of the fact that the previous
letter contained a picture of the victim
he would inclose a picture of the victor.
In the letter was an old tintype con-
tanning the picture of man wearing a
stiff hat. The letter strongly emphasized
that the picture was that of the real
murderer. Those who saw the picture
claim that there is no possible resem-
blance to anyone in this city or vicinity.
The handwriting was in English, but
general appearances indicate strongly
that it was from the pen of a foreigner,
for the lines were somewhat irregular.
The detectives first mission here was
to find a similar handwriting. He made
number of visits to various business
places, but not many of them knew that
their visitor was sleuth. He finally
dropped into the tailor shop o Garrit
DeWinkel and made a careful compare
son of the chirography and concluded
that there was a strong similarity. He
accused Garrit of being the author of
the letters. which was strongly denied,
the accused maintaining his innocence in
the NEST vigorous manner. The writer
interviewed Jerry and from him secured
the statement that he was entirely in
nocent of the accusation and that he did
not have the slightest idea of who it
was that wrote the letters. He admits
that there is a strange similarity in
the writing, with the exception that in
his opinion the person who penned the
letters writes finer hand than his.
So far as being concerned in the ter
rible tragedy it is known fact that he
was hundreds of miles away from the
scene of the tragedy. On the 9th day of
April, 1904. j. J. Ray conducted an auc-
ton sale for him. selling off nearly all
of his personal effects, and he took his
departure on the afternoon passenger
for Monks Corner, South Carolina. He
went directly to his destination with
out stopover. Here he remained for
a couple of weeks until his tailor shop
equipments arrived, when he moved to
Somerville, S. c., leased building for
a year and started up in the tailor
business. His journal which he now has
in his possession gives a graphic daily
account of his business transactions in
that southern city for a period covering
more than a year. The New Ulm muir
der was committed on the night of No
vember l, 1904, and Garrit was in South
Carolina until April 20, 1905, when he
again returned to Springfield. conse-
1uently he could prove an alibi that
could not be shaken by all the courts
in the universe.
The letters were undoubtedly the
work of one who would be termed a
crank, whose sole object it was to ere
ate little excitement.
Garrit strongly condemns the whole
matter as an effort to divert attention
from the real murderer, and unduly at
tempting to drag him into the meshes,
heSideS DerSecl1tinp him.