Evening star., 1901-07-20
BILLIONS IN TRADE
How a Washington Man Uses Money
to Make a Living,
FATE OF MACERAFED GREENBAGKS
Modelled Into Statuettes of Many
Kinds.
A STRAIN ERRAN d

Written for The Evening Star
In a quaint little workshop almost under
the shadow of the Capitol of Washington
there tolls all day, and usually far into the
night as well, man who handles every
day in the year more money than passes
through the hands of any bank official in
the country. Indeed this Industrious art-
san claims to have had in his care more
of Uncle Sans greenbacks than have been
intrusted to any ether person, with the
possible exception of few officials in the
Treasury Department. Finally this money
planipulatOr who ranks one of the char
acters" of Washington, has an absolutely
unique occupation-is possibly the only
man in the United States who has during
nearly a score of years preserved his field
of labor secure from invasion by any other
man
His craft is the n1olding of macerated
money. which. Oeing interpreted. means
that he takes the governments worn-out
currency, after 1t has been torn and ground
Into unrecognizable mass and fashions
1t into busts and medallions Of prominent
persons much as a sculptor might cast
figure in bronze. These queer little statu-
cites, which resemble nothing else on EARTH
constitute the most novel curios to be
found in the shops Cf what might justly be
termed the city of souvenirs. The designs
In pulverized money have never had any
sale in other cities, although the expert
Inent has been tried. for the reason that
people refused to believe the material was
actually money, or, in some cases, We're
even incredulous that the government ever
destroyed so much money, but nine out
OF every ten visitors to Washington
who go to the bowels of the treas
ury building and see tons of worn-out
money chewed up by the mechanical gour-
raand kept there for that purpose, straight
way pay over their Eew money for the
old money dealt IN by the vendors of these
Tnementos.
the custom of dumping the discarded
money, after it had been torn into tiny
bits. on the vacant lot at the rear of the
White House, but this proved an expensive
practice for the nation The great heap
continually swarmed with lynx-eyed negro
boys, who now and then discovered frag-
ments of greenbacks of sufficient size to be
used IN exchange for good bills under the
treasury ruling. which provides that resti-
tuition shall be made for a damaged bill if
enough of it remains intact to indicate the
denomination - stipulation made. of
course, for the protection of persons who
suffer losses by the burning other par
tial destruction of greenbacks.
Valuable Fragments.
AS a remedy for the evil Just described
the plan of burning the old money was in
troduced, but even then 1t was found that
fragments foated away and We're put to
ulterior uses, and SO resort was made to
the present practice of disposing of the
macerated mass to manufacturers to be
converted into paper once more. The privi-
lege of securing the unsiShtly product of
the macerator is awarded once each year
TO the highest bidder. Formerly the old
man who models in this queer material
was Obliged to purchase his supplies from
the contractors, but through the intervan-
tiOn of several senators a few years since
he secured the privilege of purchasing such
quantity as he might desire direct frcm
the treasury The macerated money mt
TO TINS use is, however. a mere drop in the
bucket as compared to the total OUTPUT