The Washington times., 1902-12-28
Ten millions or ten
wears "a chance. We took
It and lost. W. N. j.

T HIS inscription in fancy lettering
runs across the mounting Of pho
i tographs hanging in a frame I'm
the Office Of Chief WHkie. OF the
United states Secret Service Division
al Washington. There are FIVE photo
graphs in the frame. arranged crosswise.
and ct the corners are four brard-new
greenhacks. two OF 800 one Of $50, and
ore $50. All are couuterfeits.
Beneath the lowest photograph Of the
group the one az the foot or the cross
IS written the name Of William NJ. Ja-
cobs. whose initials figure in the in
scription above. The words are his own
and summarize in sentence one Of the
greatest romances OF crime history has
known
Five years ago. in January, 1897, the
the Treasury officials at Washington
discovered hat bogus Treasury notes for
SlOO we're in circulation The discovery
was made. as all such discoveries are. in
the most haphazard fashion. One OF the
telIers IN the Treasury. I'm counting over
a pile OF 500 bills. noticed one on which
the stamp was OF a Slightly different
color from the rest. The bill itself was
comparatively old and dirty from fire.
queut handling. and the color Of the i'm
preston merely differed from its fell
lows a. much as faded salmon color diff
fers from faded carmine. Idle curiosity
rather than suspicion as TO its genuine
ness caused the teller TO lay aside the
note. intending to call attention TO the
curious effect Of the faded ink.
Deceived the Officials.
When shown 10 half a dozen officials
OF the Treasury. all OF whom we're in
the habit OF handling thousands Of 500
bills IA the course OF a year. IL was
pronounced genuine. Even lwo experts Of
the Secret Service. men whose lives had
been spent ia detecting counterfeits. un-
hesitaunEly declared 1t to be good. AS
sistant chief Mclaughlin, however, was
not easily satisfied. He laid the bill be-
fore Chief John Wilkie who at once
communicated with the head Of the
stamping department in another branch
Of the service. and the result OF the con-
ference was the discovery beyond ques-
tion that the bill was forgery.
A thorough examination 0f the bllls Of
similar denomination in the Treasury
vaults revealed the fact that seven other
forged notes had actually been passed
upon the Government. How many more
might be IN circulation IL was impossi-
bic 10 say.
Where the notes came from or whore
they had been manufactured was an abb
sOlUte mystery. To stop their circulation
was comparatively easy matter. not
withstauding that 10 involved the calling
in Of -hc entire issue Of $4,000 600. which
was Done az once. But 10 trace the per-
petrators Of the fraud and more import
ant still 90 recover and destroy the
plates was g task seemingly impossible
unless some lucky accident or mistake
on the part OF the cOunterieiters should
bcray them.
Duicent INQUIRIES among the we'll
known couuterIeIters. both IN prison anc
out n prison. merely added 90 the mys.
terv without hesitation every criminal
exDert declared the fOrgerics TO De faI
ana away too low 10 be the handiwoTk OF
any one In their Acquaintance. Under the
microscope Che engraving Of these bills
failed o. snow The faintest indication
of their having been printed in sections
OF from plates made ln sections And &,
make tle mystery more beWilderag ID
was discovered beyond question that
they were actually printed on Govern
mcnt paper
such a hCrculean task was probably
never before attempted 90 the history OF
criminal investigation. It raeant no less
than taking a census Of a most minute
character Of all OF the engraving shops
and engrayers OF the United States. and
doing &C.. too. as secretly and az circum-
specify as a detective might shadow an