The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-17
BANK NOTES ARE
 ID BE TRIMMED Part of Economy Plan of the
 Treasury Department
MAY ALSO GET A BATH
In Addition To Reducing Size of Bills Issued By National Banks and Fed eral Government Old Ones
 May Be Freshened Up.

From the Washington Post
 If the plans tentatively under consid- eration in the treasury department are carried into effect, the demand for econ- omy, so far as is consistent with the proper administration of public affairs, IS to be compiled with in the matter of the printing and issuing of the federal currency and national bank notes. Sec retary MacVeagh some time ago reached the conclusion that this was a subject worthy of investigation, and after giv- ing Assistant Secretary Norton his views turned the suggestion over to that official to work it out to some practical conclu- sion.
 Secretary Norton had a number of con- ferences with Director Ralph, of the bu- reau of engraving and printing, and with the aid of that official a plan has been worked out that will be submitted to Secretary MacVeagh after the estimates for the next fiscal year and the annual reports are out of the way, in the first place, Secretary Nortion believes a large sum Of money can be Saved by reducing the size of both federal and national bank notes.
 To Save on Paper.
 30 Tar as the national bank currency Is concerned, the expense is borne by the banks themselves; but if the notes of the general government are reduced in size, the bank notes will be reduced to correspond to the general scheme
 Ihe paper upon which these notes are printed is of a very expensive character. It must be toughe to withstand the wear and tear to which 1t is subjected, and it's manufacture is conducted under the xrfcio. The silk fbers that show through the notes marking the distinctive character or the currency paper add to the cost of manufacture, and if the size of the notes were reduced a great saving necessarily would result. These blank sheets of paper are cut to size suitable for printing four notes on a sheet.
 If the size of the note is reduced by one-third, that fraction taken in connec- ton with the millions of sheets used an- nually would mean a saving of thousands of dollars. For years there has been criticism of the size of the federal notes and national bank currency When the new Philippines notes were issued, the comment of bankers throughout the country was that 1t was a much more creditable note from the viewpoint of size and facility in handling, than those issued In this country. One of Secre- tary Nortons suggestions, therefore, will be in the direction of saving money by lessening the amount of paper used in the printing of these notes !
 Redeenng Old Notes. The next proposition deals with old notes that are sent to the treasury for redemption In the case of national bank notes, the cost of the redemption of these notes is provided for In the per cent redemption fund. which is held in the In hap plre for that especial purpose. When national bank notes are sent in for redemption the good ones are held out and returned to the bank of issue, while the notes no longer fit for circulation are destroyed and new ones taken from the vaults are issued in exchange.
 With the general government, how ever, the loss from the issuance of new notes is not met by any redemption fund, but must be charged against the general expenses of the treasury. This amounts to many thousands of dollars annually. Could these notes not worn out, but simply dirty from constant use, be treated in some man ner and turned back into circulation? was the question Secretary Norton put up to Director Ralph.
 Bath for Soied Bills.
 Investigation of that subject was be- gun with the result that the director has invented a chemical bath that not only utterly destroys any disease germs there may have been on a note, but which removes the dirt that nat urally attached to it in the course of its passage through the countless chan nels of trade, freshens up the paper brightens the printing and makes it quite a presentable affair-not crack ling and crisp like a new note, but clean and serviceable for an addition al number of seasons of business ac- tivity.
 This part of the programme of the treasury meets with the hearty ap- proval of the medical fraternity, which has inveighed for years against the paper currency of the country as a ve- hicle for the transmission of disease. Several bills have been introduced in Congress providing for the establish ment of the system of the Bank of England of issuing new note every time one is paid out and destroying all paper currency that has once left the vaults of the national bank. John Wes- ley Gaines of Tennessee fought for this legislation for years. but Congress never felt inclined to agree to his views.