Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-06-14

question OF getting into the Treasury build
ing from outside for the purpose of theft is, Of
curse, q very different one. According to the
statement OF high Treasury official, made to a
STAR reporter the other day, vast sum might
be stolen by such a robber.
IN JUST ONE WAY
1t would merely be necessary for him to
suborn the guard of the vault for the first step.
OF course he would not choose the silver vault;
that metal is too heavy to be worth stealing.
He would hardly select the gold vault-for his
object would be big strike, and less than
cool million would hardly satisfy him. Bnt
81. 000, 600 in gold weighs little over two tons
and he would find difficulty in getting away
with load like that, even if he
had wagon outside on 18th street.
to handle; therefore ne would make the vault
containing them his objective point This
vault Is oil the first floor, much more con-
venient than the gold and silver in the cellar
tanning $3.50. 600, 900, in greenbacks mostly; but
1t may be assumed that the thief would not
want to be a hog, and that he would con-
tent himself with leave to grab in the first
story Treasury chamber, which always has at
least S25, 900. 600 In it.
Having bribed the guard preliminarily he
would hide himself during the day in the
building somewhere, which would not be Diff
cult. 1t is never known in advance what
guard will be on duty at given time. but the
might have to hide for two or three nights be-
fore things were propitious-and the guard
could notify him when all was we'll The
guard has the key of the outer vault door at
disposal. and that door he would open, thus
giving the robber a chance to tackle the inner
door. skillful craftsman could open this
latter IN short time, and then
the millions have only to be picked
of the shelves around the inside vault.
He has his choice among the packages,
hi Ia n,~1,, L.
showing the sums they contain. In each pack
age are 1000 notes. If the notes are $40 ones.
the parcel, about foot square, contains
$4,000; If twentles, $50. 010 if fifties 5000 0O0
If hundreds, 100000. A few of these last ne
probably Selects 10, O0O. 900, perhaps makes a
sufficient armfui-and with this haul he toddles
away content. There are single bundles con-
tanning $40, 000, coo in $4,000 gold certificates
in the vault upstairs. but he would not care
about those, because they would be difficult to
get rid of.
Just such robbery of the Treasury as this
might unquestionably be accomplished at any
time; but the point is, would it be profitable to
the thief?
No sooner would this greatest burglary of
history be reported than pretty nearly every
person IL the civilized world would be looking
out for hundred-doar United States notes of
the numbers advertised as stolen. The robber
supposlnS that he got away without leaving a,
clue, could not safely dispose of dollar of his
ill-got millions. If he deposited any of the
cash in banks the bills would be immediately
identified; in case he paid them to
individuals he would be quickly be-
trayed His money is useless to
him. Too bad that he did not take gold in
stead But after all, would that be any better?
Ii he had got away with few sacks of yellow
pieces there would be no safety in distributing
them. Very little gold, comparatively. is in
circulation, and any one who spent much of il
would be suspected when the Treasury had
been robbed. 1t might be melted up to destroy
its identity altogether; but how sell the bull
lion? To try to dispose of it to the minis or
buyers OF old gold in any quantities would ex-
cite attention. If it were attempted to take it
abroad i'll boxes its weight would occasion re-
marks, perhaps After all, it would seem bet
ter not to try to rob the Treasury of Uncle
Sam; there is not money enough in the enter
prise.
FLASH MONEY.
The business OF making so-called clash"
money, which used to largely prevail, has been
| almost put a stop to by the secret service This
term applies to all limitations OF United States
currency which are produced for advertising
purposes. few years ago business colleges
all over the country were accustomed to issue
resembling more or less closely United States
bills. bank notes or greenbacks, which they
used for convenience in make believe CONNER
clal transactions for the education of their
cause such play-currency was always apt to be
passed off for real upon ignorant people,
The same reason is accountable for
the law which declares that imitation
money shall not be made for any purpose.
The other day in Chicago tive-dollar note was
passed upon Chinaman which was in reality
only the advertisement of cheap eating house,
with one-third of it engraved in imitation of a
bank bill. On the remaining two-thirds was
printed the bill of fare, including STEAK, 10
cents; chops, 10 cents; ham and eggs, 10 cents;
ple,'5 cents, and coffee, 8 cents" Some little
time since the Treasury received one-hundred
dollar note which had been so long in circula-
ton in the south that it was nearly worn out
The face OF 1T was a good enough imitation of a
real hundreddollar bill to deceive any one al
most, while the back contained within the usual
blank spaces advertisements of an Egyptian
hair tonic" There is really a great deal of
such flash currency circulating in the south
where the negroes readily accept anything that
looks like bank note for money. 1t is in that
section that most of the poor counterfeits of
silver coins are passed around.
very curious sort of counterfeit not at all
criminally intended came over to this countr v
from Germany the other day. 1t was an excel
lent imitation of our silver dollar in some white
metal, but contained within it three small
knife blades and a button hook, which could
be pulled out and used when desired Alto
gether 1t was very novel and cunning little
contrlvance, but the secret service ruthlessly
sleZeu tne entlre importation or these curlOsl-
ties, some thousands of them in all. A COM
promise was finally effected, however, the gov
eminent retaining the silver-dol cases and
permitting the importer to retain the knife
blades and button hooks. In the secret service
collection of specimen fash notes the most re-
markable, perhaps, is a IS bill, which pre-
clsely resembles real one save for the fact
that instead of the ordinary signatures the
shop keeper who issued the note has put on
his own name, and on the back are few
lnconsplcuous words of advertisement.
The average person would accept this
imitation for S5, so admirably is
| it done. There is in the same scrap book with
this gold certificate for $40 printed in news
paper; also a base ball bank note with MIR.
Spalding's vignette on the front and portraits
OF the full Chicago team on the back; speci-
| men of clothing-store currency advertising a
discount of per cent to bearer; a similar
promise to pay issued by an attorney at Kear-
ney, Neb., with his name and business printed
across it in large letters; a restaurant commu-
tation ticket of like design, and many counter
felt confederate notes. There il no law against
cOunterfeiting confederate notes, unfortu-
uately, because theyare not infrequentlysprung
| upon the ignorant for United States money.
The secret service does not like the bus
mess of making lockets and such things Of sill
yer dollars, but the law does not declare posi-
| lively against IL, and it seems to be legal now
for anybody who has q silver dollar to do any
thing with it he likes. But heaps of imitation
silver dollars for paper weights and for tops of
confectionery boxes, to make them look as if
they were overlooking with money, are not al
lowed; nor will the authorities permit paint