The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-01-07
A PEEP At THE VAULTS
Oh One Of New Works. Safe Deposit Conn
panIes-The Guarded Millions.

n, One Of New Works Safe Deposit Conn
panIes-The Guarded Millions.
They entered by n door leading from the
broad and wonderfully arched hallway OF the
| Equitable building and encountered a very
self possessed gentleman, who admitted tha'
the report about the hundreds OF millions was
true. and said that as secretary OF the com
pany they were for the time being IN MS care
He didn't look like a man who lay a"ahe
NIGHTS and worried, and when the reporter
asked him If he did not at times experience a
,winge of fear lest some one should wrong
| fullv appropriate a few of the millions, he
smiled a confident smile ana sad:
Come with me for awhile"
half dozen sturdy men in uniform saluted
the party before IT reached q massive door
WAY formed of alternate layers Of steel anu
iron This was the entrance To the vaults.
The door was at the time swung open, but a
substantial iron wicket gate, locked and
bolted. and behind which were other men IN
uniform. barred further progress.
These are our arrangements at tins point
during the day. explained the secretary.
You hear that ticking pointing to II shin-
ing glass inclOsed bit Of mechanism inserted
into the center OF the great door that ~ IA
time clock. When the door Is closed at the
end of business hours that clock is set Tor
SD the next morning, and no human oelhg
IAN get into those vaults until the hoaf
named Then certain Of these many ana
seemingly complicated bolts are mechanical
|, released by the clock. But that does not
o,an the door. There are two combination
locks a, well. and two ofiicerso OF the company
have To be present 70 unlock these. There -
a similar door, similarly guarded, at tue
other end of the vault. You VIII SIC
what small chance there IS Of anybody get
ting in here at night when | tell you lua''
besides the walls of the building ltseil, 'he
separate walls of this vault are composed oil
thirty six inches of solid masonry, ie-eh
forced on the inner side by SIX inches OF steer
and iron. But even If anybody should sue-
coed IN such an impOssibility a. getting IN,
ms difficulties would only have begun. LOOK
bsra % and the secretary led the way into Tue
electric lighted vaults. You are ileht III
he midst of those hundreds OF millions now,
but what can you dof'
4 hasty glance about convinced the To
porter that his chances of laying hands on
ANY vi tue treasure were very sim indeed
.A
There were thousands Of double and trebte
locked inner vaults before him. Some of
them were not much larger in a front we"
than the letter boxes IN the postoiiiee, while
other, were OF the dimensions OF bank vaults
Tho small ones rem for SO a year and the
biggest ones for 81 800 year, but a burglar
would have about as hard a job getting ut
the contents OF a little one as at those Of a big
one. It Is 50 utterly hopeless a job that no
burglar has ever yet attempted IT. Even
though he got in he couldn't by any chance
have more than a minute OF two to woGk lh'
because an lnfaliDle system Of burglar
alarm, would announce his presence to the
Natchmen outside, who are kept wide awake
b. the necessity OF going from place to place
ali night pressing the electric buttons to an
nounce the fact that they are on deck Ne"
York World