The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1876-04-06
A Dangerous COunterfeiting Art Dis
covered,

n
covered.
The Philadelphia Press of a recent !
date says: Assistant Chief Benson, of |
the United States Secret Service, yes
terday made some most astounding dis |
coveries ofthe perfection to which the art |
of counterfeiting has been brought, and
at the same time succeeded in baggiug
several of the most dangerous ''crooked
money men, in the country, if not one
of the most dangerous in the world.
Several weeks ago one of the Agents OF
the Secret Service succeeded in buying
a 81, 900 500 gold-bearing bond which
he had reason to believe, from the char
acter of the possessor, must be coun-
terfeit. Although even the closest in
spection by experts failed TO establish
the fact that it was not genuine, Chief
Washburne, of the Secret Service, be-
lieving, from knowledge gained OF its
possessOr, that the paper was spurious,
determined to probe the matter to the
bottom, and this, with the assistance OF
Mr.. Benson, he has been enabled to do.
The bond was purchased of man NAM
ed Wintermute, who afterwards admit
ted that he had paid 5000 for the secret
of producing fac SMILES. By uninter-
hitting exertions Assistant Chief Ben
son finally succeeded in finding that the
art was invented and being practiced
by one George G.. Wilans, who had
two offices, one at No. 226 South Third
Street, and the other at No. 222 Lacka-
wanna Avenue, Scranton. A detective was
Immediately dispatched to Scranton,
another was sent to Portland, Penn,
where Wintermute was sOjourning, and
Yesterday a pull was made simultane-
ously at the three headquarters. In or
der to facilitate matters, warrants were
obtained from Magistrate Carpenter for
the arrest of the crooked Philadel-
phians, and late in the afternoon Assist
ant Chief Benson, accompanied by De
tective Wood, paid most unexpected
visit to the South Third Street Office, and
unceremoniously collared" Randolf
Winans, a brother of George, and a
man named Charles Allen. The rooms
were searched, and several strange
looking plates, number of impressions
of the lattice-work' of bonds, bat
terry, and other evidences were secured.
Among the articles obtained were hall
a dozen reproductions of engravings SO
perfect in every particular that had II
not been for difference in the paper
no expert could have separated the cop
les from the originals. Randol1
Winans protested his innocence of ali
charges in regard to counterfeiting, and
said that though his art was a secret,
he had only used it in the reproduction
of engravings. The process, he said,
consisted of first making peculiar
composition, which is for few mo-
ments of the consistency of paste. On
this the engraving to be reproduced is
Immediately placed, when an exact i'm
preston is made. The plate quickly
| hardens. II is then electrOtyped and
ready for printing any number of fac
SMILES of the original. Mr.. Winani
admitted that bonds could be so per
fectly reproduced that the copies would
defy the scrutiny of an expert, but this
he added, had not to his knowledge
been done. He further stated that
greenbacEs could not be copied, as
they, unlike the bonds, are subjected to
such severe hydraulic pressure after
being printed, that not even the coarser
lines would leave an impression. The
prisoner, however, failed to account fol
the presence of electrotypes of the
"lattice work" on United State,
bonds, and it is needless to say
his protestations of innocence were ac
cepted cum GranO sails. Both he anC
Allen were locked up 10 await further
developments. About an hour later
Mr.. Benson received dispatches from
Scranton and Portland advising him OF
the arrest of George Winans and Win
termute, the detective at the first-namec
place adding that he had secured
$500 counterfeit bond, several compO
sition plates, a battery, number Of
impressions and other evidences. The
two prisoners from the country were
brought to this city last night, and the
- crooked quartette will probably have
a hearing to day before the United
States Commissioner. This Is regard
e / as by far the most important ''haul'
vet made, for the process is such a dan
Cprous imitation that few months de
Law would have been sufficient to have
flooded not only this country, but The
whole civilized world, with spurious pa
per, so perfectly reproduced from the
ORIGINALS that detection would have
been almost impossible. 1t should alst
be remembered that, had not one of the
United States detectives found the 81,
900 bond in the possession of a dealer il
counterfeits, the existence of such
dangerous art would not have been TO
a moment suspected.