The sun., 1901-04-28
SAVING MUTILATED MONEY.
RECENT INSTANCES or SKJLtTL WORK
~ THtT LINE.
The Hardest Task Is Presented nv MONEY That
Has Been Nibbled by Mice. and the Neat
Hardest nv Bins That Are Charrcd.

| Hhs been WNfs anu t"' t'Nhs
Hardest nv Bils That Are Chsrrcd.
From the ~. Louis Globe Democrat
WASHINGTON. April IL The receipt IN
Friday Of the fragments Of six flve-dollar
bills, which had passed through the stomach
Of an Iowa goat. and Were offered A. ths
Treasury Department for redemption has
revived interest in that division of the ne-
pnrtment which concerns itself With tho
redemption of mutilated money The bills
were the property Of Charles J. Allen, \
farmer living NJ Ogden. In The afridavis
which accompanied the mass Of pulp gave
the circumstances under which the bills
passed into the stomach Of the goat
II appears that Mr. Allen became warm
| while doing some manual labor and removed
his coat and vest and placed them on fence.
The articles Of wearing apparel fell from
their resting place TO the ground and an
inqusitive goat happened along and nosed
| the six five dollar bills ont Of the pocket.
! No one saw him eat the bills, but when Mr..
| Allen replaced his coat and vest he found
they had disappeared. A companion wagered
| that the goat had eaten the bills and It was
agreed that II Mr. Allen did not find them in
the goats stomach after IL was killed ths
| price Of the goat would be forthcoming
| The goat was killed and the bills were found
In q little lump in the stomach. When re-
ceived at the Treasury Department two
days ago the mass had hardened into little
DARK brown lump that resembed anything
but money. The experts took themas IN
hand and soaked the whole until the minute
| accustomed TO the work separated each
| piece and in two hours the entire six five.
| dollar bills had been pieced together ana
| were rea dy TO he sent upstairs TO the United
| States Treasury Tor redemption -
Mr. Allies, Assistant secretary of the
| Treasury, says that the occurrence was any
| thing but novel one for the Government
The task of the Depart ment experts in this
case in separating the bills was compare
lively easy one, and not to be compared with
others which the | apartment has had to
| handle But few weeks ago case parallel
n nearly every partnar r. Trh ba ,ma N1 IN"
| A Michigan tax collector, who had little faith
In banks, stored something li"e $500 in \
placed m ed The ' can ' under RiS house Il appears
! that the house was elevated, so that the
family goat was able To- " IL under il The
to crawl under the house and bring out ths
| money owed to the county, he saw his goat
emerging from under IT. sIo~ly; slowly; chewin9 9 on
| The excited collector caught the goat and
| forced the portion OF the bill from his mouth.
| This was the largest piece found The col
lector was poor man. and was faced with
| the necessity OF making good the amount
of funds due his county, He killed the goat.
|
| the necessary affidavit a. othe circumstances.
sent the matter on TO Washington, and within
ten days had bright, new crisp bills for tho
The regulations Of tho Department require
that AZ least three-1iths Of "A bill shall be re-
covered before the Government will paw for
the mutilated bill Each mutated bill -
carefully pasted on backing Of paper ths
size Of the complete bill The expert has
| This glass Ia divided into forty squares.
| Nhet placed over the bill II the expert can
find that the remnants of the bill fill twenty,
| four OF the squares or three-tltths OF all or
| them. the bill will be redeemed
A Case within the last thrco weeks came
from farmer Of 81 Clair county, Mo who
while stopping over to feed his hogs dropped
his purse inside the pens. An hour later.
when he missed his purse he found the leath her
| contents There was a -laughterlng, which
II had been his intention not 10 have until
several days later Whit resemhled the re-
mains of the money was found and sent on 10
| Washington Three hundred dollars was re-
| turned 10 the Missouri farmer
| II IL now the custom of the Department -
return mutilated money found by any pers,n
to the finder II Il is reasonably certain the cas-"
ia a bona-fde find This was not the ce-s
in bills torn into small bits on the lake front
at Chicago six years ago turned IT. into mo
az bcy ThbSa5fq bg5f oSd iS Se
II was forwarded TO Washington, but the
ruling of the Department was that it could
| only be redeemed when one established pos
session Of IL
The rnders. got nothing Nor" recently
two negroes found ieyersi hundred H G9IIyt ~
from ST Louis They turred the moneN
| over 10 the ~ Louis lb-Ireasury aud II
| wa, sent TO Washington The money was
sent back from there with the instruction
| that the Department held that unless some
| one came forward and established beyond
| question proprietOrshlp IN the money 1t had
| been the custom 10 give It 10 the finder This
| was the find which was connected by some
| with sensational assault which occurred
| l..nr.n fftfln nsI
| Burned money j. the hardest for the Gov
| ernmcnt experts to work on. with the ek.
| cepton of the money which has been Gnawed
By mice saturday afternoon there, cam.
| into the Department Il cigar bON fuIl Ct
| money which had been sent from Philadcl-
| pha with the necessary affidavit showing
| that II had been inside of poorly CONSTRUCTED
| safe and had been burned 10 the condition
in which il was forwarded Evidently win
| the idea that the original package ought
not 10 be broken. the sender inc!o,ed ih"
| Charrcd pieces with some silver coins which
| had also been badly burned in the same safe.
| During the passage OF the money through
| the mails the heavy silver was shHk"u
| through the charred bills until there was
hardly piece left big enough to cover mors
| looked aS though taken from a CRATE INTO
| which papers had been thrust Mrs Brown.
I who is IN charge OF the EXPERTS who handle
| the mutilat"d money. Ill Of whom arc women.
| did not despair, although she deplOrcd tho
! thoughtlessurSs which had allowed silver
and charrHd paper 20 be packed 'ogee'nrl,
| three by the all Of magnlylng g!1sses.
| soon brought ont four $50 hlll~, and within
| Hr huu~ recommended that they be re-
| doomed Nv tho Trcaeurer
| The niece chcwed bills make pu2ylos Tor
| the experts which can only be solved with
| infinite patience and care Zach Of ths
| nieces is carefully laid ont on a hard. NHt
| surface and hen with the assistance Of strorg
| glasses magnfpd 40 II can be placed iu
| proper position i'm relation to all Of TIE other.
| The experts have n copy Of every bill which
| has ever been printed by the Government.
| These are used A. models a. soon a. enough
| Of the bill has hc"n laid ont 10 establish -
| issue The experts say that some of tho best
| money hat has been printed bv The toverr-
| ment was printed during the tN'l War period.
| The grade Of the p7pcr was superior to anv
| ever VI -ed and the engraving has ney"r been
| Gently Of that period are IN an"SceNcnI siais
| Of nrespryatiOn No bill has ever hoon rc-
| ceivcd M the Treasury Department lu =
| condition which has made II Impossible tor
| the cNpert- 10 -traighten II ont ana establish
| it, character beyond doubt Ny hoNl
| has never been obliged To Work on h'i
| longer than the eiGht hours Of tho dag
| secret service ofiiCor- have h""u frequently
| c1IIed up0n to learn II the stories when
| ar, told If the way ia which hills become
| n'ufiIntrd are true Within 'h" last Vo"k
| A Washington dirkv "aW" 10 the Departments
| IN great distress, bringing pieces OF bill.
! which nc said represented $500 Ui hnrd.
| cqrncd money li' declared that hn had
| hid tho money behind MS home hy hurv-
| ing il in a TN can He explained that hi,
| wife was given ~ great cNtrpvnCHnCe and
| ho was obliged 60 hid" the money +" keep