New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1915-12-22
BUREAU DRAWER IS
POOR SAYlNGSBANlK
AFRAID ALLIES WOULD GET HIS
MONEY. SOMEBODY ELSE
GOT $4,000 OF 1T.
BURGLARY NOT SUSPECTED
POLICE HOPE TO RECOVER
LOST WEALTH.

Considerable mystery surrounds the
disappearance of 81, 900 in currency from
the home of Charles Engel, a retired
farmer residing on North Franklin
Street. The exact date when the money
disappeared is not known as the absence
of the money was not discovered until
last Wednesday and Mr.. Engel had last
seen it on December 3rd, when he had
added $500 to the pile to make the
$4,000 complete. This money was in
tended as Xmas present for Mrs. Otto
Zimmerman, daughter.
Mr.. Engel used to keep his money on
deposit with one of the local banks, but
drew it out when he became afraid that
the money deposited with the banks of
this country would be loaned to the
Allies and eventually lost. The original
sum drawn of the banks approximated
$4,000. To this was added the moneys
paid by Mr.. Engel's sons on their farm
contracts until the $4,000 mark was
reached December Sd.
The money was kept in long pocket
book which was safely tucked away in
bureau drawer. On top of this were
laid contracts and other documents.
Mr.. Engel had occasion to look at these
contracts on the 18th of December but
he never took the trouble to see if the
roll of money was still intact. .-..-
The money which has disappeared con-
sisted mostly of large bills. There was
$500 bill, several $50 bills, large
number of EOS and los and the balance
in smaller denominations.
AS soon as Mr.. Engel was convinced
that the money had been stolen, he
Immediately notified the police authori-
ties and Chief Klause shortly thereafter
appeared on the scene to make an in
vestigation. From a careful inspection
of the place Chief KIause came to the
conclusion that the place had not been
burglarized. There was nothing to in
dictate that the place had been forcibly
entered that day.
Whenever Mr.. Engel has been away
from the house for longer period than
a few hours he has been in the habit of
leaving the key to the house with his
neighbor John Zimmerman. For some
months two young girls have been STOP
ping at the Engel home. When one of
them came home about four o'clock in the
afternoon last Wednesday she found the
house locked and repaired to thinner
manns to get the key. Here she was
informed that Mr.. Engel had only gone
down town and had left no key. Mr..
Zimmerman accompanied the girl to
Engels and helped her take off the storm
window, so that she could raise the
partly opened window and in this way
she managed to get into the house.
Some time later the other girl appeared
on the scene, tried the door, found it
locked and also went to Zimmermann's
for the key where she was told how the
other girl had gained an entrance and
she got in the same way and found the
other girl there. When Engel came
home he found the girls in the house.
He noticed that the glass in the vestibule
door was cracked and that some spinters
Of glass were lying on the floor. This
aroused his suspicious, because when he
had turned the key in the front door and
slipped over the night latch before
leaving the glass was not broken.
An inspection of the bureau drawer
revealed the fact that the money was
gone. Chief Klause is of the opinion
that the glass in the door was broken
from the inside and not from the outside.
According to Chief Klause the police
have their suspicious and arrests may
| soon follow. The whereabouts OF the
money has not been ascertained, how
ever.