The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-04-06
is
ON THE DECLINE
American Secret Service Off,
GERS Are Responsible
CRIME is FASCINATING
About IS Per Cent of counterfeiters
Are Americans and the Rest
Are ltaIians-Latter Are
Very Successful.
BY w. w. PRICE.

felt notes., answered john H. Wllhle'
chief of the secret service, In talking
most interestingly and entertainingly OF
the business that he knows as much
about as any other man on earth.
This statement does not apply as fully
to counterfeiters of coin as to others"
he went on, but there is decrease
in the quantity and amount of spurious
money of all kinds. 1t has been especially
marked in the last five or six years. The
reason? Well. l consider that prosperous
conditions is the best reason of all. Men
with the talents to make good counter
feits ought to be able to make good sala-
ries in business lines, and some of them
do so. Prosperity undoubtedly has much
to do with reducing the crime Of counter
feiting just as it has a great influence in
suppressing crimes of other kinds. When
hard times come men turn to almost any
thing to supply themselves and their fam
lilies with bread. If they can't make an
honest living they turn to whatever else
appears to hold out prospect, and there
is something alluring to many men in the
making Of spurious bills and coins. Yes,
naturally the close watch we keep in all
directions has something to do with hold
ing down the members of the counter
feiting profession. | have always regard
ed the moral effect of our success in the
famous Philadelphia case as splendid
among men and women having ten
dency toward making money In this man
ner. You will remember that the four
men engaged in this case-Taylor, Bredell,
Jacobs and Kendig-turned out the most
dangerous counterfeit of modern times.
1t was counterfeit Of the 500 Monroe
certificate and was accepted everywhere
by banks and business men as genuine. 1t
was not until one of these notes reached
the treasury In Washington that its genu-
ineness was doubted and a consultation
among officials revealed the truth. The
prompt detection and conviction Of every
man interested in that celebrated case
nipped in the bud many Of the embryo
plans of various would-be violators of the
laws we are paid to enforce.
Influenced by Newspaper Stories.
Newspaper publications have wide
influence In our business. We have many
records of formerly honest men who were
induced to turn counterfeters by the pub
LEGATION Of accounts of successes Of coun-
terfeiters and their processes of making
Il
not give out the methods of counterfeit
ers. or course, 1t Is a weak man who
will give way to an influence of this kind,
but we must remember that 1t Is the weak
men who commit the crimes and sins of
the world. There Is a comparatively re-
cent instance of member of a grand
jury In a certain state who turned coun-
terfeiter after listening to the testimony
before the jury in counterfeiting case.
He confessed afterward that he had been
impressed most by the testimony of the
secret service agent. who told all about
how the work was done. The man after
ward read in some newspapers about
first-class coin being made and he went
into the business.
I'VE were compelled to discontinue the
museum we ran in connection with this
office number of years ago because we
found that 1t was a small kindergarten
for furnishing ideas to criminally inclined
persons. This museum was part of the
interesting things to be seen in the treas
ury department. We soon found that men
would give more time to this exhibit than
to anything else In the building, and by
watching the visitors we found that oc-
casionally men draw copies Of the
counterfeiting implements placed In the
case. One or two cases were traced to
thoughts infused into heads while looking
into this case.
Once Counterfeiter Always So.
I'VE do all we can to suppress informa-
ton as to details of counterfeit work. as
there is a world of truth in the adage
that Once counterfeiter always a coun-
terfeiter.' 1t is so true that If often
goes through gecnration after generation
OF the same family We have cases here
of the convictions of every male member
of family from grandfather TO grand
son, the convictions covering periods of
sixty years, The record is curious
one, but it Is not unusual The chief rea-
son is that men who have been caught
and punished have difficulty in getting
into legitimate work after they have
served their sentences. They make good
resolutions, but when poverty begins to
pinch they conclude they will take Just
one more chance, and agree In their own
minds that they won't turn out much
stuff. They are soon landed again. Our
files show that a number of men have been
convicted from five to fifteen times and
that they may be reasonably expected to
go back into the business as soon as they
are released. Our agents get to know
the handiwork of the men and trace them
up by the appearances of the money they
the same family is similar in many re-
spects and has characteristics about 1t
that is not hard TO recognize. The men
of some families are trained as counter
feiters and carefully taught for years.
They are educated for the business, but
there Is not near so much of that now as
In other years.
Americans Do Most counterfeitinq.
There is widespread impression that
the most of the counterfeiting in this
country is done by foreigners, princi-
pally Italians. This is a mistake About
So per cent of the counterfeiters are
Americans. Almost without exception the
10 per cent is made up of Italians. More
properly speaking, they are Siclians. COM
paratively few being from other parts of
Italy. The Italian is generally an expert
modeler in plaster and the making of
molds is easy with them. In Italy the
counterfeit industry thrives and is more
generally practiced than here. Nearly
every traveller in southern France and
northern Italy knows his experiences with
counterfeit coins in those countries. The
money of the two countries is inter-
changeable, and American and foreign
tourists are victims sometimes in large
sums of money. European nations are
not so careful as We are about technical
violations, and that is where they make
mistake Over here we do not permit
the reproduction OF any obligation of the
government. even for advertising pur-
poses. Furthermore, we do not permit the
reproduction of the obligations of other
countries, Germany, like other European
nations. does not prohibit reproduction OF