The Banner-Democrat., 1901-08-10
ODD ROMANCES IN MONEY.
CASES SETTLED BY THE TREAS
uRY's REDEEMlNc DEPARTMENT.

Nork Of Feminine Expsrts-A Memory 7
Of the Galveston Flood-tiow identified. v
tion is Accomplished Continental Bills .
Offered For Redemption. :
There was received at the redemption I
division of the Treasury recently, says t
he Washington Post, an envelope con- :
taining a mass of greenish paper, driec
and hard, but showing evidence OF hav- :
ing once been water-soaked. The letter
accompanying explained that the sub
stance had once been money, and that Il
had been found among the debris lett by
the storm at Galveston, Tex. 1t was Of
fered for redemption.
There was undoubtedly much money
DESTROYED in the Galveston storm, but
comparatively little of it has been re-
covered. A half dozen or more install
ments have been received, but in all It
has amounted to but few hundred dol
lars. Most of it was in fair shape, and
the senders received the full amount IN
crisp, new bills The man who recover
ed the last lot received, however, was
less fortunate. 1t was turned over to
Mrs. E. A. Brown, the Treasury expert
on mutilated money, who soaked the
mass and picked it apart, discovering
at once that it was composed OF worth
less Confederate bills.
| Mrs. Brown and her assistant, Miss
Elizabeth D. Smith, have to deal with
money under many queer conditions. II
comes to them burned until only frag-
ments of charred paper are left, rotted
and mildewed, gnawed by mice, eaten
and discolored by acids, and in a thou
sand other forms. Their knowledge OF
money is reduced to science. BY
glance at mere fragment of bill they
are able to tell from its geography -
by which is meant the particular style
of engraving-the year of its issue and
the denomination of the note OF which
|. it is part.
i A case Mrs. Brown now has in hand
: called forth all her ingenuity. The Mora
Wan National Bank, of Moravia, N. T.,
sent a package of money that had been
burned until only black and shriveled
$ paper remained. The burned bills were
{ supposed to amount to $I25. Mrs
a Brown was able to identify more than
500, and as there remained consider
n able amount of the charred paper which
( had been crushed until it was unrecog
{ nizable, the full amount will be paid
( upon an affidavit from the bank that thu
II sum was destroyed.
.f n
II ed money was received from small
; town in Virginia. The sender explained
in his letter that the money belonged
to an aged woman who had been savini
it to pay her funeral expenses. He
house caught FIRE and her little hord
;, was destroyed. The old lady was nc
quite sure of the amount that had bee
in the roll, but she thought it was be
d tween $40 and SIS. Investigation show
ie ed that there was $I3o in the packag'
MS and that amount was forwarded for tn
t. benefit of the funeral fund.
ei Among the receipts recently was
ID large package of fractional currency
circulation during the civil war. 1t hs
d. evidently been stored away in vau
ed xL,t xv,e ,,ot overdrv and was badly di
RI III. on,or.d h.. wss vet IN such cond;tie
n th.t + could he redeemed. A good de
IS th;s fr.ct;onal currency Is receive
'as much of it almost as bright and clean
'm on the day of issue. The best is not d
ng stroyed, but kept on hand and sold
ia. face value to collectors.
ii. ,wssL - 81 aoo there was receiy
lot number Of Continental bills, issued
np authority Of the Continental Congre
the dur;nc the war az the Revolution. T
len law does not n.ov;de for the redempti
,n- Of this money. and the bills were retll
ev- Fl Ivnorant people IN the South i
dy elsewhere. particularly negroes, &
,es, ouentlv send IN large quantities Of Ce
lie federate bills. believing the Goyernm,
ers will redeem them.
ack The Government formerly held d
The finder Of money was not entitled
ese have Il redeemed. and when turned il
lich the Treasury il was kept there for
Il owner This rule has now been cham
ana the finder Of money IS the one Y
ista nrofts. Al few days ago Washing
iers rolored man took to the Treasury
+ina Sro notes which ne said he had 70,
dies IN an ash hcap. Although badly sol
The the notes were easily identified. and
t'e .'oss - - go
way Another Washington negro not /
,ebs aoo took to the Treasury 4 large o.
aUe Of bills. which had been buried
v;th the Ground and were badly water-soal
-. -. ..e s.orl'1 ,.m sn1 -" sss.~-sl., Sc sr,.Il
A sshs .;a.;on .nS nn;s 49, srd -. tasI of senara
om- the pieces and patching them toge
The WAS . bio undertaking, as the amoun
"o' 20 :, -,