Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1908-08-18
GUARDING OUR MONEY
How the Treasury Vaults al
Washington Are Protected.
WATCHERS DAY AND NIGHT.

Always on Duty and Always Prepared
to Shoot to kill-Never Has DOL
lar Been Taken From Them by
Force-One Daring Scheme.
Not dollar has ever been taken
from the United States treasury by
force.
Perhaps the nearest approach to loot
ing the vaults of the treasury was the
time Martin Broadfoot had his plans
about perfected. This was back in the
eighties, and the plan was to get into
the building by means Of the great
sewer which runs under and near the
| treasury and is known as the Fifteenth
street sewer and which grows larger
as it enters the Potomac about three
quarters Of mile from the White
House.
Broadfoots plan, as developed after
his arrest was to get into the building,
crack the safes and place the money
in large rubber bags and float them
down the sewer to the Potomac, where
his pals would be in waiting. These
bags were found in his room when he
was arrested, and secret service men
had often seen him walking along the
shores of the Potomac near where the
big sewer empties. This sewer is
about nine feet in diameter where it
passes the treasury. A man could
easily make his way up the sewer
through a stream of water which I'M
der normal conditions is only about
twelve inches deep. By entering the
tunnel or sewer at the river the jour
ney to the treasury could be made by
keeping a sharp lookout. When the
man or men in the sewer reached the
Fifteenth street sewer nothing would
separate them from the gold coin and
bullion except about eighteen feet Of
earth and not too secure stone wall.
It was Broadfoot's scheme to dig his
way through this obstruction and to
let the earth float or wash down the
sewer. 1t would not have taken one
man more than two weeks. working
only at night, to have made an opening
large enough for a man to crawl
through. OF course Broadfoot knew
the exact location Of the vaults, and
when he once reached them he would
have had no trouble in getting the gold
coin and bullion. It was evidently his
purpose to fill the rubber bags with
the precious stuff and float them down
the sewer to the river, where they
, would be looked after by his confed
crates. This was the only really wei
; laid plot ever made to loot the treas
t ury, and just why Broadfoot wa!
never given a trial has never beer
, known to the public. He was an intel
ligent man, and suspicion was frs
aroused against him by his frequen
visits to the money rooms and vault
and by the questions he asked watch
2 men and messengers as to the hour
t Of duty, when the time locks closet
o and what time they opened, and al
such questions. That he could hav'
successfully carried out his plans 81
far as getting into the building ant
the vaults are concerned there is n
question, for men have been in tn
L sewer and conduits who say that
: would have been easy work. The mos
n difficult part Of the job would hav
= been in getting away with the none
and bullion, for it would have require
. hard work to secure it and get away
About the only chance would hav
been to bury 1t somewhere In Virgini.
for If 1t had been placed on boats
= would have been easy to recover it.
1t is the opinion Of the secret servic
men that many celebrated cracksme
have from time to time contemplate
the conversion Of few million treai
ury notes to their own use, but afte
careful study they have decided thu
the undertaking was too colossal
. character. Secretary Folger when /
deciding that the treasury was N
properly and safely guarded. The
was not an electric alarm in the bull
ing, the watchmen were isolated ar
had no facilities for calling help, al
the safes were Of the old time lock al
key sort, scattered almost all over u
\ big building. The secretary went
work to bring about proper condiH'
Of affairs. He had the watch syste
completely changed and reorganize
" putting them under the strictest dis
pine. Elaborate and extensive alar
ne systems were installed. The old SAT
were replaced by modern steel affai
es with time locks and intricate combir
re tons. The gold and silver vaults we
fitted with steel castings and til
We locks, different parts of the combir
lions being distributed among vario
officials, SO that the vaults could
on opened only with the concerted aci
of all Of them, and then only at I
stroke of the hour for which the I'll
locks had been set. But without a p
feet system Of watchmen to guard I
III safes the treasury could be easily r.
bed, for the most perfect safe 81
cry made Is not proof against the prof
SIGNALS. 81