The daily gazette., 1878-10-09
SECOND EDITION
Forgeries on the Bank Of France.
The Conviction Ofa Whole Band
of Bank Note FOrgers
i'm Paris.
From the London Standard.

cases of bank note forgery
which has come before the public for
many year past is now being tried at
.he Assizes of the Seine and as the for
yeries have been committed on the Bank |
Of France, whose notes pass through
everybody's hands, foreign as we'll as
French, the details of the affair will be
found both useful and interesting to all
readers.
From the year 1872 the Bank of France
the active surveillance it
exercises over the circulation of its notes
and the special police it employs for that
purpose, perceived that false notes had
found their way into its Golfers. In vain
did the bank, as well as the police au-
thorities, send out their sharpest detec-
of them could be obtained. In vain did
the bank publish in the newspapers the
various defective signs by which the
counterfeit paper might be detected;
on the contrary, these indications only
aided the forgers, who at once rectiiled
the defects and eventually attained
such a degree of perfection that the
bank clerks themselves were almost
bafiied.
The forgeries, which were begun in
1872, were only in the first instance ap-
piled to the 20-franc notes, of which the
bank received no fewer than 2,546 or a
total amount of 50,920 francs. Alarmed
at this state of things, the bank ceased the
circulation of 20-franc notes. The forg-
ers then took to making 50-franc notes, ,and
got rid of about 35, 900 francs worth. They
afterward fabricated 100-franc notes to
the amount of 100000 francs, but before
they had had time to pass off all of them
I! they were caught.
The forgeries had now gone on sue
cessfully for nearly six years, when one
afternoon young man named Castor
Jobet was arrested at the Magasins du
Louvre in the act of rendering counterfeit
notes. Jobet, who was only 49, years old,
was most fashionably dressed; he had
driven up in cab to purchase some
gloves and neck les, but the cashier was
too sharp for him. He detected the
| forged paper, and Jobet was at once
handed over 10 the police, who found a
large sum of money and a roll of coun-
terfeit notes on his person. Jobet gave
, the address of his grandmother in the
Rue du Bac as his lodging, hoping there
by to save his accomplices; but the de-
tectives ferreted out the cabman who had
driven the young man about to variou:
places, and, thanks to his information
they discovered that Jobet lived at Neuil
ly, just outside Paris, with his mother
On making sudden descent on the
house, the police succeeded in capturing
the whole gang, which comprised nine
persons, nearly all members of two fami.
lies connected with one another.
The chief of the gang was Joseph Bar
reau, whose mistress, Josephine Jobef
was the sister of the first individual ar
rested. On the premises were found five
+, hundred counterfeit notes of variou.
amounts and f300 sterling in gold, the
proceeds of false notes already passed off
One of the persons arrested, Mile. Philo
meme Barreau, was only 16 years old
she had just obtained the first prize To-
the piano at the Conservatoire, but as i
was evident the poor girl was an entir,
stranger to the doings of her family, sh'
was released and allowed to return to he
musical studies. The inquiry which fo.
lowed resulted in the disclosure of SOM
romantic details in connection with TIN
vi bllt TWO
Joseph Barreau, the head of the gang
is 28 years of age. He is very goo,
painter, and taught himself the art of en-
craving, in which he has shown himsel
to be such consummate, but such sorr,
master. He Is also an excellent musician
In short, he appears to oe endowed will
most exceptional artistic talents, will
which but for his perverse nature, h.
) might have made fortune. OF dream.
a Il,
who had made the acquaintance of hi
mistress at an early age, finding his paint
ing insufficient to support her, resorte'
) to forgery to satisfy her expensive taste
but previously he had tried his luck q
the gaming table, and had visited most G
the Uilles d eduI with Joseph and Tobei
After fighting as soldier during the wa
he Joined the ranks of the Commune, AM
and when the insurrection was quelle
he escaped abroad. He went first of a
, | to Hamburg, where he lost the littl
money he possessed at the tdpts Oert.
The prisoners at the bar are eight il
number-four men and four women; the
are all fashienably dressed. Dombro wsk
alleges that he knew nothing about tn
forgery, and says he received the notes i
payment for the money he had advance
Barreau, believing the notes to be gel
uine. tis calculated that Joseph Barrea
made about 100 900 francs out of his fol
E geries during the the six years.
From. the London Ne,os.
: PARIS. Sept. 25.-The whole band G
banknote forgers have been convicted
E The prisoner Dombrowski "a relative O
the Communard General of that name
q who was charged as an accomplice il
having lent money to further their entel
prise, was acquitted, the public prosecu
: tor admitting no proof of guilty kn )w
edge against him. Joseph Barreau, tn
d ringleader of the party, is well-lookiD
Imam of 80, fa.hionably dressed, and q
Igood education. II e has been painter
an engraver, singer, aud an actor. II
was like his father addicted to gambling
u and before taking to forgery as profes
sion, lost all his money at Monaco. Fo
lsix years he, his brother, his mother, an
C their associates lived comfortably on III
: produce OF the forged bank notes, whic
I the head clerk of the bank estimates 3
amounting 10 at least f5, 5,000sterling.
Joseph Barreau and his mistress live
y in pretty house at Courbevoie, undo
the names of Baron and Baroness Ba
u reau-Laroche, and one witness said the
were much respected in the neighbo
hood. They had agents who, for a cor
mission, readily got the forged not
:, changed by small tradesme and
u market towns. They might yet have be-
u, | indicted but for the llnprudence OF &