Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1909-1911, 1909-10-22
MINERAL POINT CASHIER SHOOTS
HIMSELF AND HIS MOTHER-IN-
LAW DROPS DEAD.
WORRIED OVER BANK FAILURE.
Innocent of Wrongdoing, He Brooded
Over Loss of Funds to His
Lifelong Friends
APPALLING CLIMAX TO CRASH

Especial. l-kneeling at his mothers
grave while the church bells were sum.
moning worshipers to vesper services
Frank E. Hanscome, cashier of the
wrecked First National bank, turned the
muzzle of a siX-shooter toward his head
and fired. Fearful friends, half suspect
ing the cause Of the bankers overlong
absence from home, found his body at &c
O'Clock Sunday night, his arms in death
agony clasped about the marble slab al
the head of the grassy mound under
which slept his mother. Rigor morris
had set in when the searcherS carried
the body to the home of his wife's moth
er, Mrs. John Gray, aged 80 years.
Horror-stricken at the sudden sight OF
her son-in-law's corpse, the white-haired
woman gave one wild, piercing shrek
and then dropped dead besides the self
slain bankers cold form.
Thus death has emerged from the ruins
of the defunct bank and claimed the first
victims of the blow from whiSh this
community has barely recovered. News
of Hanscome's suicide came as an appal-
ling climax to the staggering intelligence
of Vice President Phil Aliens pecula-
tions which resulted in the crash of a
supposedly Gibraltaresque institution.
And it is freely predicted that the trag-
edy OF the failure is not yet complete.
Gloom and dependency superseded the
optimism and good heartedness which
characterized the cashier in the first fren-
Zy of the maelstrom which had swept
away the savings and hopes of hundreds
of his fellow townsmen and even the
pittance of widows and orphans, and
Hanscome's manifest depression all day
Sunday caused no little anxiety among
his intimates and family
Innocent of Wrongdoing.
Although himself innocent of any part
Of the financial chicanery which resulted
in the closing of the First National bank,
Cashier Hanscome felt keenly the humil-
iation OF the situation. He appreciated
full we'll the faith in his integrity which
had induced scores of his lifelong friends
to entrust their all to the institution in
which he was director. His own losses
and feelings were dwarfed beside his
great sorrow for his friends. Night and
day Hanscome worked to save what he
could from the debris, but the closing of
the institution and Aliens subsequent
arrest broke his spirit.
Shortly after supper Hanscome dis
appeared from home. Night came on
and he did not reappear. His wife's
intuition told her the truth which she
dared not frame into words and she
herself set out in the hope of finding
her distraught husband before it might
be too late. Kindly fate directed her
steps i'll q direction other than that taken
by several of the bankers closest asso-
ciates. The latter were prepared for
the sight which met their eyes in the
dim circle of light cast by their lanterns
among the graves of Graceland GENE
terry.
Brother-in-Law of Allen.
That Hanscome's aged mother-in-law
CHI tn ftn oh IS SlIP-
prising. Hanscome and Allen are both
her sons-in-law. Therefore the crash of
the bank was of double import to the
mother of the wives of the man who
wrecked the institution and of his inno-
cent brother-in-law. The shock of Al
lens disclosures and of his being revealed
a forger and thief had nearly Frustrated
awful spot on Hanscome's temple, and
her slender hold on life was broken.
Allen himself seems little affected by
his brother-in-laws suicide. Far from
being the dying man he was pictured in
the earlier days of the failure, it now
appears that the vice president will be
well enough within a few days to be
taken as a prisoner to Madison to an
swer for his crimes.
Hanscome's suicide has been a terrible
blow to his wife and two daughters, SUI
san and Henrietta He was about 90
years of age and besides being cashier of
the bank, he performed the duties of
teller and bookkeeper also.
While no official statement has been
given out, it is stated that within ten
days the condition of the bank will have
been determined to the extent that Re
ceiver SchOfeld will be able to announce
the probable percentage which the de-
positors may hope to procure when set
Element is effected.
Bank Looted of 100000
The bank, for a generation regarded
as one of the strongest in southwestern
Wisconsin. was closed a week ago after
a weeks investigation of the books by
Bank Examiner Goodhart. An attempt
was made to keep the institution on its
feet by the sale of mining property in
which ALLEN was interested, but the deal
fell through. 1t was alleged that the
bank had been looted of 100000 by
means of notes forged by Allen.
Aliens chief aid in running the bank
was Hanscome. The former became
seriously i'll when the bank was closed.
Since then Hanscome had devoted every
minute of his time to assisting Examiner
Goodhart in Strengthening out the
books when Receiver Schofield took
charge last Thursday
Rumors which could not be confirmed
had it that the loss to depositors would
run greatly over 100000 and that ar
rests in addition to that Of Allen were
to be expected.
State Demands Money.
MADISON, Wis, Oct. 1S.-lSpeciaLJ
State Treasurer A. II. Dahl today
made formal demand on the First Ma
tionaI bank of Mineral Point for the
money which the state had in that instl-
tuition, amounting to something over