The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-11-23
COUNTERFEITS.
Several Railroads Lose Large
Sum by Bogus Tickets.
Scores or Passengers buy Thorn Of Brokers
and Lose Their Mcncy-Eot Until tho
Tickets Reached the Auditing Do
partmcnt Was 1t Discovered

| CHICAGO, Nov. 0.-Counterfeit tick.
cts to the amount Of 800, 900 have been
honored in the last four weeks By the
g. and O., Erie. Pitts burgh and Vest
ern, NicklePlate and other roads.
There wns absolutely nothing on the
face of the tickets to indicate they were
counterfeit. Thoy were accepted with
out question by conductors, passed
readily b. the ticket counters and
passed off as of legal issue. The tick
cts are the most perfect counterfeit Of
any kind ever issued
The first intimation Of any crooked
moss cropped out in the auditors Office
of one OF the victimized lines nearly
three weeks ago.
In checking two tickets of the Same
form the same numbers were found
The auditor sa tisfed himself that both
tickets were genuine and sent a sting
ing note to his printer, scoring him Sc
verely for his carelessncss The prin-
ter appeared in person with an indig-
nant denial Of the charges, but when
shown the two tickets Of the same
number was compelled to acknowl-
edgo that the error was made In his
Office.
The next day the ticket auditor dis.
covered sixty-seven duplicated tickets
possibility Of the tickets being coun-
tcrfeit
They were exact duplicates. The next
day nearly 800 duplicated tickets
showed up in the collections, and q
panic reigncd in the auditing depart
ment
Each OF tho tickets read from Chica-
go to New York, and was worth SIS
The ono days collections showed the
company had honored at least $500
worth Of tickets for which 1t had not
received q cent of revenue
Experts were immediately called in.
At the end Of three days, during which
time over three hundred more dupll-
Gated tickets piled up In the auditors
Office, one of the experts declared that
the duplication was counterfeit With
the aid of powerful microscope he
had at last discovered q minute inpor-
lection in n small letter ''o," which
showed in just half the duplicated
tickets. The imperfection was in the
casting of the typo, by which 1t was
made nenrly ten-thousandths OF On
inch longer than the rest, or elso par
tcle Of dust hid raised the type In tho
form used by the counterfeiters
In all other respects the jobs were
exactly alike. The paper ink, type "nd
press work could not have been nearer
the same if both were printed constcu-
lively with exactly tho Same naterinlS.
Meantime the other roads Ind been
going through the same experience. IN
each case the tickets were passed with
out question by all the handlers, in
Guiding the auditors and not one was
detected until the duplicate numbering
appeared.
Each of the roads promptly Issued
minute instructions to their conductors
to take up all the counterfeit tickets
and enforce payment OF passage from
persons holding them.
Each conductor was furnished means
to recognize the countcrfcits, and the
first day the four roads named took up
over 900 OF them. The passengers were
naturally indignant. but each was COM
pelled to acknowledge no had bought
the tickets Of n Chicago scalpcr Nino
or ten of the passengers who mado
written statements of the circumstances
declared they had bought the tickets of
notorious ticket-scal per doing bust
ness on Clark street. The rest were
bOught in various Offices