Evening journal., 1896-02-06
ERRORS IN STATE SEALS
Few Of Those Printed on the
Bauk Bills Are Correct.
SOME IMAGINARY SOME OBiOLETB


Degree From the Coats Of Arms as
Adopted Ny the states Themselves
The TleasurY Department at Work on
New Dies-Ihe Mistake Made in Della
wares Seal.
The national bank note system has
been In existence some thirty years, and
during that time billions ef these paper
promises to pay have been placed Ia cir-
Gu alton. Now. 81 this lato day 10 has
been discovered that millions Of these
notes have been incorrectly engraved and
never should nave bees allo we'd 20 leave
the bureau. Just how many OF these
mistakes" are now In existence Is ~ OF
dednitely known, but 1t has been esti-
mated that 10 will taks fully two years
10 get the matter straight.
Those whose familiarity with the blind
goddess Of fortune has permitted them
TO handle money without feeling strange
may hsvs neticsd that on the reverse
side OF each issue are engraved two seals
containing coats of arms, one OF the
United States government the other Of
the state in which the bank issuing the
notes 10 located, excepting In the case Of
the territories, when the United 3 lstes
seal is supposed to be repeated Iuvestiga.
tion shows that ia st least twenty two
instances the state coat OF arms Is in
correctly engraved. In some the coat Of
arms is purely imaginary, In others
OBJ etf, having been legislated out OF
existen1s prior to 1864, and in still others
tho seals are glaringly incorrect. tho
design on the notes being totally
different from that legally adopted by
the states themselves.
The citiz,ns Of the great banking state
OF New York, che financial heart of the
nation. would not rsoognlz3 Ia. this seal
on the bank bills credited to the Empire
State, the arms which graces its fl W
and the eoA Of fair Maryland would
smile II told that the semi nude fkure
backed by ship aud tob ,cco hogshead
was the seal Of the original Lord Blltl.
more
How IL Came About.
TIE existence Of these errors Is lac TO
the seeming indifference OF the treasury
officials and might have remained
undis covered but for an outsider who
called the attention OF Comptroller
Eckles to the error That official with
Claude Johnson chief OF tbs Bureau of
Engraving and Printing, made an exami-
nation and found Nebraska, District Of
Cslumbia. North Carolius, Wyoming,
Iowa. Vermont, Delaware, Ohio. Ussh.
California, Arkansas Alabama, New
York, South Dakota, Wisconsin,
Mcntana, Tennessee. Missouri and
Kansss, all with these defective bank
notes The work OF getting the seals
correct Is Ia the hands OF Robert s
hatcher, OF Lsfayette, Ind, reading
clerk ofjthe House OF Representatives, ah
expert on heraldry, who is doing the
work for nothing.
Some oftho Errors
Some Of the errors are very patent,
while others are bat slight variati,us
from the original Maryland coat of
arms has been that OF Lord Baltimore,
and has been since 1894, with the OK
oePtion OF a short period about 1917
Il bears the only Italian motto used
"Fatti Maschii Parole Femme In
tha seal Of Iowa appears man holding
flag, with sheaf Of wheat ia the
background, while on the note appsars
an eagle with an AFRO la its bsak TIE
District Of Columbia seal on the bank
note Is purely imaginary. In the cases
OF Illinois and Minnesota the seals used
were never legally adopted, and
that used for North OaroliuG was abol
ished ten years ago The seal OF
Wyoming has been changed TO this: "A
pedestal sho wing on the front thereof an
eaglo resting upon a shield, said shield
having engraved thereon a star aud thu
hgures "A beiug the number OF Wy
oming "a the order Of admission Of
statehood. Standing upon the PEDESTAL
shall be q drSpAd figure OF woman
modelled after the statue of the Victory
OF the Louvre, from whose Wrists shall
hang links OF broken chain aud holding
In her right bend Etaa from the top Of
which shall 4 iat a banner With the
words Equal Rights thereon, all sug
gestlng the political position Of woman
Ia this state "
what Ais Delawaro'a Seal.
yermont's seal Is out OF focus, and the
COW, emblemstio OF her live stock and
dairy interests is as large as her tall pine
tree, while the Vermonter's badge, two
pine branches, crossed between shield
aud scroll, and the crest, bucks hsad,
were omitted
A CIV with It's hssd turned TO the
right instead Of the left, according to ths
act authorizing It. upset the correctness
OF Delaware's coat OF arms. This seems
trihe but .he COW cannot stand with
her head TO the rigbt aud the bank note
be engraved according TO stipulations
Moreover, heraldry doesn't permit a COW
to stand with her head turned any way
but to the left. The cows head will be
located properly as soon as the new seal
Is msde aud the stock OF national Dank
notes already plinted on one side ia ex
hausted.
Ohio Caught I'm the Trap Toe.
Ohio ought TO be distinctly proud OF
itself II has had at least three Secre-
tsries OF The Treasury and numerous
officials connected with the curreocy Of
ibis nation. II claims Salmon p. Chase,
father Of the national blnk notes John
Sherman, one of the Repukilcan
authorities on everything pertaining TO
the issuing Of currency. aud other
statesmen who think they srs omnlscient
as regards bank notes Il Is to be
wondered At that mona Of them over
communicated to the Treasury Depart
ment the fact that the coat OF arms used
on the nstioDal bank currency OF Ohio Is q
ueFeshift for the original seal, which has
now been obsolete for more than twenty
Eve years The seal to be seen on every
Ohio national bank note vas abolished In
1858 Yet the government is still