Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-06-04
MONEY MAKING.
HOW THE WORK is ACCOMPLISHED
AT WASHINGTON
Visit to the Printing and Engraving Blu
reau-Dinerent Stages Through
Which a Treasury Notes Passes
Before Reaching the Public.
fCor RrooklYn Eagle l

Every government or bank-note we handle
tells Us that it is printed at the bureau Of en-
craving and printing, but there is some
thing singularly vague and indistinct in this
announcement The bureau itself is right
under the shadow OF the Washington monu-
ment-a large brick building, not unlike q
factory, except in elaborate ornamentation,
and gay with fiuttering flags and tri-colored
streamers. Ii is comparatively now, having
been erected by congress in 1880 In order to
relieve the overcrowiei condition OF the
treasury department, in which the work Of
preparing money had up to that time been
done
When it is decided by the treasury to issue
a new note the engraving bureau is notified,
and the superintendent directed 10 prepare q
design, which he executes in pen and ink,
the drawing oftentimes being as fine AMI deli
cate as the engraving itself. This done, the
secretary of the treasury gives his approval,
and the drawing is handed over to the en-
gravers-please note the plural, for no one
plate is engraved by a single person. One
man cuts out the portrait. another the scroll
work, while vet third attends to the orna-
mentation, and so on, until at least dozen
persons hive had something to do with the
preparation. All of these men are experts,
the government paying handsome salaries,
and sparing no pains to secure the best talent
IN the market.
1t takes a long time to engrave a plate.
For over two mouths the engravers were at
work on the picture of the late President
Garfield, which is to be seen on the new 8
bills, and yet 80 cent piece would cover it.
From private manufacturers the steel plates
upon which notes are bought, their fineness
of quality and perfect finish rendering them
extremely costly. Having engraved the
faces Of a single note it is easy to obtain as
many duplicate impressions as are needed.
The steel, soft when engraved upon, is
hardened in a friedrich furnace an intense
heat being obtained from four Bunsen gas
burners at a cost of 10 to 10 cents for gas
In thirty minutes the plate Is hardened into
die
Upon this a roller Of soft steel is pressed
and the softer metal sinking into the grooves
of the hardened plate receives q raised i'm
PRESTON This roller is in turn hardened into
a die, and in being pressed upon a soft plate
the latter becomes perfect fac smile OF the
original This is what is called transferring.
All Of the dies. rolls and plates are handled
with the greatest care as would be seen in q
few minutes spent inside the grating which
surrounds the engraver The superinteDd-
ent of the engraving division draws upon
the custodian for such articles as are needed,
each one being numbered, and giving a sepa-
rate receipt for each piece received. The
engravers, in turn, give their receipts, and
thus there is not n moment when piece OF
Steel no matter how small, is not accounted
for, or, is beyond thu pale Of some ones
care.
When the days work ID over the engravers
surrender their plates TO the superintendent,
and when the latter deposits them with the
custodian he obtains a receipt The vault is
not hing more or less than an immense room
built Of steel plates. The door is Of iron,
and it has three locks, two Of which are
separate combinations and The other q time
lock The two combinations ara known to
one man each, and should either die sud-
denly, an envelope which is in possession OF
Secretary Manning, and in which the COM
bination is contained would be opened
The paper used az the bureau docs not
come directly from the mill For every
sheet requisition has to be made on the
treasury where it is stored. 1t is a very fine
and heavy quality of paper, grayish in color
and irregularly marked with threads Of red
and blue silk. The requisition states for
that purpose the paper is to be use1, thus:
IL, 900 sheets for 81 bills, 5000 for 6 bills,
1.poO ibI cav anu ~rDVV ipi CIV bih1
Before these sheets are turned over TO the
superintendent of the wetting division they
are counted by force OF women specially
employed for that purpose.
Dampcning the paper and making it mel
low for the impression is an important part
Of the work The sheets are placed between
wet cloths in packages Of ten or fifteen each.
and permitted TO remain over night reQui-
sitions being made in the morning for tho
number Il sheets required By each
plate printer. who has a woman 20
assist him Tue printers start work at )
O'Clock. They ink the plates and revolve
them on the press, while the duty OF the wo-
man i 10 rub the paper with a damp cloth,
place IT on the press and remove 1t when il
has received the impression. Few OF the
printers WORK later than O'Clock in the
afternoon, All on completing their labor
make a return OF the number OF sheets
printed AMI the number left over Should
Cclock arrive and no sound Of the gong b
heard, il i then understood that something
is wrong. Perhaps 1t Is only one sheet of
paper that /, missing. but until satisfactory
accounted for al receiptel for, all the EN-
ployes are KEEP: IN tie bGiliins The super
vision i very -;rlcL
And now wEers a. We In IN, driving
room. 81 which the sn-rt, ~.il mos. from
the pressas are cJnv-yeI Ia. on. u per-
fectly air T. : d; "a i i71te uy tam to a
emperatrrc o. - ie-r-e Far :.lr Hero
the Sheets miai over n- ,it l1l q AZ fol-
lowing morulu- are cllat .iy $50 who
also loak Tor IN 80 r-..f#. g, n
blot as bi- pa mai. % iu- - n
a Sign tear III zap al
the initials n e. rler 9. Il
ity for the tun.t !e al =
thrown cut By TIE FRS -z-as p
ward gone over again
termne whether the lrf -s % I |
or whether they arr o. al BE-. 90
70 warrant the d4>tra ~ ~ .t
After the notes hav- a. t..r.u 90
ing room they are rough All
What they now nseI 1, - b. = .-- . |
Is done by placing the rough --s-.ts ~ /
mill boeris-two sheets, oac+ : % g. -
tween each board T1ey are iG-n tatreI /
between hydraulic rams which exert a pres 1
sure Of SO pounds 70 the sq1a-e uch. wbea /
taken out Of the press they are smooth an /
crisp and resemble tho-s in Circulation, ex- |
ceps for the fact that they lacs the seals and /
nuEberS The seals are printed from steel 1
plates IN red ink upon regular Hoe presse4
The notes are then taken upstAirs again and /
numbered Ths numbering machines. N /
matter Of course. are automatic and ~iu 70 4
up - high a. 100 ono, 100