The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1906-12-11

DISHONEST DOILARS
couNrrERFETTERs 0sE RARE sleIlL
a AlSo Many DEVICES


~ AFio MANY DEVICES
= gFal.e. sIe-p,srtsf - Eeterti Sons %
~ MEAL cola. Il. t.C:iroullleGea-
How UaeIe samli1 Omelala Detect
tAithongh gold coins are not In, cIr=
EQUATION in the east m comp rison with
theltOtal 5amountsof5 aper money which.
IAaves. tlie gray NIhllss q Old build
ing said an omcial OF the treasury
.departnaent TO reporter. %there are
neyertbeless a great many Of these
coins current and they. are counter
feited, together with our silver coins
more than the average perqon would
suppose ~ e,.1
81 win give you few snggestonS
on the manufacture OF good and conn
terfeIt coins of various Denominations
which win be OF interest aud value to
the public. The three principal treas
ury tests Of coins are. drst, the
weight: second the diameter, and
third. the thickness The counterfefter
who succeeds In making his dies and
the spurious metal alloy which win
meet all of these tests Is indeed
smart one. with some alloys he may
be able to work out the weight, but
the diameter of the coin would reveal
that 1t was a counterfeit product, for
even a very slight increase In the
thickness OF the illlcftIy made article
would show at once its counterfeit
origin.
''The superior grade of coin counter
felts are made with a die. Some of
the more perfect ones are almost rep
lIcas OF our own mixed products and
have sharp. true ring. smooth. wen
finished surfaces. with the lettering
and milling finely deIineated. The
reedlng-the little raised and indented
marks on the edges OF the coln-ls not
as sharp and clear as the reedIng on
the genuine coins. While many of the
fined counterfeits are OF full weight,
they are usually a little short or
weight Some of these gold coin coun-
terfeIts are so well made and IRE OF
such fne Appearance that they pass
current until they reach the hands Of
the coin experts in this building.
''The standard gold used by the mint
is 900 hne, or 21.19 caFats. The most
deceptive gold counterfeIts are made
OF a lower grade Of gold. or from 600 J
TO 800 hne and as low as 400 fine in the
more Inferior grades of counterfetts.
The most deceptive gold counterfetts |
are those which are manufactured |
from an alloy OF gold, copper and sill /
yer. Platinum Is a metal which IS l
used by the expert counterfeiter TO /
gain the necessary weight to his out
put, and when these platinum counter
feits are struck on In good dies and /
then very heavily gold plated they I
prove to be very dangerous counter
felts when first showed by the accom- |
pIices OF the man who generally does |
the spurious minting. he usually keep !
ing out of sight. for he Is too valuable /
a man in the trade to be nabbed In the I
passing stunt. The gold plating wears
on In due time. and the base metal Is
revealed.
"a comparison Of the piece with the
genuine OF the same coinage and date.
together with a critical inspection OF
the mInting. general appearances, die
impress. ring. size and weight, viii be
found an accurate test when in doubt
us 10 whether u coin Is genuine or spurt-
Gus. The familiar acid test may also
be applied.
Counterfeit coins made In molds
are the more common and the more
easily detected. The mold counterfeit
usually applies to silver coins. A num-
Der of years ago there were many
counterfeits OF silver coins made Of
lead and type metnl. but these have
largely passed because Of their easy
detection both as to sight and feeling.
ns they are slippery to the touch as
compared with the real silver coin. The
moldIng process IS a cheap one to set
up and is largely indulged in by for
signers, who pass their bad products
1pon their own countrymen when the
latter nrA ryT-aar ms tn fhR genuine coin
1.-THE sharp, clear cut appearance OF
the genuine coin Is absent. the milling
and lettering are dim. while the read
ng Is usually very faint and poorly
ielfnaated Nevertheless some pretty
lair silver counterfeit coins are turned
mt OF molds, but the weight Is gem
rally short when an attempt Is made
10 bring them within the specified
thickness and diameter.
''That there Is considerable counter
citing Ia coins still attempted iB
ihown by the fact that our secret serv-
&c Officers captured $4,000 In spurious
,ol1 coins and $4,000 In silver coins
Iuriug the past year. The more ex-
vert silver coin counterfeIters use for
heir product OF the larger silver coins :
n flloy or about two-thfrds anthony
md one-thIrd lead, and when they !
ieavily plate these productions they :
Jet ont deceptive coin which has q 1
lrotty fair ring. The good old standby :
est OF the required weight gives these :
oins away ln-the hands OF one used {
o handling money. though in some ;
ections Of the country they get into I,
REGULATION easily. The dollar piece
makes the most iazlysrOua q this class .
fS6untef6ettG! =
~ 1R1N