The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1873-03-28
TIE ENGLISH RoRGERIRs.
Details of the Frauds COnlE,1tfed ON
the Bank of England

From the London papers of the Sd
and 4.h inst. We gather the following
details of the great forgeries on the
Bank of England
1t was discovered on Saturday thst
bills to an enormous amount hSG
been forged upon all the principal
houses in the city Of London, snd
that these bills had been discounted
at the Weat End Branch Of the Bank
of England, in Burlington Gardens,
which does an entirely different kind
of business from the parent establish
ment in the city. II is intended for
the convenience OF gentlemen and
ladies, and West End trsdesmen, who
might find it ineonveDient to journey
to the city in order 10 transact busi-
ness. 1t is not, therefore, ordinarily
concerned with with large bill trans
actions of city commerce, and IN
consequence is less bound by strict
regulations in dealing with any busi-
ness of that nature which might acci-
dentally be brought to it. The con-
spirators must have been aware OF
this, and they laid their plans for
approaching the Bank OF England by
this weaker portion of its deienses.
Warren. an American, who man-
sged the plot, was in no hurry, and
took care to gsin q good footing be
fore he ventured on his ultimate en-
terprise. He behaved for sometime
Just like an ordinary customer OF
good resources. He drew upon his
balance and renewed it, but kept il
always at q good figure. After
while he deposited some bills They
were good and genuine bills. Still
he was careful not to be hasty, and
he continued his transactions with
the bank until he had acquired the
reputation o. person engaged in le-
gitimate commerce and thoroughly
trustworthy.
Atlongth the moment came for the
presentation Of the forged bills. They
were discounted without hesitation,
and authors of the fraud had, to sll
appearance, succeeded in safely pock-
citing about one hundred thousand
pounds. All these arrangements
were masterpieces of ingenuI-y and
patience, but the bills themselves
must have required the greatest
amount of labor In the first place,
many of the large firms upon whom
the bills purported to be drawn are in
the habit of using q peculiar kind of
paper, with certain water-marks and
printed matter. All this would have
to be initiated, and as the bills were
drawn on more than one firm there.
must have been several such imita
tions. There remained the drawing
of bills and affixing of signatares,and
each bill must have required series
of feats in successful forging. Some
bills were backed by several ae-
ceptors, so that there might easily
be as many as half dozen signatures
on single bill.
Yet the bills were so pefect thst
not one Of them was questioned on
the ground of the acceptance not
appearing genuine but the men who
had exerted the skill, foresight, and
perseverance sufficient to insure IN
hesitating acceptance of tie forged
bills, could not escape enc trivial
blunder, which revealed the whole
plot. They presented two bills in
which the date of the acceptance had
been omitted. Inquiry was of course
made of the firm whose acceptance
was thus undated. 1t was discovered
that the bill was not genuine. snd the
whole series were then found TO be
forgeries. How much further the
plot would have been carried, IL is
impossible to to say. Advertisements
were published TO caution bankers,
brokers, and all other persons against
dealing in a number of the United
States Five twenty, Ten-forty, and
Funded Loan Bonds, amounting in
the aggregate to over S236, ,O00,t they,
it is alleged, having been acquired
out of the profits Of forgery.
The loss OF the Bank of England ia
steted ct fS0,0OO. The Rothsehilds
are mentioned as one of the firms on
which the forged drafts were drawn,
but no other names are given.