Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-04-25

perfect a. to have been passed repeatedly q
banks. wherever they are they are dangerous
because they may be used again at any time
The secret service would give q good deal oil
real money to get hold Of them. The only dax
in the counterfeit is slight blur on the end Of
trail vignetts, but that might be rsetifed.
THE SECRET SERVICES MAIN OBJECT.
The main object sought always by the secret
service, where counterfeit is concerned, n ID
obtain possession of the plates or dies. So
long as they are in existence, uncaptured, they
mean danger. Hence It 10 customary to ex-
tend the utmost leniency Of the law to forgers
who will give up the perilous property-light
sentences sometimes. and even pardons. But
1t Is part of the business Of
the government detectives to watch continu-
ally every counterfeiter who has been let out Of
prison in order to sec that he does not con-
Time his criminal career. In most cases the
freed criminal has a mastering inclination to
return to his old industry, and the United
States treasury would be ''in' a great many
dollars If forgery was now, as formerly, a CAPT
tai offense. Men who made an occupation Of
scounterfeiting for long lifetime were un-
known In the old days..
THE DIFFICULTIES
which attend the catching of counterfeiters are
much greater than might be surniisAd offhand.
In the first place. the man who manufactures
the money is not even known to those who cir
cu!ate it, usually. He establishes confidential
relations with rural hotel keeper. for example.
The latter 10 supplied with stock of bogus bills
or coin, which he keeps buried under ground.
From the hotel keeper persons whom mine
host has reason to trust buy the stuff" at an
average rate Of GO cents on the dollar. They
pass it. II one of them is caught he NAV
peach" on the hotel keeper, but his assertion
will not furnish convicting evidence against
the hotel keeper. Necessarily the hotel keeper
will deny the charge, and be must DO acquitted
unless the bogus money be found on his prem
Uses. II is not apt to 10 found. because
it is securely hidden below ground some
where that he only knows OF, and to discover
1t is almost out of the question. Suppose how
ever. that il is discovered In that case it does
not follow by any means that he viii betray the
iorger. aud il the forgsr himself is captured. it
still remains to learn the whereabouts OF the
dies or plates, which the coun:erfeiter will GER
taialy not keep on his premises. Considering
all these things it is decidedly surprising that
the efforts OF the secret service are a. success
full a. they are.
THE RoGrEs' GALLERY.
In the frames inclosing photographs Of coun-
terfeiters at the Treasury Department are a
number Of pictures Of women counterfeiters.
They arc rather depravcd-lookins characters
as rule and nature does not appear to have
bestowed much decorative effort upon their
physiognomies. But the law deals very mildly
with them. Particularly when they are the
wives OF Yorgers it is considered, from the legal
point Of view, that their assistance in crime
has been given under durcss' and the
custom is to acquit them The other
frames of counterfeiters' photographs shown
are filled with portraits singularly unatsractive
such squalid aspect is characteristic of them
throughout that one would be led to imagine
that there is really no money in the business OF
Illicit money making. The traits of counte-
nance shown also bear u remarkably uniform
cast. 1t reminded The STAR reporter
OF an occasion years, ago, when he
over the ':rogaes' gallery at police head,
quarters in New York city. He had expressed
some surprise as to how the most skilled
detectives could 60 about in crowds on a fest,l
day and arrest with unerring accuracy the
criminals whom they had never seen, gathering
them III for the protection Of honest peol lie.
But the chief showed him by reference to the
photographs how the face of the sneak thief
OF its own, that Of the burglar
another, and so on. SO that the police
agent was able to distinguish the dishonest
member OF society offhaud, without danger of
mistake. 1t Was the same way with these
eounterfeiters; they all bore the Cain mark of
are great and successful coiners. They have
frame to them elves III the ante room OF the
secret service bureau.
Some notion Of the prevalence Of counter
feiting will be given by the fact that not LONG
ago, Oh the occasion of the periodical destruc-
ton OF such stCt accumulated BY the secret
service bureau, three-quarters Of a million
dollars II bogus paper money was burned and
at the same time there were rendered useless fer
further service a plates 5Gi dies and 80 plas-
ter molds, as well as great quantity OF al
legged gold. silver. nickel and cope: coins;
also many presses. mining nachines, erucibles,
batteries and other apparatus