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

of the Lincoln head stamp, place them
in the vault and give in return for
them gold certificates. These counter
felts might have lain in the vault a
week, or month, or possibly longer, but
so accurate would they have been that
had they been distributed to the banks
throughout the country and the sub
treasures, sufficient time would have
elapsed before the certainty that they
We're counterfeits could have been es-
tabHshed to enable the counterfeiters
to escape"
The prospect of receiving a large
part of this $7000O,0 900 was what led
1ngham and hewitt to go into the
scheme. Delay of the United States
court in hearing the pleas of Jacobs.
Bredell, Taylor, Downey and Burns,
who, since their arrest eight months
ago, have been in Moyamensing prison,
was not, as the United States district
attorney would have it appear, owing
to the fact that they are wanted to
testify against Ingham and hewitt in
case they make appeal to a higher
court. Their pleading has been put
Off because it was hoped that the cor
rupted treasury official would be cap
tured and without the testimony of
Jacobs and Kendig it was well known
that the government would not be able
to bring to close the most audacious
and dangerous conspiracy that has
ever threatened the integrity of its
finances.
The first thing that led to the dis
covery Of the counterfeiters was the
cupidity of Taylor and Bredell. AL
though less than thirty years old, they
are regarded by the government as
expert engrayerJ, equal to the best in
the bureau of engraving. They made
the plate for the $100 Monroe head sill
yer certificate and delivered it to Ken
dig and Jacobs, but, before they al
lowed it to go out of their hands, they
took several impressions, and these
notes they passed one at time, and it
was one of these that George Cramer
OF the suD-treasury here discovered.
He held it for several days, and exam
med it with a microscope carefully
many times before he even decided that
his suspicion that it was counterfeit
was correct. The only deviation he
could detect was that the colors were
trif1e light, and that the note was
about l-16th of an inch short OF
course either of these might have been
an accident of the press or the cutting
machine, but after convincing himself
ne sent the note to Washington for ex-
pert study, and it was there at first
said that the note was genuine. and
they We're only convinced that it was a
counterfeit when Cramer had pointed
out the divergence in its makeup from
thousands of others, none of which
showed the lack Of coloring or similar
shortness.
Immediately the government called
in the entire issue of the certificates,
but months interviewed before the
counterfeiters were captured How
many of the bogus notes were put out
the government today cannot say ac-
curately. 1t may be said, however.
that the amount gathered in so far
does not fall far short of $4,000. Had
Taylor and Bredell known the project
for disposing of the notes, they would
have taken the impression surrepti-
tiously and 1t is possible that the
whole scheme as outlined would have
gone through and the government been
robbed Of enough money to paw a
large part of the expense incurred by
the war with Spain.