The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-12-12
HARD TO FOOL UNCLE SAM.
w,yy yAry BFFoRrs TO GET G0oD
MONEY ron BAD.
Tn, Redemptlon Division 81 the Treasury De-
v.rtment the Special object or Assauit-1t
sssm. Easy. bat It's Dimcuit and Dangerous
.,,oupt, 10 Hvvindle with S1utiiated mills.

ARLINGTON, Dec. IL why mon VINO ii oT-
dinorv business affairs arc scrupulously honest
do not hesitate to swindlo the Government
IA one Of the problems which puzzle the depart
ment officials at Washington. There is no doubt
| that this curious mental attitude toward the Gov
/ eminent IL very general. Tho Treasury Depart
mont scos moro examples OF 1t than any other OF
| the departmonts, and Of the Treasury experience
the redemption division gets q full share. 1t
IA there that $275,000,0 900 in worn and torn
| Government currency is sent overy year TO DO
exchanged for fresh, crisp groonbacks or shin
ing coin. Mr.. Relyea, who has been chief OF
the division for ton years, says 1t Is q great place
to study human nature. t~
In the redemption division they give you q
whole note for three-Hfths of a note Of the Same
denomination. They give you half the face
value of n motto for a piece OF It greater than
two-ffths and less than three-dfths. Finally
they replace a note entirely, however small tho
fragment offered for redemption, IL the owner
can show to the So abstraction of Mr.. Relyoa and
his assistants that the remainder OF tho note
was accidentally destroyed.
Bear these facts in mind:
Less than two-fifths of a $40 bill Is worth
nothing unless 1t can be proved that the remain-
der of the bill was destroyed accidentally.
More than two-tifths and less than three
ffths of the bill Is worth So, but with the Same
condition fulfilled 1t is worth $40.
Three-ffths of the bill is worth $40.
Six years ago, IL one.tenth Of a $40 bill was
missing, the Treasury gave only 30 for 1t, but
n. -......s a., nj, ,u,... ..u..mnat
Of ~ ths:m aUana sdI hills nIS w "rs s dn,u of s "pUII Sen muss
nation, and most of the persons who presented
them werc moor, so tho new ru,e was adoptcd.
and 1t has worked well. But 1t opens up a
tempting avenue for fraud. although any one
,rhn hne,, ho,r Gov, .hanoa. tho.. go,
"ho hhS" NV" A"hSoS ehOao SoS"p
ing the eye OF Chief felyea and his experts
dcmption division. Mr.. Rolyea and his staff can
scent a fraud as quickly asa secret service officer.
rsdomnt,on Sivis,on onoh,If - = s,o h,u ac.
lpt.on =. uis '. ID oaSnu,t aa aar 81 S,o . us, ac,
a spree he h had used the other half Aft to LIGHT a
cigar. Tho half which bo forwarded was nice.
ly oharred along the the inner NJ edge Tho ns' story tor
would have been very plausible If the redemp-
tion airis;on Ind ~, roos;vad ,rithin t,rsn.
half Of the same note. The theory Of the
Treasury officials was that while on a spree the
doctor had struggled for the possession of the
bill with some one; who had wrested half of it
from MIN; that inc aesponer mad turned inc
half into the bank and received SIS for 1t: that
- 49, ~. IL - -
the other hal1 IN MS pocket ana. not wanting
TO lose his money, mad conceived the plan OF
singing the edgo NJ the note and saving Tho
other Ssh'r, half had been i destroyed est syysd;D+ So 80 he he calmly na!y
Sam Of g. .,u,o t., c,,,.u
a a short time ago e a MAJ IN Chicago sent an
singed half OF two $50 bills and one $40 bill:
This afidayit was typewriter and In perfect
mercial traveller; that, returning from a Jour.
bb sy NE Mbe aad in ossn ftsan1nS he oS had h1 tbr .5axel ints
the nre an envel0DO containing BDO IN DIS.
that, In accordance with section so-and-so OF
the law OF such a date, he would like to have
The clerk who brought this document to Mr..
kelSea commented on its completeness
Hold up a1ot tSe se claim d for a time. SA'o mr. N'''''.
TWenty-four hours later a big shipment OF
mutilated currency game from the Sub.Treasury
at Chicago: Mr.. helyea asked II there were any
ates E clerk brought nm the missing halves of
Inc attempt TO deiraud was Plain; INC mat.
yer was put al once IN inc hanas OF inc secret cr
eago. He found the young man who had made
the afidaSit ~ though y IL was MADE unaer a false
fomssv ne ne , tEIa aae yeu cssa ma nf tf fSs l t, was t Gus.
there was no doubt he would get tho money.
The young mans fears were luiled to rest. ae
davit. He was put under arrest, and then the
s sso5HI OF b ms f Sa beS fa faiIs opt into ne b %as c OF 1eee Snt
and had been persuaded to attempt the fraud
by older companions: They furnished the
money, anu Prepared tne ahluasit; iney cut
the bills In half, and for one half obtained $25:
The other half they .singcd and attached
them to his affidavit. When he was arrested
they fled. ,,oa. ., .,o ,u,n,,, GOULD .oo
been more than $25, and in trying to beat the
government out or That amount the young
man forfeited his liberty Tor a year and a half.
One of the most interesting cases IN the his
tory of the department began in New York
and ended In Kansas. One day a money
broker in the Bowery sent IN for redemption the
halves of some bill $50 worth. He received
promptly a Treasury draft for $25.. Now, half
notes are always a little suspicious. 1t is
difficult to imagine a legitimate reason for
was decided to put the half notes away and
await developments. They came TWO and a half
years later from an unexpected quarter. A
Kansas bank sent to the Treasury the other
halves of the mutilated notes, the inside edges
sGorched, and with them an elaborate affidavit.
The affiant swore that he was a farmer; that
while harvesting he had hung his coat on a
fence; that the brush near the fence had
caught fire, and before he could rescue his coat
1t had been badly burned; that bills aggre-
eating $50, which were In tho pocket of his
coat, were half destroyed by fire, and that the
accompanying the affidavit were all
that was left Of the burned money. With this
-. IL 49, H. - a