The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-03-19
.MISPRINTED BANK NOTES.
ERRORS THAT GET PAST THE
 TREASURY INSPECTORS.

It-Inverted Backs.
 Imperfect or misprinted banknotes sometimes, though rarely, slip past the eyes of the inspectors in the United States Bureau of Engraving. It is said that a fifty dollar national bank note was the most remarkable misprint that ever escaped the Government em- ployees and found it's way into circula- tion.
 It was discovered in peculiar way. A clerk in a Chicago hotel in making up his accounts one day found a dis crepancy he couldn't explain. He placed the pile of bills on his left hand side, and as he counted each one turned the note over and deposited it on pile at his right
 He found that when he counted from left to right his cash exactly balanced, but when he counted it back again shortage of $50 was shown. After spending two hours in vain en- deavor to find out what was the mat ter he called on the manager for assist aEce.
 The manager had no better success. Backward and forward he counted the bills, but always with the same result one time the cash balanced and the next shortage was developed. Finally each bill was examined separately, both obverse and reverse.
 And then the mystifed men dis | an t1on nf of the bills had the design of $50 on the obverse and that of $1OO on the reverse
 The clerk had received the bill as $100. l The United States Treasury was communicated with and it was ad- mitted that such a bill was out and that the Department had a record of it. l It was discovered in 1890 that one sheet of banknotes of the denQmination of $50 and $10Q, printed for the Aetna National Bank of Kansas City, Mo, had been reversed in the press. One plate bore the obverse of fifty dollar bill at the top and the obverse of a hundred dollar bill at the bottom. The older plate bore the reverses of the two notes
 After each sheet was printed it was laid aside to dry before being run through for the obverse printing In some way the pressman turned one sheet upside down, with the result that two misprinted bills came forth--one with fifty dollar obverse and hundred dollar reverse, the other with hundred dollar obverse and a fifty dollar reverse.
 The cashier of the bank was the first to become aware of the error. He found that something was wrong after he had paid out the note with the fifty dollar face and the hundred dollar back by coming across the one with the hundred dollar face and the fifty dollar back. The note held by the cashier was returned to the treasury and destroyed, a perfect note being is sued in it's place. The error note is now in the possession of a collector of paper money, who values it at several thousand dollars.
 In the '60s an error of a similar na- ture occurred in which banknote was printed with the ten dollar obverse and a twenty dollar reverse. While this bill is not as great rarity as the other still it owner would not part with it for sum much less than that at which the fifty-one hundred dollar bill Is valued
 The reason why it is less valuable than the other in the eyes of the collec- tors is the belief that more bills like it were issued, and probably some of i them are still in existence. Of the former denomination the owner is absolutely certain that his specimen is unique, its companion error having been destroyed, but there is no known record of the redemption of the error with the ter dollar face. It is reasonably cer- tain that at least four of them got in to circulation.
 Errors were found in the design of the 1880 silver certificates. These were rather the fault of the engraver than the printer
 On the 1880 notes is found a Treasury seal entirely different from any other ever used by the Government The key. which is one of the most import ant symbols of the seal shows handle at the left hand side instead of to the right, as on all others.
 The shield is of different shape and the stars are larger. The two ends of the band surrounding the symbols are fastened with a buckle, which in no other instance plays part in the design of a Treasury seal. This is the only issue of notes on which the pecu- liar seal was used, and collectors of pa
 per money include them among the er-
 TOTS or freaks.
 The one, two, and five dollar silver certificates and the ten dollar legal tender bills of the present issue occur
 with what are known as inverted backs.
 As A matter of fact this is a wrong de-
 scription as they are really inverted fronts for the backs of all bills are printed first. These bills are sought by collectors, who pay premium for them when in fine condition.
 Anotller curiosity is one dollar note of the Second National Bank of Ra- venna. Ohio. This lacks the signatures of both the president and the cashier, although it was circulated and never challenged.
 A one dollar national banknote of the : First National Bank of Fall River Mass, also lacks both signatures, which
 seems not to have interfered with its being offered and accepted as money still another one dollar note of the First National Bank, of Indianapolis, Ind, lacks the signature of the presI. dent only.
 Slight as are these errors or omissions
 they give additional value to such bills
 in the eyes of collectors of paper money