The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1892-02-25
Making bad Money.

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exchanged for gold and silver, and from
which bankers draw the coin that makes
foreign trade possible, when a respecta-
bly, dressed man approached one of tht
paying tellers.
IT just want to know" he said, eff this
ten dollar bill is all right, or only q
counterfeit?"
He took the bill and retired with it fol
moment. He came back and without
q word handed the bill to the man
Across its face was stamped the word
Counterfeit" The letters were cut out
of the body of the bill, so that no power
could sgain put it in circulation.
"What do you mean by doing that?'
demanded the indignant citizen.
"Oh, you needn't get mad" remarked
the teller. "The law is imperative. Ev'
cry bogus bill that comes here is treated
in the same way"
"This wouldn't have happened had I
taken it to bank"
"Then you should have thought of that
before you brought it here"
"This sort Of thing" said the teller to
the reporter, as the man left looking
rather crestfallen, 'hsppeus nearly every
day id the week, and sometimes it is
funny to see how men take on when their
bogus bills are destroyed. They are re-
spectacle business men who have taken
them in honest trade, and they think it's
rather hard that they should not have
chance of getting them of again on their
unsuspecting neighbors.
"You heard what he said about the
banks? Well, that's quite true. If he
had taken his bill to the bank he would
have been told that it was counterfeit,
and it would have been handed back to
him intact if be was known By law the
national banks are to treat all counterfeit
bills just as they are treated at the Uni
ted States subtreasuries. They don't do
it, however, with their big customers, be.
cause they fear it would offend them and
lead to loss of business"
Very little counterfeit coin finds it
way to the subtreasury. 1t is seldom in
deed that even a stray bogus coin passes
the watchful eye of the receiving teller
at bank. The United States secret
service detectives have well-nigh stamp
ed out the business of counterfeiting coin,
and although the couuterfeits which now
and then find their way into circulation
are much better than those of twenty. five
years ago. they are always faulty in
one of the three characteristics Of the
genuine coin-thickness, diameter and
weight.
If they be of the proper weight, they
are either too thick or the diameter too
large, and little machine on the desk OF
each receiving teller at the sub-treasury
applies all three tests in half second.
When counterfeit gold or silver coin is
presented it is confscated and melted in
the United States assay Office for old
metal.
Apart from she action which decides
the fate of bad bills and bogus coins,
there is precedent at the sub-treasury
which puzzles the ordinary citizen. 1t is
the refusal of the government to redeem
its own gold coins at their face value,
except they be fresh from the mint,
while the most tattered of FIVE dollar
treasury bills is good for bright, new
minted FIVE dollar gold piece.
All gold coins wear in proportion more
than eilver. If you have twenty, dollar
gold piece and fancy that tits light, don''
90 to the sub treasury to find out; espe-
cially if it seems much worn. 1t will
share the fate of q counterfeit bill in
mitigated form, as the letter "L." fol
eight" will be punched on its face, ano
it will be fit only for the melting-pot, OF
to sell as old gold. One half per cent
of loss on the weight of the coin will in
sure it this fate without appeal.
Every bank suffers considerably in ths
course of year from this rule OF tht
treasury. When bankers present gold q
the sub treasury for the purchase of Ger
tiicates all coins that show loss of
per cent. are stamped and go to the melt
ing pot in the assay Office. There is nj
charge to bankers for melting light,
weight coin, and the owners only lose it
depreciation in weight.
An average of about 100000 in ligh
weight gold coin is received annually b!
the sub-treasury on Wall Street. Th'
loss on this coin, which averages from
half of l per cent, to 1 per cent, fall
on the banks, all of which accept ligh
weight coins within those limits rathe
than offend their customers. As rule
all the large banks hold their light coin
until they amount to $4,000 in pa
value before bringing them to the sub
treasury.
The reason assigned for the refusal
the government to redeem its light gol
coius at their face value instead of max
ing the loss by depreciation fall on bank
ers and citizens generally is that to &C
cept such coins below weight would en-
courage criminals to tamper with ther
and give new impetus to the Sweating
process, which has often more to do wit
the light weight than the ordinary wea
and tear in circulation.
The Sweating" process is simple, re
quires little intelligence, subjects the op
orator to the minimum risk of DANCE
from detection, and returns fair prof
on an original investment of say $500 i
twenty dollar gold pieces.
l