Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1875-03-10
Fixing Up Burned Money.

1t will be remembered that few weeks
ago northern express car was burned near
Washington. The government alone had
s5,75O,OO0 in it, and the private property
amounted TO nearly half as much, including
jewelry-enough to fill seven safes.
Up in one of the sunny, well-lighted rooms
Of the United States Treasury department
at Washington, four ladies from the treas
urer's office are at work on those charred
treasures, and their process Is one of the
most interesting features of the service. All
the safes were transferred from the cars to
the Treasury, and a committee were selected
from those most expert at such work. First
the private safes were opened, and in these
were found about 100000 worth of dia-
monds, a hundred Watches old gold and silver
coins, and alas for the cause of true love
"a package Of love letters and tress of
pretty brown hair. Picking out the valua-
bles was comparatively easy work, for though
many of the stones had fallen from their set
tings, it was not hard to find them. The gold
was blackened.
The money in the government safes was
so charred that at breath it flew to the
winds and yet it is expected that four-ffths
of it will be deciphered. Each little shriv-
elled piece is detached with thin knife
and laid on rough botting paper. There
the ladies examine it with magnifying glass
es, and after deciphering as much as pos
sible, they paste it, face up, on strip of thin
paper; and so, bit by bit, a whole note is
pieced out. II is such trying exercise for
the eyes that those engaged in it can work
only three hours at time and on bright
days. The trust reposed in them is great,
for the money is delivered directly to them,
and renittances made on their reports with
out further questioning. After the terrible
fire Of October, 1871, Chicago sent two hun
dred and three cases of burnt money, ag-
gregating, at owners valuation, Sl6i,997 .9S.
1t came in sheets, in bundles in tiny pack
ages, rumpled and crushed as careless hands
had pushed them into side pockets or purses.
Each little parcel was swathed in cotton as
carefully as if ii were the most precious jew
elry, and as the black, brittle packages were
unroled, it seemed really impossible that
anything could be made of such cinders.
Yet out of that 6i,097.0s, sl2G,5 l.33 was
redeemed and returned TO the owners or
banks. Boston profted by Chicago's expert
ence, and packed her burnt money so careful
ly that nearly all OFF was redeemed. Eighty
three cases, containing SSo,Sl290, came
from Boston, and sSS,200.S0 We're returned
TO her, beside a number of policies, notes,
bills and other valuable papers. The most
skillful person on this committee is lady
who has had much experience in such work.
Once she deciphered 81 $1,000 out of 5000, 900
that had been in the hold Of a bhmt ship for
three years, and Adams Express Company,
which was responsible for the amount, gave
her $500 in acknowledgement of her services.
Another time she and her associates worked
faithfully and long over some bonds a crazy
cashier saw fit to throw into the fire. The
bank asked for only 100000, but the ladies
picked out sli5,0OO; whereupon the directors,
with reckless extravagranee, presented the
committee with s20-about four dollars
apiece