Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1882-01-17
CiiEf,Ei-4I ERS.

isag Figures.
ssCheck-raising IS getting to be one Of |
the lost arts, said an old detective, |
.sand as checks are prepared nova
days they are pretty safe. There are
some of the crooked men, however, who
know all the tricks of removing ink.
[ was once curious enough to learn
how it was that they could SO success
fully alter check. Different forgers
use different methods. One successful
stock-forger used equal quantities of
lapis calaminaris, common salt and
rock alum, which he boiled for half
an hour In white wine in a new pip
kin, or he used fine sponge shaped
like a pencil, which he dipped in equal
quantities of nitre and vitriol distilled.
As he passed this point over the ink it
came right out. Sometimes equal guam
titles of sulphur and powdered saltpe-
ter, both distilled, were used. For a
long time the police did not understand
what use was made of little ball
that now and then was found in the
possession of prisoner. This turned
out to be made of alkah and sulphur,
and was used for removing ink. It is
hard to find an ink that will not dis
appear under one plan of treatment or
another. I knew check-raiser who
had small laboratory. He kept bot
ties of acids of all sorts and a case of
camels-hair brushes. With a small
quantity of oxalic or muriatic acid,
somewhat diluted, and camel's-hair
pencil he could paint out any number
of ink spots. One or two applications,
followed by the use of u blotting- pad,
would restore the paper to primitive
purity. It requires skill and an ae-
curate knowledge of chemicals to use
any of these plans SO as not to injure
the texture of the paper or discolor it.
If the paper is injured it is not SO
easy to write upon it again, but, by
the use of fnely-powdered pounce,
rubbed in lightly with the finger and
FURNISHED with an ivory folder, the pa
per can be repaired. Common writing
ink, however, is best removed by the
use of oxygenated muriatic acid.
"But the new styles of check, with
the amount cut through the paper with
die. are hard to alter. Here is check
with revenue stamp in old-gold color
in the center, and broad lines of red ink
are drawn close up to the amount writ
fen in. There is another broad line of
red ink after the name of the payee. Up
in the left-hand corner, where the
amount is in figures, yoI will see that
the figures are also cut through the
paper. On the reverse side of the check,
lust over these figures, is pasted pink
strip which brings the cut figures out in
such relief that they cannot be altered
without detection. The only way to
alter that check is to take out the first
written word in the amount in the body
of the check and the amount in the
corner. and, after replacing them with
the raised sum, to inlay piece of check
paper in the place of the cut figures.
This inlaying process requires great
care, and only one or two men in this
country are able to do it. The cut fig
ures must be carefully cut out by a
sharp razor-like tool, and cut in such a
way that the edges of the opening will
be beyeled. Then fresh bit of check
paper must be shaped to tie size of the
opening and fitted in, with its edges also
beyeled. The edges must be held to-
gether with paste made of -four and
strained resin and carefully pressed.
Some pounce rubbed over the lines will
conceal the patch, unless there is a
strong light, and then, with the same die
that the bankers use, raised figures can
be inserted. The work is delicate, and
is not often attempted, as it involves the
risk of running the check for the amount
for which it is good.-NeaO York Su3a.