The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-04-04
RELICS oF TIE WAR.
A Curious Collection of the Persona
Effects of Soldiers.

In the office of the second auditor of the

In the Office of the second auditor of the
treasury there is a curious and valuable
collection of war relics, no public mention
of which has hitherto been made. and as
very few persons, even in the Office itself.
are aware of the existence of these relics.
some account of them, together with a
brief statement of the circumstances un-
der which they happen to be in the
auditors possession. will, doubtless in
terest the public at large.
Another class of relics consists of
bank books, certificates and checks.
amounting TO about $4,000. all payable 10
the order of soldiers, and therefore as
safe as such securities can be. In a few
instances the banks, Jay Cooke x Co for
example. failed years ago. and the pass
books and certificates are back mum
bers' but IN the great ma jority of cases
if the heirs of the soldiers could be found
the banks would pay on proper indorse-
ments. As some of the deposits were
made thirty years ago the accumulated
interest far exceeds the principal, and
the certificates, etc, would be a little
fortune to the Irish and German heirs Of
the soldiers, whose names leave little
doubt as their nationality. The checks
were mostly issued by United States dis
bursting officers, and the money is in the
"
to whom it legally belongs
A less desirable class of effects consists
of promissory notes, due bills. etc,
amounting to more than - 600 Among
the notes are two for 500 each and one
for 81 $50 dated February and March,
1865, also one for $500, dated April s, 1876,
all payable at short periods, sixty aud
ninety days after date, The three first
mentioned notes no doubt represented
part of the big bounties given during
the last few months Of the war. The one
for $500 belonged to a substitute who was
accepted in March, 1865. and the correct
date of the note is probably April s, 1868,
instead of 1856. 1t looks as if the drawer
of the note might have intended TO play
little game" on the substitute by giving
him a promise to pay, which, being ante
dated nine years, was apparently
outlawed three years before it was
actually issued One soldier of the
second United States artillery evidently
made bad investment of his bounty
money. Among his effects are some
shares of the American Flag Company Of
San Francisco, Cal, and papers showing
that he had embarked Sl.400 in that con-
cern. Whether the shares of the Ameri-
can Flag Company were ever worth the
paper they are printed on, even making a
liberal allowance for the cleaning stars
and stripes with which the paper is pro-
fusely decorated, is not known to the
writer, but they are certainly of no value
now, the company having given up the
ghost years ago.
PICKED Up BY THE WAY.
Some of the effects seem to indicate
the boys occasionally were pickers up of
unconsidered trifes, probably when
they were on foraging expedi-
tions. For example, one soldier who was
on duty along the Potomac left $40 in
bills of the Chesapeake and Ohio Bank,
dated in the fifties, which had no value
when he obtained them and never will
have any. They may represent the say
ings as well as the bad luck OF some
thrifty Maryland or Virginia farmer
Another soldier had by some means or
other become possessed of a warrant for
1850 acres of land, but the warrant could
have been of no use to him. as 1t is not in
his favor and has not been assigned or
transferred Another had picked up
some original patents for lands in one of
the southern states, possibly when he was
marching through Georgia AS an
cient documents they were interesting
and might be valuable to the owner of
the land, buttas effects Of the soldier who
left them their value is nil.
In addition to lot of uncurrent bank
notes, which in their day were all right
enough, there are many wildcat and red
dog bills, which were no doubt passed upon
the boys when they were scarcely in a
condition to distinguish a genuine bill
from circus poster That may seem IL
violent supposition, but inasmuch as
many of the bills are incomplete. lacking
both mum bers. dates and signatures Of
the bank officers, and persons who ac-
cepted them as money could not have
been very wide awake, Quite a number
of state bank bills which were turned
over to the second auditor as uncurrent, or
bogus, and as such had been refused by
army paymaSters, were found to be
genuine and on presentation were re-
deemed by the banks and the amounts
placed in the treasury, In these cases
the heirs of the soldiers will get the
money should they ever apply for it. as
the records of the Office show that the
soldiers are credited with the proceeds of
the bills. The collection Of bogus money
would not be complete without confeder-
ate promises to pay, of which several
specimens were left by deceased prison
ers of war. The confederate treasury
notes. confederate state bank bills and
kinds of paper that would receive and re-
tain the impression of printers ink, are
genuine war relics in every sense of those
words.
PHOTOGRAPHIC GALLERY.
A column might be written on the col
lection of photographs, ambrotypes and
tlntypes which form part of the deceased