The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1879-07-24

testlnes that when a note is SO like The
original that it cannot easily. be de.
tected-as these and other "counter- /"
feits !" are said by treasury officials to
be-it really cannot be q counterfeit
but must be genuine note surrepti.
Ft'ously printed from genuine plates
or from secret reproductions of these
plates. Other experts testified that q
genuine plate, after being secretly
made, can be altered with q graner in
small details enough to make it seem
counterfeit to any non-expcrf.
In 1865 Hank Hall, a noted coun-
terfeiter in New York, hired two
plate printers named Lankton, to 60
to Washington, get employment in
the printing bureau, and there steal
copies of every note plate the govern
ment was using. They did steal cop
les iby printing on lead sheets instead
of paper) and could have stolen all
had not quarrel sprung up. Among
these copies were the backs of the $50.
$50 and 500 compound interest notee.
whose elaborate geometricai lathe
work engraving was thought a per-
feet protection against fraud, and was
the test among banks of genuineness.
They also got the faces of some of
these notes. A large amount of them,
estimated by some at $75O,O0O, was
put afloat. The government has re-
deemed $4,000 7-3O notes which were
afterward held to be counterfeits. and
Jay Cooke & Go. were made to refund
the money but the committee that
destroyed the plates were by no means
sure that they were counterfeit. The
superintendent Of plate printing in the
bureau testified some years since, that
the plates of 5-2Os which the secret
service had captured were from the
genuine d-pieces, which (or ,olls)
must have been borrowed from the
bureau to make them.
The $500 "counterfeit greenback
OF 1873 was inspected by experts and
compared with genuine note for the
Glover committee, and these expert
engravers swore beyond all, doubt
that the note came from q genuine
plate or from surreptiti0us repro
daction Of one. The bureau work.
men who transferred the plate from
bed d-piece agreed with this.
SECRET ISSUE OF NINETEEN MILLIONS.
A brief inspection of the treasurer's
books revealed the fact that $l9,-
100000 of notes were at one time se.
cretly afiOat for several months, the
treasury statements being false DUR
ing that time to that extent; and the
fact of that secret issue remained un-
known till lighted on by the Glover
committee. The books were falsified.
and q balance forced to conceal this
secret Issue, by untruly stating that
$l9, ,00O. .O00 had been deposited as q
loan, when no such deposit
.ook Mace.
Fro 1867 to 1873. while the am un.
of greenbacks authorized by law was
1850, ,OOO. 900, the treasurer's books re-
vealed the fact that repeatedly the
amount afloat was $1,000 600 above
the authorized amount in the middle
of the month, enough being turned
over for destruction on the last day to
bring the amount down to $500, ,OOO,-
900, and in other months the circula-
lion was cut down as much as $l2,-
OOO,0OO below the published figures in
the middle of the month, enough be-
ing taken from the unissued notes on
hand on the last day to make up the
sum to the lawful figure on statement
day.
General Spinner swore that the pub
lie debt statements did not agree with
his books; that he did not approve Of
them that his name was put to them
without his authority (; that he was not
allowed to publish truthful statements
that balances were forced in these
and that he finally got the
Jaw changed so as 10 relieve him OF
he duty he was not allowed to per-
form.
In nearly the whole of the fiscal
year 1866 the treasurer's books show
that the amount Of compound interest
notes outstanding was from $5,OOO,-
BOO to $1,000, 900 more than the pub
iehed debt statements showed. One
month it was $26 100000 less. Three
different statements of the sum out
June 30, 1866, were publish
ID, differing by millions, and none Of
the three was true.
Secretary McCuhoch publicaliy ac-
knowledged some years since that on
one occasion he caused$ 81, ,0OO,O 600 with
irawn greenbacks, that had been paid
off and were to be destroyed, to be
and published in the debt
Itatement as "cash on handl"
The first man who was entrusted
with the destruction of withdrawn
notes, Charles H. Cornwell, chief OF
he redemption division of the treas
lrer's Office, was caught stealing tho
notes and re-issuing them. The
AMOUNT thus re issued is not known,
,ut 1t is estimated by good judges at
,ver $780, 900. The second CHIEF, Frank
tones. was detected in making false
of destructioA of $4,000
worth. and General Spinner, Secreta-
les boutwell, and Bristow, and others,
refused to investigate the
natter, though about $SOO.OO0OOO of
lotes had passed through Jones'
lands in perfect shape, much of it
lever even having been issucd. The
hecks and precautions against theft
n destruction are found to have been
,rossly neglected and disregarded in
many respects. General Spinner
wore that "they have q rule that
lething must be divuleed that takes
Ilace in the treasury"