Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-09-15
MONEY ORDERS UNSAFE.
Government Finds Il Difficult TO Keep
Ahead Of the Crooks.

Government Finds Il Difficult to Keep
Ahead Of the Crooks.
That gang Of clever crooks which
has been acquiring some wealth and
more notoriety by raising the amounts
on postal money orders has about
reached the end of Its rope, and within
a month or 80 its members will have
to HE themselves to the tall grass
and concoct a new scheme for obtain
ing their livelihood, says the Washing
ton Star. This method Of getting coin
Of the realm has been In vogue many
years, but during the last twelve
months It has been extremely popular.
and the. postoffice inspectors have
been 30 busy running down the thieves
that they have had little time for any
thing else.
Postmaster General Cortelyou has
been working on this problem, with
the able assistance Of Mr.. Hitchcock,
and 1t is now announced that new
form Of money order has been devised
which, II It does not defy forgery, viii
make forgerics and alterations ex-
tremely difficult. Before Mr.. Cortel-
you left on his vacation he approved
the new form. and work on the pre-
paration of plates will be begun imme-
diately.
Twice before. since the postal money
order system was established, In 1854.
has the style of the order been changed
once in 1894 and again In 1897. These
changes were made not to prevent for
geries but to simplify the system.
Now the system Is so simple that 1t
has been found necessary to make It
more intricate. Just what the style Of
the new order will be could not be
ascertained today. but Mr.. Cortelyou
recently stated that when the depart
ment determined upon form 1t
would be pretty nearly proof against
the tricks Of the crooks.
The operations OF the forgers have
not directly caused loss to the govern
ment, for Uncle Sam IL amply protect
ed. The office issuing a money order
makes a carbon copy Of the original.
and this Is sent to the paying ONCE to
guide It's clerks. When any change
has been made In the original order
the discrepancy is apparent at glance
when compared with the carbon copy.
This protects the postmaster, but IL
the postmaster should make a mistake
and pay an order that has been rails
ed he will have to pay the difference
out of his salary. SO the government
cannot lose directly.
The scheme of the forgers and rails
c-3 has been to purchase an order for
25 or so cents. payable to themselves.
under fictitious names. Then they
erase the amount with acid and all
any amount they desire, usually be-
tween $50 and 800. Then going to a
merchant they will purchase IS or $40
worth of goods and tender the money
order in payment, receiving the change.
which represents the net prr t to the
crook. A money order Is usually look.
ed upon as certificate Of deposit,
showing that the bearer has the
amount named In the order on deposit
with the government. Consequently
II has been an easy matter to work"
the merchants. When the merchant
takes the order to the post-office to
have 1t cashed he discovers the swim
die.
A postofsce inspector relates an In
cident showing how one saloon keeper
near Denver, Col, captured a couple
Of crooks who tried the money order
forgery on him. According to the In
spector. the proprietor Of the saloon
had been in Denver all day and drove
back to his home late in the evening
arriving about midnight He tied his
horse to post and went into the sa-
loon to see how things were going on.
The barkeeper informed him that two
men had just left the saloon after buy
ing a round Of drinks and Offering In
payment money order for $50, which
the barkeeper cashed.
. The proprietor examined the order,
and although he could detect no alter
ations his suspicious were aroused and
he determined to get the men. Go
ing out to his buggy he turned the
horse toward Denver believing that
the men would walk rather than take
the railroad. Half way, between his
home and Denver he overlook two
men who answered the description
given him by the barkeeper. Driving
up to them, asked II they were going
to Denver The men said they were
and the saloon keeper offered them q
lift" This was accepted and the three
men in the buggy travelled on toward
Denver. Reaching the city the saloon
keeper announced that 1t was quite
late-nearly Q a. m.-but that he had
a friend In the saloon business In Den
yer whom he could awaken and he be-
lieved they could all get drink. This
offer was also accepted and the two
crooks held the horse while the host
awakened his friend. Presently the
doors of the Denver saloon opened and
the country saaoonkeeper invited his
friends in to have drink. They came
In and were met inside the door by the
two saloonkeepers, each with a six
shooter in his hand. The police were
called, the money recovered and the
crooks sent to the penitentiary.
With the new scheme the depart
ment hopes to prevent this sort Of
crooked work, and 1t has been inti-
mated that among other changes the
exact amount Of the order will be
plugged" out with punch similar to
those now used by banks.-New York
Sun.
BIRDS AID MOSQUITOES. - Birds
o,,ego. ,,.o.a than y,ann from fha rnnQ-