The Tucson citizen., 1902-03-21
UNCLE SANS MONEY.
The SAFEGUARDS THAT HEDGE
ABOUT ITS MANUFACTURE.
Care with which Even the ShHVtnws
OF the Peculiar Paper Used Ale
HandIed-CountinK and RecOuntinE
the Treasured sheets.

OF the Peculiar Paper Used Are
HandIed-CountinRa and RecOuntinS
the Treasured sheets.
Uncle Sans paper money 'has Its
birth in the bureau OF engraving and
printing in Washington. Here corps
of engravers cut its lines into plates
OF steel. Five hundred men and wonl-
en- are In one room. 1t IL the largest
printing office in the world. Here are
struck from these plates the notes
which we give the butcher and the
baker. Each steel plate when not in
actual use is stored away In great
burglar proof vault TO which only the
highest officials know the combination.
At the side of each printing press Is Il
little Indicator like n bicycle cyclone
ter which keeps tally of every piece or
paper money printed. Thus is Uncle
Sam kept informed as to the exact
number OF paper notes of all denomi-
nations which leave his presses daily,
II there IL any secret which Uncle
Sam jealousIy guards, IL Is the process
of manufacturing the fiber paper upon
which his money notes are printed.
He pays Massachusetts firm big
price for 1t, and this firm does its work
under the surveillance of a govern
ment agent. The paper is manufnc-
tured OF the finest rags. cleaned, boiled
and mashed into pulp AS it is rolled
into thin sheets silk threads are intro
duccd into IL by secret process.
These are the distinguishing marks
making imitation OF the paper well
nigh impossible.
The sheets of paper, already counted
twice and placed In uniform packages
at the paper mill. are stored in treas
ury vault and issued TO the bureau OF
engraving and printing as wanted. Be
fore leaving the treasury they are
counted three times more. and the re-
ceiying official at the bureau must re-
CENT for them. Then tire bundles are
unwrapped. and the sheets are counted
twenty-elght times hy corps of wo-
men. This s to insure that each print
or gets the recorded number-no more.
no less. Before any employee of the
division in which this paper is Kept can
leave for home each night he must ex-
hibt TO watchman at the door n pass
certifying that every fragment of every
sheet passing through his fingers has
been accounted fog.
II one sheet OF ibis precious paper he
lost, the entire force OF men and Wo-
men having access TO the room where
the displacement has occurred ar"
kent In, like so many school children,
TO find It, Each sheet Is Issued from
the vault for the printing OF definite
amount of money upon 1t. IT The lost
sheet were ntended TO ultimately rep
resent $4,000 worth OF notes. the group
OF employees 10 whom the responsible
ity OF it's displacement has been traced
must make good that amount IL they
cannot locate 1t within Il reasonable
time.
Twcuty-four times more are the
sheets containing the printed money
counted after leaving the presses. Then
they are sealed in packages at 1000.
placed on racks in II drying room OF
1870 degrees temperature, unpacked.
thoroughly examined. smo0thcd In
powerful hydraulic presses and packed
IN wooden cases. These eases are haul
cd 10 the treasury IN an ironclad wag.
on Six guards. heavily armed, accom-
pany this wagon Whenever IL makes q
trip.
No attempt to steal Uncle Sans mon-
ey while undergoing any Of these stages
OF manufacture has yet been detected.
Al 4
be practically useless for it's printing
Is not completed until after II makes
this guarded Journey To the treasury.
7 There the finishing touch is added In
the printing or the colorcd seal upon
the face OF ench note. With the six
sealing presses the same precautions
are taken as with the two hundred and
iifty big money presses IN the other
building. Each sheet coming from the
former has row Of notes printed upon
1t. The sheets are put through small
machines, operated by girls. who cut
out the individual notes Even the
smnll strips. falling like shavings from
their machines. must be carefully col
lectcd. sent to the bureau of engraving
and printing and there boiled into pulp.
An employee found with even one Of
these ribbons OF waste paper is liable
to imprisonment for fifteen years and
fine of 5000.
Eetwccn these different processes the
paper money has been counted and re-
counted six additional times Finally
: the single notes are placed in stacks OF
100. with all OF the blue numbers print
ed on their faces in sequence. They
are then wrapped in paper, labeled.
sealed with rcd wax and stored in the
great treasury yaults. Thus each piece
% paper money low in circulation has
been officially counted sixty-t three
times.
In our mints tho systom OF account
ing for the blank metal ont of which
I J." finished coins are stamped. Of keep
10; tally on the coming machines work.
O., counting the finished product. OF
packing 1t, OF scaling it IN cloth bags,
ff,,,r >