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Show mm si mm. . - Mes m- mmmi: w we - t . . . . . I ma minim (f j Mysterious Message Inclosing Key to J Safety Vault Which Revealed Collapse of Chicago Institution; Thinks Elder Stensland Killed Himself. CHICAGO, Aug. 13. When investigation into the J affairs of the Milawukee Avenue State bank resumed to- day, it was expected that Theodore Stensland, son of the ! missing president of the bank, would , surrender on the J. warrant for conspiracy in which he, with his father and I Cashier Hering was included, young Stensland, who was vice-president of the bank, is accused of receiving de- ? posits after he knew the bank to be insolvent. He was j located at a downtown hotel last night. Above the address was a notation in my father's handwriting: " 'The list of names in my own writing writ-ing is taken from notes which Hering claims are my obligations.' "Below the address was this notation: nota-tion: l 'The little red memorandum book will show my indebtedness in Decem-'ber, Decem-'ber, 1901.' Difference In Totals. "I opened the envelope and found two sheets of paper. One was a list of notes in father's writing. The other was a list of notes in Hering 's writing. Father's list totaled $1,003,000. . " Hering 's list was not totaled, but it proved to be some $300,000 or $400,000 less than father's." Young Stensland said he submitted the memoranda to Francis 8. Peabodr, E. A. Potter and John R, Forgan, bankers, bank-ers, who were loath to believe that the memorandum of forgeries could be anything but a huge mistake. Urged Closing of Bank. - "Bank- Examiner Jones," he Te sumed, "was unwillingto believe there was a shortage,' and said he wpuld not like to close the bank end find it was a mistake. . But- I was convinced that something was wrong and I didn't want to take the responsibility of running the bank and taking in money when I knew conditions were suspicious." v Stensland declared that great pressure pres-sure was brought to bear on hint to keep the bank open. It was proposed by one banker that deposits be received and placed individually in envelopes pending the investigation, and that no money be paid out. The young man branded the scheme as ruinous ana with his own hands, he says, closed the doors a few minutes after 9 a. m. and told Jones to put up his closing notice. ? . ' - CHICAGO, Aug. 13. Theodore Stensland, Stens-land, son of the fugitive i Milwaukee Ave-' Ave-' gjue bank president, made last night a fv statement of his knowledge of the j circumstances surrounding the flight ot ! bs father and touching the colossal for-; for-; gery fraud In the bank, according to the I Tribune.' In a frank narration of the manner in which the great scandal was made known to him, young Stensland not only flatly denied that he ever bad knowledge of the plot before August 3 last, but submitted various proofs with which he expects to ' substantiate bis story when told before a Jury. - ' : He declares absolutely that he was not only ignorant of the steals perpetrated, but that be never profited in any way j . , from them. Thinks Father a Suicide. I . The young man advanced the belief that his father bas not fled the country, but has committed suicide. He also advanced ad-vanced the theory that bis father could not himself have committed the- forgeries ot notes because ot an impediment in bis control ot the pen In recent years. He thinks also that Cashier Henry W. Hering could not have sufficiently disguised dis-guised bis own distinctive chlrograpby to perform the imitations, and that, there- fore, an outside expert was employed for the purpose of copying signatures on blank checks. Surrenders Property. It became known last night that young . Stensland late on Saturday bad given to Receiver John C. Foster for the benefit of the bank depositors, a deed for all the Cook county real estate held by bis father, fa-ther, who bad given him a power of attorney. at-torney. The property is estimated to be worth $650,000. The fugitive's son was found at a bo- tel. where he is staying preparatory to surrendering himself today to the Sheriff on the bench-warrant for conspiracy. In which be was Included with Paul O. Stensland and Cashier Hering. New Police Charges. The young man was sought out for the purpose of obtaining his comment com-ment on new police charges mad during dur-ing the day to the effect that the son had previous knowledge of the entire plot and that he had aided and abetted bis father's escape from the claims of the law. These latter charges were based on testimony given to Police Inspector Bhippy during the day by employees of the bank. Lorenze Boediker, custodian vf the safety deposit vaults, informed tUe inspector that young Stensland had tie key to his father's deposit box, Vhe day after the disappearance of the - ' father, the middle of July, and that he went into the bank frequently and " opened the box in the two weeks before the scandal broke. Mysterious Letter. "It is true that I had the key to my father's safety box a few days before he "left town,' said Theodore in commenting com-menting on the information, "but I did not go through the box before I received the alarming letter nearly three weeks later. I Knew nothing ab-.soiu.ely ab-.soiu.ely about the whole miserable affair af-fair and never had the slightest sus-' sus-' picion raised until I -finally went through the box in compliance with my father's mysterious letter." The letter, young Stensland said, was undated, and unheaded, but was postmarked post-marked St. Panl. It contained a key to his father's safety deposit box. Theodore said he opened the box and found a sheet of jafer bearing a potfer of attorney mailt out in his name and ' . signed bv liis fatli'.r. This paper young Stensland tok from the box without disturbing the other contents. t Second Letter deceived. After this, said Stensland, things ran along smoothly at the bank, though he heard nothing" more from his father until un-til on Friday, . August 3, when he received re-ceived a second letter, similar to the first. This second letter contained the companion key to the one sent in the previous letter. Stensland continued: "In the letter father asked how tilings "were at the bank. Then he re-J-'fciiecl to having had bad luck in his toal estate deals and the loss of money K'enfrally. He. said that things at the l-Jink had not gone as thev should have, and finally said that I would find in his vault box a memorandum of his indebtedness indebt-edness to the bank. After that he devoted de-voted a couple of paragraphs to remarks re-marks on the relation of father and son, which was unusual between us. Schedule of Pillage. 'I went right over to the bank that afternoon and opened the box and began be-gan to go through the papers. In the midst or the mass I found a long en-jslope en-jslope addressed 'Theodore Stensland.' |