The record-union., 1892-11-19
RonaL Bn!sfa1a 31nmoer.
UNCLAIMED MONEY.
Over 80, ,OOO, 200 from Money Orders in
the National Sub-Treasury.

Over SO zoo, 200 from Money Orders in
the National Sub-Treasury.
There is on deposit in the Sub-Treasury
in New York City, said an official to
Globe reporter, more than s., 900 900 repre-
senting outstanding money orders, and of
this amount more than S2,0OO,0OO repre-
sents money orders which are overdue
and which may never be presented for
payment Ten years ago, in a spasm OF
virtue. Congress appropriated money to
pay the salaries of ten clerks who should
check up the books of the money order
Office and prepare a list of money orders
which had not been presented for pay
ment. 1t was estimated then that if this
list was prepared the owners of two
thirds of this money could be traced and
the money restored to them.
To-day one solitary clerk sits in little
Office on the top floor OF the Postorhce
Department annex, checking up the un-
paid money orders. He is working now
on orders issued in 1871. At this rate he
will not catch up with his work in twenty
years, and by that time most OF the own
ers Of the money will be dead. and their
heirs or executors will be hard to find.
1t seems strange, under the precaution-
ary system now used by the Postot11ce
| Department that such an enormous
amount of money should have accumu-
lated to the credit of unpaid money or
der the original rules OF the office, which
were much more conservative than those
now in force.
If A sent money order to B to-day and
| the order was not presented for payment
the Postmaster, examining the letters Of
advice received from other offices at the
end Of month and finding this money
order to have been unpaid at the end Of
the previous month, would notify B that
there was money order i'll his favor on
hle IN the office, sent to him by A. If at
the end OF another month the money or
der was still unpaid he would notify him
again. And if at the end of third month
| the money had not been claimed, he would
advise the Postmaster, who would notify
a that his money order in favor of b had
not been presented, and ask him to urge
b to have II cashed. 1t would seem that
these precautions ought to insure the pay
ment of money orders within a reasona-
bic time, yet every year hundreds Of
them remain unpaid until they are in
valid.
Men who go from the East to make
their fortunes in the new West frequently
buy with their savings money orders
payable to themselves at New York,
Philadelphia, or some other Eastern city.
They know that the money is secure, be-
cause the money order cannot be cashed
by anyone else if it is lost or stolen, and
DGcduSe INC money call stA NdN 10 udOl Oll
application for duplicate by the original
purchaser. There is no savings bank
more secure.
Even trustees have been known to in
vest trust funds in money orders. Posi-
bly, a good proportion of the S2,00O,0O0
fund in the Sub-Treasury is on deposit,
and the original money orders will be
found in the course of time in old stock
ings, in safe deposit boxes and in desks.
But great deal of it represents money
orders lost and forgotten. People are
drowned with money orders in their
pockets; they get drunk and tear them
fup," said Sixth Auditor Coulter.
Besides, a great many people do not
know that lost money orders can be du-
plicated. They think that a lost money
order, like lost bank note, is gone be-
yond redemption. And many people
would not take the trouble to apply for
duplicate Of an order for a small sum.
Still, some very old money orders come
in for duplication almost every week. A
few days ago three orders, dated 1869,
came III for duplication, and within the
last two weeks an order of the date 1866
has been received.-New York Globe.