Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1905-10-07
STORES Of THE\
SECRET SERVICE


cltL service, a. treasury note or tho
denomination of 500 had been
showed" a short time before. This
bore the head OF Abraham Lincoln.
AID was as nearly perfect q counter
felt as human skill and patience could
have evolved A $50 treasury note
was also gaining circulation. From
expert examination of these counter
felt scrip and notes we found that the
work bad been done by men OF the
highest skill Ia detail. material and
workmanship. the notes. from the
viewpoint of the "coney" men. were
masterpiece. The ceometrical lathe
work on The treasury notes was fully
as perfect as on the original notes IS
sued by the government There was
one conclusion. therefore. 20 be
drawn-that the work was that OF
highly skilled men. working months
and. perhaps. years on the plates 10y
hand or with the crudest machinery.
In the engraving. or cutting. OF
plates for paper money the workmen
In the employ Cf tire government enc
ploy the most elaborate and expensive
machinery and other paraphernaIia
that the counterfeiter could not en-
ploy without laying himself open to-
innumerable chances OF detection.
Our quarry then undoubtedly CON
sisted Of men who had spent years
under efficient tutors in the art OF en-
craving. We also knew that but one
OF them was doing Che actual ergrav-
ing. this lesson having been learned
from experience.
Before counterfeit money f1is it's
way into The pockets OF uusu speeding
men and women three. and ofttimes
four. groups 90 men. each with their
speciality. have 90 90 With g. The cn-
gravor Of q counterfeit plate does the
cutting and nothing else. making the
plates. and sells them for a specified
sum 90 the dealer. Here the cutters
connection with the business ends.
and that OF the dealer commences.
The latter sometimes does his own
printing. but oftener has Go done by
coufederates. who 90 nothing else.
turning the finished product over 20
the dealer. together with the plates.
Then begins the work OF Che "shov-
ers-" In this part OF the business two
men always work as a team. one OF
them being the shower" proper and
the other the "boodlo-carricr." In a
town ia which a team is working the
two men are supposed 90 DE strangers.
and never allow themselves 20 be seen
together.
One note az a time IS given 90 the
shower" who makes a trifing pur-
chase. gets his change in good
money. meets the "boodle -carricr" Sc
crotly. gives him the good change and
is given another. bill 10 is not my
purpose. In this narrative. 10 deal with
the methods OF counterfeiters in ply
ing their trade. but the foregoing
depression into some of the tricks OF
the trade viii be found 20 illuminate
various points In the story To- follow.
Ia the spring OF 1875. then. after
Chief Washburn had returned 10
Washington. I found myself confront
ed with the problem OF running TO
earth two. and probably more. men OF
great cunning. with practically no
clews 20 work on but the names Of
the suspects. Ny task was set and nv
future depended on my unraveling
the problem. In addition 20 this lob
I was working on information con
corning the operations OF bands at
Boscobel. Wis. and St. Paul. MINI.
and with the three my hands were
full
am free 20 say that for a time in
the Boyd Briggs case / was cropping In
the dark. a single crime confined TO
one spot as a murder. always fur
nishes clews OF some kind on which
10 work: the location Of two men OF
vague description who are supposed
TO have been parties 20 the clrcula-
ton Of counterfeit money which has
made its appearance in scores OF places
widely scattered az practically one
time. Is another matter Al that time
John Peter Mccartney, a particularly
cunning and dangerous counterfeiter.
was atslarge Mccartney was born In
1924 in Shelby county, H.. and adopt
ed the career % a counterfeiter early
IN life. In 1864 he had settled in
Nauvoo. H. and while there en-
graved the plates from which were
printed the counterfeit Of the ten-dol-
Ear United States treasury note Of the
greenback variety. issue of March 10.
1862. which notes had had wide cir
culation. thanks 20 the energy OF the
men with whom Mccartney was ia
league.
But this IS another depression ex-
cept as TO the settlement Of Mozart
ney in Nauvoo. this act having. result
ed IN the establishment in Nauvoo OF
headquarters for a prolific gang OF
"coney" men ana women. Pete" Nc
Cartney in 1864 had married Martha
Ann Alderman. whom he had first
met in Cincinnati several years before
She was the daughter Of an old Ger
man counterfeiter whose widow with
her two daughters had lived in Gin
cinnati for several years. Martha was
pretty and extremely sMnful In the
printing OF coan,erfeits. her father
having employed her in that work
when she was as young as IL years
OF age.
The Mccartney band at Nauvoo had