The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-12-09

The puzzle that the secret service
agents have for months been endeavor-
ing to rnravel is in which one of these
institution did Jacobs work? What
success did he have? Who was the
man? And in the hope of finding out
his, receiving tellers, cashiers and as
sistant treasurers in all these institu-
tons have for months been subjected to
the closest espionage. Day and night
they have been followed, their slightest
acts noted by emissaries of the secret
service and reported to the head of the
treasury department. Men and women
have been used in this hunt, thousands
of dollars have been expended, but al
though closer attention has been paid to
two men than to others, nothing dehn-
lite, not the slightest reason to excuse
an arrest, has been discovered, and
Chief Wilkie has come to the conclusion
that it is time to give up the chase.
The secret has been guarded jealousy.
Whether Jacobs failed or succeeded Will
probably never be known, unless he
consents to name the one who promised
to aid in the distribution Of the notes.
He says, however, that he was not sue
cessful, but Chief Wilkie and those as
ISOLATED with him do not believe 1t.
The cunning of the conspirators was
remarkable Men of comparative
wealth, accustomed to handle large
sums to have extensive dealings with
banks, they were aware that at the
treasury or sub-treaSury they could
only get gold or authorized gold notes
for their gold certificates, and in order
to accomplish this, they had plate
of a treasury note-that known as the
Lincoln head-made; and it was that
plate that was found near Elkton, Md,
after the confessions of Bredell and
Taylor had been made and directions
secured from them as to its hiding
place. This plate, an official of the
treasury today said, was perfect. 1t
was absolutely without the slightest
mark that would enable an expert to
distinguish that a note printed from
it was not genuine. The only possibility
of detecting the fact that the notes
printed from it were bogus was that in
printing the colcrs would differ in some
slight degree from those used in the
properly issued notes.
1t was this same official who said:
THE intention of the gang was to
put into the depository selected $40, 900,
900 of these notes in the shortest pos
sible time. That is the reason that the
paper for printing $200,000,000 was on
hand when thu place in Cumberland
county, Md, was raided. How easy
the scheme would have been to accom-
plish may be readily shown. For in
stance, say that the receiving teller at
the Philadelphia sub-treasury or the
assistant treasurer had yielded to
temptation. Both these men have ac-
cess to the vaults in which money is
stored. At present there are in the
vaults of the sub-treasury here nearly
100000 900 in gold coin and notes the
notes amounting to nearly 5000 900.
With the connivance of one of the off
Gals named, the good notes could have
been put in packages containing pos
sibly $5,000000 a day, and the counter
feits accepted and stored in their place.
When demand was made by bank for
money, the spurious notes could have
been sent out, or else they would have
been kept for a time sufficient to per
NIT the placing of the whole $40 900 900
of counterfeits after which one by one,
the men in the scheme could have left
the United States and landed safely
in country where they would have
been safe, even before they were sus-
pected, If the corrupted official had
been connected with the treasury in
New York the task would have been
simplif1ed. for the reason that, as a
general thing gold notes and coin to
four times the amount in PHILADELPHIA
are stored there.
And again, had it been possible to
secure the services of an officer con-
nected with the treasury at Washing
ton, the task would have been still more
easy The operators would have been
safe for months instead of weeks. The
abatement of the United States treas
Try for the month Of November shows
that there is in cash in the treasury
81 .043 12S, 2S8. OF this vast sum SPAS S43. 301
is gold coin, while in paper. which is
much easier TO carry, and which in all
probability would have been selected,
there are in United States notes
s28.S69 040; treasury notes Of 1890
81 5S4 600. gold cartif1ca tee 500 Qq7 or
1T is easy to understand how any
one having access to these vaults
would be enabled in the course of a
days business to take from a half
dozen different men packages of notes