1908 John Korda-2 and the case of the runaway girl

Stevens Point Journal
21 November 1908

SHE IS A ROMANCER.
Grewsome [sic] Story Told by Stella Luty in Milwaukee Proves to Have Been Untrue---There Has Been No Murder.

The story told by Stella Luty in the juvinile [sic] court in Milwaukee was not correctly reported in the Milwaukee papers. They stated that she said her father's name was Joseph Luty. As a matter of fact she gave her father's correct name, which is Martin Luty. What she said in Milwaukee in regard to her father selling his farm near Necedah and moving to Junction City and purchasing a farm about a mile and a quarter west of the village in 1907 was also true, but what she said in regard to her father being a heavy drinker and that he had killed her fifteen months old brother, and threatened to kill her mother; that her mother had gone to Chicago, but finally came back and told the father if he wanted to kill anybody, to kill her and not the children; that he had threatened to kill Stella because she didn't work hard enough and that she had to hide in the corn crib to save herself and that her mother had given her $5 to go to Necedah and live with the family on their farm, has been shown to be a string of falsehoods. In the Milwaukee story she even went so far as to give the name of the priest who she said buried the child her father was alleged to have killed.
District Attorney Geo. B.Nelson and Deputy Sheriff Merrill Guyant went to Junction City Wednesday afternoon to investigate the matter, taking John Korda [-2] along in the capacity of interpreter. They first visited the office of town clerk and the Catholic church at the Junction to see if there was any record of the death and burial of the child. None was found, and then they went to the Luty home. Here they found that the father had gone to Milwaukee to bring the daughter home. The mother and her six daughters were there, however, and the mother talked freely and with apparent candor in regard to the matter. Stella's story in regard to the sale of the Necedah farm and the removal to Junction City was corroborated. The only boy, they ever had, she said, died on the Necedah farm nine years ago and there had been no deaths in the family since they came to the Junction. She also denied having had any trouble with her husband or that she was afraid of him or that he had ever threatened her life, or that she had ever gone to Chicago, either alone or with any of the children. Stella, she said, did not want to help the other children in the ordinary duties imposed upon children on a farm and about three weeks ago stole $6 from the house and took the train at the Junction for Necedah. The parents traced the girl to the latter place and both went down there to bring her home. They found she had left Necedah, but they could get no further track of her until her story was published in the Milwaukee papers. The mother said that herself and husband lived peaceably together and that her husband is not a hard drinker. Mr. Nelson has informed the Milwaukee authorities as to the facts in the case.

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Gazette
5 January 1910

From Portgage County District Attorney's financial report of 19 November 1909.
“November 19, 1908. Order No. 8, in favor of John Corda [John Korda-2] for services as interpreter in State v. Martin Luty investigation, $2.00.”