The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1880-04-10
In the United states Treasury.

Treasury DullQln8s NoAt W VIC w -"
House. Place where money is made,
but where you don't learn to make
money. Fine granite structure acces-
sible by muscular penance OF many
steps. Why so many fights OF stairs to
public buildings in an age when elevat-
ors elevate the racer Why now rem
der it imperative to climb up into .
building in order to get down stairs?
Money all about here cheap as dirt
but only to the eye. Otherwise, touch
not, taste not, handle not. Under
guidance and close surveillance am
taken to the Monetary Sanctum Finan-
ciorium where are kept many millions
for immediate use. bow in the pres
epce of Mammon. Mammon in gold,
Mammon in silver, Mammon in paper,
Mammon in stout canvas bags OF dol
lars, Mammon in 81, 81. %, $40, $lOO
and 81. 900 packages of bills, which re-
semble packages of tea l am given
to lift-only to lift-a thousand bags OF
dollars. l mean bag of thousand
silver dollars. A tax on the muscular
system. l am then given to lift q
So, OOO, 900 package of grecnbacks In
81 900 bills. No tax at all on the mus
cuiar or any other system. Balance of
weight and clumsiness in favor of the
silver; balance of lightness and. con-
venience in favor of the paper. Hence,
| prefer paper in mine; If there's much
of it. 1 laid the $4,000, 600 OF green
backs down and went away sorrowing.
Those bits of paper, which for few
seconds had held in my hand, would
secure me honor, consideration and
position among men, despite crows
feet and radically ugly face.
Shot up stairs to Treasury top door
per elevator to bureau of money en-
craving and printing. Very interesting
and hot with variety of mechanical
smells. Money smells a good deal
while it is being made. Lots of women
printing sheets of money, cut
ting them and counting them.
Money being baked in ovens to
make it dry and crisp. Rich financial
upper pie-crust. Bewildering series OF
complicated machines for making
money. Here is the financial stomach
of the Nation, where its life-blood of
trade, commerce, dignity and position
is being prepared for circulation and that
of which the inordinate love is the root
of all evil turned out by the ton. Also,
all manner of revenue stamps. More
women handling great sheets of uncut
bills with rustliDg like that OF the
withered leaves of autumn, which, as
Patrick Henry remarked, every gale
from Wall Street north brings to our
ears" Here are the engravers making
the heads of old Presidents and politi-
clans more beautiful than ever
were they in life, to adorn
money. Here are dyers up to their
elbows in green dyeing money. Here
they are at the employees lunch coun-
ter eating pound cake with moist,
green-dyed fingers and drinking coffee
from white cups, and leaving upon
them the impress of green-dyed thumbs.
Here be the safes where are kept the
bank note plates, third of each sepa-
rate plate in . separate safe, locked by
separate and individual lock and key,
and each lock different from the others
and the key kept by . different man.
and no man allowed access to the other
safes or granted to know even the
others combination of lock, whereby
no one man can steal q whole bank
note plate. Eternal vigilance and pre-
caution is here.- The price of safety
and enforced honesty is the United
States Treasury policy. Here the mar
row passages are now beset by swarml
, of visitors, each swarm in charge of q
Treasury guide. each swarm counted by
watchful officials as they enter this de-
! partment on going in and counted again
on coming out, lest some deceitful and
desperately wicked human heart might
be left to rummage about half-made
money and bank note plates. Here the
swarms of visitors encounter and jOstle
each other. and employees moist with
green and black dye squeeze through
i them, and the guides arc troubled to
keep their respective swarms from
| straying apart or lettering by the way,
, and their respective mechanical and
monetary manufacturing explanations
i get sometimes much mixed up, and
at all times dulled to the ear BY the
! hum and clank of money -making ma
{ chinery and the chatter of the
: money makers voices, who gaze crit
} ically If not quizzically on the visitor.
, in retaliation for being themselves ex
i hibited.
Carried, then, down stairs to tn,
} "Bond Room" Kept here millions OF
millions of securities from our 2,1O(
: National Banks. All inclosed in card
board boxes, and each box holding ,
) few sheets of paper. All these hun
dreds Of millions Of paper. Our mann
l mon seems a paper god, after all. Yol
may mold in gold and silver, but If yo'
: want to carry your financial penate
around you, you fall back on paper
t Lady visitor in the bond room expatiate,
volubly on the benefits Of wealth an,
the convenience of having plenty O
} money. Popular subject. Appropriate
place the Treasury bond vault for sncl
+ lecture. Lady wanted much money be
cause she "could do so much good wit