Inmate Of Pontiac State Asylum Heir

Lansing, Dec. 8.—Michigan through its attorney general is out trying to prove that Ernest Richard Matthiessen, an inmate of the Pontiac state hospital, is one of the heirs to an estate in Hamburg, Germany, and if the state can establish its claim, Michigan will not only be reimbursed for Matthiessen’s keep since 1891, but will endeavor to have a Michigan guardian appointed.A chance word dropped by Mrs. Mildred Lange in Philadelphia in 1894 started the proceedings. Matthiessen is 65 years old and was admitted to the asylum in 1891. Records show he was single, a gunsmith by trade and a native of Australia. His father and mother were born in Germany. A sister is confined in an asylum at Sydney, Australia.Recently J. P. Sansosi died in Hamburg, Germany, leaving a large estate. Matthiessen is believed to be one of the heirs, as that name appears in the list. A. C. Herbst of Hamburg, executor of the estate, applied to the royal court of Berlin to have Ernest Matthiessen declared officially dead as none of his relatives had heard from him in 21 years.Investigating the matter, the royal court secured the testimony of a Mrs. Mary Stoye, sister of Matthiessen who testified that in 1894 Miss Olga Penkert, now Mrs. Mildred Lange of Philadelphia had told her Matthiessen was then confined in the Pontiac asylum. The royal court refused to declare Matthiessen officially dead until Herbst could furnish an affidavit from the asylum authorities. Herbst wrote for the information and the asylum authorities turned the correspondence over to the attorney general.The letter to the American ambassador at Berlin was dispatched today, inquiring for additional information. The state department is convinced that Matthiessen is the heir the German authorities have been seeking.