Daily camera. [volume] (Boulder, Colo.) 1891-1928, 1899-05-17
MUTILATED MONEY.
How the Government Restores In
jured Bills and Coin.
Cheating the Treasury of the UnitsA
ststes Is Frequently Attempted,
and Sometimes with Sac
cess-CuriOus CaAeA


by the government to inspect the cur
rency offered for redemption. In fact,
every person employed in the bureau is
in some degree an expert, because one
Of them has to pass on the genuineness
of the money presented for redemp-
ton. and this is difficult task. Re
member. that this money comes TO the
treasury, as rule, only when it is so
badly worn that it will not pass cur
= MT. This dirty, torn, greasy, ragged
money the experts have to handle and
decide whether it was issued by the
Esyernment and should be redeemed at
ITS face value or whether il is the work
of counterfeiters and should be re-
jected. II is not at all to the discredit
Of the experts of the bureau that some
bogus money has got past them and
been detected in one of the offices TO
Mhich the pieces of the money 20 for
further examination This does not
occur often.
The peculiar province of one woman
j. not to detect bad money-though she
j. an expert at that-but to put to-
gether torn pieces of money sent for
Identification and redemption. These
pieces Of money come from all parts
OF the country and arrive under most
extraordinary conditions. This is not
surprising. in view of the fact that
they come from experiences with fire
and water and gastric Juices and many
other powereftl agents. A not infr,-
quent accident TO money is TO be left in
Il stove, whence il is taken in badly
churred condition. with only ashes to
represent the greater part of il. Often
ii is used by rats TO make their nests;
or, buried in the dampness OF n cellar,
it rois away; or, swallowed by a COW. j.
is rescued from her stomach Shiny
mass Of paper.
Here are the rules of the treasury for
the redemption OF mu;ilated money:
For piece of currency greater than
two-iifihs of the original note. one
half the face value of the note is given.
For piece as great as three-fiftls, the
whole value of the note is given. For
a piece two-tifths in size of the original
nothing IL given. But this last provi-
sion Is limited by til. law. which gives
discretion to the treasury department
to give full value for note II the own
cr can prove TO the satisfaction Of the
authorities that the note. or the miss
ing part OF IL was DESTROYED. This last
PROV on opens the door 10 possible
fraud. and many are the efforts made
by dishonest persons 10 take Vantage
oil II.
The fragments of money which come
/ 10 the treasury are turned over to one
OF the experts and sorted out under
the microscope for Identification.
hey are picked apart and each tiny
piece is assigned TO its place like part
OF a puzzle. This is usually done on
glass, and the fragments are eventual
y put between pieces of glass 10 hold
them together while they are measured
TO see whether there are 'wo-tfihs or
three fifths of the note identifiable, or
whether IT is so little that the owner
can recover nothing. Sometimes il is a
very serious matter to the owner; but
the poor are not the only applicants for
assistance TO. recover damaged money.
At the time w N Nahderhilts beauti-
fil home at Newport was burned. Mr..
( Nandcrhilt-now Mrs. Belmont-sen'
| IN about Sl.op in mutillied currency.
! ont OF which il was able to identify for
n demp'ion all but fraction Of the
! sum.
Some of the experiences OF the re-
| dcmp,ion division with would be
| thieves are interesting. One man in
kansas sent to the treasury the halves
| Of some small bills with the edges nice
| Is charrcd. accompanied by an affidavit
| from the sender tina, he had put the
| money in his pocket. hung his coat on
| fence and that the coat had been
| burned to the destruction OF part OF
the notes. II happened that the treas
ury had redeem ID the other halves of
| these notes Just ats wears before fora
money broker in New York. and. think