Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1859-02-28
sub-Treasury countins--FaI.o Coin.


Harper's Weekly gives very interesting ac-
count of a visit to the United States Sub -Trea-
sury in that city, and what is seen and done
there. The money as received goes into the
Sub Treasury, and passes through the hands of
Messrs Birdsall and Cisco to be counted and
tested. So much of the gold and silver coin in
circulation has been sweated, OF filed, or bored,
or diseinboweled, that it requires more than
common tact and skill to detect many of tho
Imposltions. We quote as follows
The gentlemen who do the counting for the
Sub-treasury, count with both hands When
$4,000 bag is emptied before them, they plunge
both hands simultan ecusly into the glittering
mass, and withdraw each with coin between
the thumb and forefnger. Their sense OF ear is
so acute that if, in pouring out the contents Of
bag, a spurious coin happens to strike against
the counter, they will detect and denounce it
though they may happen to be many yards dis
tant. For the proportion of alloy they rely in
some degree on the eye, which is SO trained,
that the least mperfection is at once discover
ed. It is the sense of touch which serves to de-
tect sweated or filed coins.
Latterly, spurious gold coins have generally
belonged to one of two kinds. They have
either been sweated by new process, or they
have been disemboweled The new sweating
process consists of filing off the edges of the
coin, and then remilling it. The old sweating
plan was simply to rub the face of the coin on
a file till it was smooth; this method is now OBJ
solete, as even the banks will not take sweat
ed piece. But by taking an eagle and filing off
the milled edge carefully, rogue may, ifhe be
careful, get 81 so worth of gold from $50
dollar piece, and, by remilling it with care, may
leave il so perfect. that it is impossible for
person not trained to the business to detect the
fraud. These coins are instantly detected at
the Sub-treasury and rejected. The disembow
cling process is different. a short time since
sone ingenious counterfeiters undertook to
make money by saving dollar coins in two,
scooping out the inside, filling the hollows
with base metal, and rejoining the pieces with
so much skill that no trace of the operation
was outWardly visible This was done with
the small thick dollar issued by the mint to
very great extent. Sixty cents of gold was
taken from each dollar, and many thousand dol
lars were subjected to the process. Many of
these disembowled dollars are in circulation at
the present moment. AT the Sub Treasury the
skilled ear and hand of Mr. Birdsall and his
assistant quickly detect them. Larger coins
are not split By an ingenious contTivance a
nOt0 II DOIou lilo Eneir eOge anu Jne 1nsloe Is
scooped out without abrading the milling
After third or so of the gold is abstracted, the
cavity is filled with base metal, the opening is
galvanized with gold, and the piece is set in
circulation. These coins are SO difficult to dis
tinguish from coins fresh from the mint, that
there are net half a dozen persons in the United
States who can discern that they have been
tampered with. Mr. Birdsall, we are told, sim
giles them out with unerring accuracy; and, to
the amazement of the bank from which they
came, rejects them. A few weeks since, the
police was set on the track of a woman who
was engaged in passing coins altered in this
way. One of the most acute detectives was set
on her track, and every license was afforded her
in order, if possible, to discover the factory
where the nice operation Of boring and filling
these coins was performed. Unfortunately,
some jealous but thick headed policeman got
wind of the lady's performances, and, by ar
resting her prematurely, defeated the aims of
his superior officer.
Messrs Birdsall and Cisco, Jun, count sew
eral hundred Thousand dollars every day When
they have gone through bag, they shovel the
coins into funnel and transfer them to bag,
which is instantly tied and sealed, not to be
opened till its contents are required for dis
bursement