The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1902-03-15
HOW THE DOLLARS TALK.
RoMANcEs m eREsNeAcKs SENT
TO The TREASURY.

Experts IN NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. b,
which Matiissea Currency 10 Mad
Coed by tAe eoveFAmeat--Te'iins
ths wear ct issue from a Fragment
There was received at the redemp
J ton division 81 the Treasury in wash
; ington recently, states the Post. al
envelope containing ssass OF green
ish PAPER, dried and hard. but show
ing evidence az having been water
soaked. The letter accompanying ex
| plained that the substance had been
found among the debris left by the
storm at Galveston. Texas. 1t was
offered for redemption. There was
undoubtedly much money destroyed In
the Galveston storm, but comparative
" little of II has been recovered,
A half dozen or more installments
have been received, but II all 1t has
amounted to but 4 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 re-
| covered the last lot received, however,
was less fortunate.
| It was turned over to Mrs. E. A..
| Brown. the Treasury expert on multi
| lated money, who soaked the mass aud
picked it apart, discovering at once
| that It was composed of worthless Con
| federate bills.
Mrs. Brown and her assistant, Miss
Elizabeth d. Smith, have to deal with
| money under many queer conditions.
| 1t comes 10 them burned until only
| fragments OF charred paper are left,
rotted and widowed. gnawed by mice,
eaten and discolored by acids, and in
thousand other forms. Their knowl.
edge of money Ia reduced to science,
BY glance at a mere fragment OF
bill they are able to tell from its
geographically which is meant the
particular style Of engraving-the year
OF its Issue and the denomination of
the note of which it is part.
A case Mrs. Brown now has In hand
called forth all her ingenuity. The
Morayian Bank, of Moravia, N. Y, sent
package Of money that had been
burned until only black and shriveled
paper remained. The burned bills
were supposed to amount to s125.
Mrs. Brown was able to identify more
than s1c0. and as there remained q
considerable amount Of the charred
paper which had been crushed until
it was unacceptable, the full amount
will be paid upon an affidavit from the
bank that the sum was destroyed.
A couple of wesks ago q roll OF
burned money was received from
small town in Virginia, The sender
explained in his letter tnat the money
belonged to an aged woman who had
| been saving 1t to pay her funeral ex-
penses. Her house caught fire and her
little hoard was destroyed. The Old
lady was not quite sure of the amount
that had been in the roll, but she
thought it was between $40 and S75.
Investigation showed that there was
$3.50 in the package, and that amount
was forwarded for the benefit of the
funeral fund.
Among the receipts recently was O
large package of fractional currency
in circulation during the Civil War.
1t he'd evidently been stored away in
vault that was not over dry, and
was badly discolorcd, but was yet Ia
such a condition that 1t could be re-
deemed. A good deal of this fraction
al currency is received, much of it
almost as bright and clean as on the
day of issue. The best is not destroy
ed. but kept on hand and sold at face
value to collectors.
A week ago there was received q
number of continental bills, issued by
authority Of the Continental Congress
during the War OF the Revelation. The
law does not provide for the redemp-
ton of this money, and the bills were
returned. Ignorant people in the South
and elsewhere, particularly negroes.
frequently send in large quantities Of
Confederate bills, believing the gov
eminent will redeem them.
The government formerly held that
sae finder of money was not entitled
80 have it redeemed, and when turned
,nto the Treasury It was kept there
for the owner. This rule has now
neen changed and the finder of the
money is the one VINO profits. A few
days ago a Washington colored man
took to the Treasury two $50 notes.
which he held he had found On an ash
heap. Although badly soiled, the notes
were easily identified and the negro
got the 500,
Another Washington negro ret long
ago took to the Treasury large pack
age OF bills, which had been buried In
the ground ard were badly water
soaked. The bills were generally OF
small, denomination, and the task of
separating the pieces and patching
them UP was big undertaking, as the
amount of the resurrected roll was
more than s3,5oo. The negro explain
ed that he had buried the money to
get it away from an e1uravagant fami-
ly, and that when he went to the
place OF burial to set cut a small
amount he found that the entire stock
had been ruined.
The work of identifying multilatcd !
money is rot always pleasant. One
day last week ar instalEent was re-
ce.yed from Florida. With the exp!aEa- |
ton that Ii had been damagcd by fu- |
migation OF a house where man had |
died OF smallpox. Money found on
people who have been drowned is fire.. |
quently received. and its condition is |
usually such that it has to be picked |
to pieces and the fragments pasted !
on backing of paper. The odor from |
money received is often offensive, |
and while. working on a particularly |
bad Job Mrs. Brown and Miss Smith |
burn incense on their desks. !