The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-03-10
WOMEN MAKE OUR MoNEf.
THEY ARE MUCH MORE EXPERT AT
THE WORK THAN MEN.
The Manufacture of Paper Currency
Is An Interesting Operation and
Requires n Great Amount of Hand

Is An Interesting Operation and
Requires a Great Amount of Hand
ling.
From the Philadelphia Ledger
The money of the United States is made
by women. This applies most particularly
to paper money. In the bureau Of engrav-
ing and printing, which turns out all the
paper money of the government, nine hun
bred and twenty-one women are employed.
From the time when the fiber paper
first comes into the treasury until It goes
out again in the shape of crisp notes It is
manipulated almost entirely by clerks of
the gentler sex. And when it is at last
redeemed by new money because it is too
old to be used any longer, it is they who
still have charge of 1t and count it and
recount it before it is finally macerated.
They are much quicker and cleverer than
men at this work
1t takes from thirty to forty days to
complete a note from the time 1t first
goes into the bureau of engraving and
printing in the shape of fiber paper until
it comes out money, during all which pc
Rod ii is i'm the hands of women. 1t has
times altogether This makes 1t impossi-
BILE for a mistake to occur. If a single
sheet of blank fiber paper is lost while
II Is in the building whoever is RESPONSE
BILE has to pay whatever the face value of
the notes would have been if printed.
All the fiber paper used for money is
made in the Crayon mills at Dalton, Mass,
under government supervision but not by
Uncle Sam. This paper is cut in sheets
large enough to print four notes on, and
then transported to the treasury depart
ment in Washington, where 1t is counted
by women when il arrives. Every pack
age must be counted several times be-
fore II is stored away until wanted by the
bureau of engraving and printing, to
which quantities of 1t are sent every
morning in securely locked trucks packed
in burglar-proof wagons
when the dbre paper arrives at the bu-
reau OF Engraving and Printing IL is count
ed, which is again done by women, and If
the amount corresponds with the treasury
figures a receipt is sent back. This is al,
stored away in a chilled steel air-tight
vault, and even If the rest OF the building
burned down the paper in It would be safe.
1t is quite large room, with shelves along
the walks to put the money on. Two large
doors make 1t secure against robbers
These are like the doors of any safe, hav-
ing combination time locks. One official is
acquainted with edCn combination. put
nobody knows both. The clock is set for
a. m, as that is the time the bureau
opens, so. even were any dishonest person
possessed of the double secret he could
not open il before that hour. Every bit
of fibre paper used in the building must
be called for here in the morning and re-
turned again before the clerks go home
Every printer has a female assistant
She gets each morning as much of the
fibre paper as she thinks she can print
in the course of the day, giving a receipt
for it. If she finishes IL and needs more
she has TO apply again for It, This paper
she takes to her table, and, sheet by sheet
lays 1t on a board brushes 1t over with
water, which makes II print better. places
IL in the machine, and takes it out at the
other end, and with the backs of the notes
printed on it. Each one as it comes out
of the machine she puts at one side and
lays a piece of tissue paper over it, When
a certain number are done they are hand
ed over to another woman, who counts
them and separates all the imperfect ones.
The next step is to dry the notes They
are placed in trucks specially constructed
for this purpose having a number of trays
made of wire netting, on which the notes
are spread. The trucks are then put in a
room heated for the purpose, and remain
twelve hours or more. on being taken out
the notes are again counted several times
by women before going into the hands of
the printers once more. They now have
to have the faces put on. This Is done in
exactly the same manner as the backs
were, except that it has to be done more
carefully, as the fronts of the notes must
be exactly opposite the backs. There is a
little mark at the top and bottom of each
sheet to serve as a guide, and the female
clerks who do this work are so skilful
that they practically never get them six
tenth of an inch wrong.
Then the money has to be counted and
dried and recounted as before. After that
the next step is to take the money out Of
the tissue paper. This work is likewise
done by the women with wonderful ex-
pertness. Before being thrown away the
tissue paper is all gone over once more
to see IL by accident any of the money
may have stuck between the sheets. Then
the money is recounted and examined for
imperfections If the least little defect
of any kind Is found on a note the whole
sheet of four is discarded. Next each
sheet is put between two pieces of espec-
tally prepared oiled cardboard and placed
in a hydraulic press Out of this il comes
with the crispiness which new bills al
ways have. The pasteboard gives 1t a
slight polish.
The money is not yet ready for circu-
lation. Each note must be numbered.
This is done with little machines worked
with the feet, every. woman having her
own. The numbers arrange themselves
automatically; all the operator has to do
Is to put the bill to be printed in and
then touch a pedal with her foot, and To-!
it is printed. After this the cash is count
ed once more, and the numbers examined
The ladies' who do this work are so mar
vellously quick at it that they can aver
age as many as 5000 day, picking out
any defective ones as they go.
The notes are now taken I'm hand by still
other women who have machines for trim
ming off the edges; only the sides are
cut however. now, the top and bottom
margin being left on until they get into
the treasury. The edges of paper cut off In
this way are not thrown away; they are
made into papier mache. Now the money
has TO be counted a few more times and
It Is ready to leave the bureau of engrav-
ing and printing from which Il rs taken
20 the treasury department in the same
wagons that are used to convey the fibre
paper between the two buildings.
There Is one very charming young wO-
man in the bureau OF engraving and
printing whose chief duty IL Is to show
strangers through the building She
knows all the ins and outs ana just how
the work Is done from beginning to end
and points out everything calculated to