Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-03-17

means. The latter have secured somewhere
between 10 and Is per cent of the $50, 000, 900
National banks, savings banks and trust
companies have purchased IS per cent. The
balance has gone into the hands of great in
dividual money holders, like Russell Sage
who has taken 100000. or one per cent Of
the whole. for himself
The plain people," as President Lincoln
called them, are usually left behind In the
scramble for government bonds Before
they can get their savings out of the family
stocking and make up their minds to pay
ing $l17 and odd cents for 500 worth of
paper. the banks and plutocrats have sucked
up the whole of the loan. For example the
late William H. Vanderbilt at the time of
his death, held s4S, O5O 600 worth of 4 Der
cents. One of his quarterly interest checks
Is exhibited as a curiosity at the treasury
The check is for $3.50, 500. He got one like
1t every three months from Washington
just think OF 1t! That sum in gold would
equal the weight OF an average man. or
"ouio make ten Jumps as big as the largest
nugget of that metal ever found-the famous
welcome" nugget of Ballarat MrVander-
piits interest on his personal loan to Uncle
sam amounted to 1926. IS every day. For
every hour Of the day and night the treas
ury paid him s219.4O. He drew e. 5 for
every minute. little more than cents a
second. throughout the year. The registered
bonds held today by Cornelius and w X
vanderbilt run up to thirty odd millions of
dollars.
The Quarterly Checks.
Inc quarterly checks with which the in
'erest on all bonds is paid are returned cam
ceied TO the treasury, where they are pre-
served. II there is dispute as to a payment
the check Tor 1t can be referred to at n
moments notice, showing the signature of
the payee on the back The forging of a
name on one of these documents has rarely
occurred. Nevertheless. hardly a dav nass,s
that the checks on file are not looked at for
the purpose of comparing the Endorsements
on checks newly returned with earlier sig
natures by the same individuals In like
manner all of the bonds called In since 1880
are Kept, those previous to that date hay-
ing been destroyed. Heirs in litigation
sometimes wish to refer to them. The paid
coupons are packed away by millions I'm
pasteboard boxes
Redeemed and Cancelled Notes.
In this same note and coupon division of
the treasury are kept all of the redeemed
and Cancelled Understanding notes which
were issued by the government many years
ago. Comparatively recently an engraving
u INC <AniSfiCdn eagle was sent In for re-
demption by person who claimed that II
was part of an old seven-thirty note. the
rest OF II having been eaten by rats save
for another fragment with the number of
the security, which was inclosed. The files
were referred to and the eagle and num-
bered piece fitted exactly into note for
$500 from which they had been cut by the
applicant some time before, when ne was a
clerk In Uncle Sans employ. The note in
question was found in a minute among mil
lions stored away. and the evidence sent the
swindler to the penitentiary.
Receipt of a Mammoth sum.
One Of the most remarkable of the curios-
tiles exhibited at the treasury is the orig
inal certificate of deposit issued as an ac-
Acknowledgement of the receipt of SIS, 500, 600
pail over by Great Britain in settlement Of
claims for damage done by the confederate
privateer Alabama. 1t is dated September
9, 1873, and is signed by Treasurer Spinner
and Register Allison. There was no printed
form big enough to hold such great sum,
and so one was made with pen by a clerk
named McGrotty. 1t is very elaborate
piece of workmanship. The money was sent
Company and other bankers. who deposited
1t In the treasury, indorsing the certificate
as payable to the joint account of the Brit
ish minister at Washington and the acting
consul general at New York. Those gentle
men Endorsed 1t over to the Secretary of
State, who again made 1t payable to the
Secretary of the Treasury, and thus the
cash found its way into Uncle Sans
pocket.
Bogus Securities.
The turning up at the treasury the other
day of a counterfeit 81 900 seven-thirty cou-
pom bond Of 1866 occasioned much surprise
1t was not supposed that any specimens of
this fraudulent issue were any longer ex-
tant. 1t made an immense amount of trou-
Bile for the government twenty-five years
ago. considerable number of the imita-
lions, which were admirably executed, had
been placed on the market: but of this
alarming fact nothing was known until one
day, in the ordinary course OF business, the
treasury received from Jay Cooke & Com
pany, the New York bankers, SIS. 900 worth
of the bogus securities for redemption
They had been cashed by the firm men
toned. OF course, payment was refused
and thereupon a prolonged contention in the
courts followed.
The bankers claimed that the bonds.
though fraudulent, were printed from the
original plates, and were therefore genuine
in law. How plausible this assertion was
may be judged from the fact that the chief
of the bureau of engraving which had pro-
duced the original securities, feared that IL
was based on fact. Naturally his alarm
was great, inasmuch as he was responsible
for the safety of the plates thus alleged
to have been utilized for dishonest pur-
poses. When his head engraver. Mr.. CASH
lear, dlleT CdISluily eAdf1llIIHS one OF inc
false bonds. declared it an imitation mere
ly, he dropped into chair with a gasp
Of relief. saying: THANK Godr' 1t was
ascertained a dozen years later that the
author of this admirable work OF crimi-
nal art was Charles Fl. Smith, who was
destined to occasion the treasury much
more anxiety and annoyance before f tie de-
creed his capture
One Successful Bond Forger.
The highest flight of the counterfeiter's
ambition is the forging of government
bonds Only one man has ever attempted
1t with success in this country. His au-
thorship of the false security above de-
.cribed would probably have remained I'M
known to this day but for other initiative
crimes in which he was subsequently en-
gagged. These eliminated IN a counterfeit
of the 81 900 per cent bond of the issue
Of 1881. The plates for the treasury were
made by a bank note company in New
York, which employed Smith as an en-
graver. He was at that time highly re.
Of bankers daughter. While working on
the real plates for the government at the
shop Of the engraving concern. he repro
duced each night at home what be had
done during the day. Thus, when his legiti-
mate task was finished he had ready the
plates from which to print a forgery that
was almost beyond detection.
Betrayed by an Accident.
Only an accident could have prevented
the greatest feat Of counterfeiting in his
tory from obtaining a success which would
have earned millions of dollars for the