The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1910-11-08

NJ LIZ laws III
W. dieting severe penalties
X upon all counterfeiters
became necessary. The
- Act of ITS, which pro
..:.1 for the emission Of 1925 900 in
-....r money decreed that the form oi
rr. hills should be as follows:
No.th Carolina Currency.
..is bill entities the bearer to
r...vc. $500. Spanish milled dol
lars. or the value thereof. in Gold
..I silver. according to the Reso-
n.rnu of the Provincial Congress
us.. lit IIillsbOro the 21st day of
August 1775.
II. the following yea these bills had
been duplicated so perfectly and in
s.. large quantities hat it became
necessary to call them in and emit
rsw ones in their stead. The most
hum[uI effects produced by counter
1v.c.a- was upon the army. If by
ch4n1e any OF this money should be
pal. 10 the soldiers, the u~npreventa-
bl. consequence would be mutiny and
Wholesale deSertiOn. To prevent these
daugarous evils, Congress recommend
ed re the States that persons guilty II
such acts should be severely dealt
In l117 an act was passed against
couuterteiting, which provided that
an, person who should be convicted
on this charge was ito be adjudge1
guilty Of Felony; and shall forfeit
his or her lands and tenements, Goods
and ChattelS. to the use of the States,
ana hall suffer the pains of death as
q felon.' h year following the
emission Of 1875 was supplanted by
bills much more complicated in form.
But. notwithstanding the provision for
severe punishments and the increased
difficulties of imitation, counterfeiting
CIl not diminsh. In 1878 a law was
passed Whch provided that any person
who should be convicted Of
teitna or defacing the paper currency
o. North Carolina or of the United
States should for the first offense
Stand in the pillory three hours and
have his right ear nailed to the pill
ln"E ard cut off, and receive IN his Or
their bare back thirty-nine lashes, and
be- branded with a red-hOt iron on the
right cheek with the letter c. and on
the left cheek with the letter M and
Ire Imprisoned at the discretion of the
court before whom il shall be tried.
1"t Exceeding one year, and forfeit
o1o-half of all of his or their goods
and ehatteIs, lands and tenements,
whereof he or she was seized or pos
SesS'a at the time the offense was
committed, to the State" 1t was fur
thor provided that IF any person or
persons shall be found guilty of utter
my or passing any of the aforesaid
F'#ti~Ttejt bills OF credit, etc. for the
second offense he or they shall suffer
G" t1, without benefit OF clergy"
|ho first laws passed by the Cont
mental Congress on this subject SIM
~ declared that any person fOund
2#lE Should be considered as an en-
slA| to the. common cause and the
liberties Of his country. but later the
Irt"lty Of death was inflicted. In
1850 rewards of $4,000 were offered
~ anyone who might bring about the
CONVICTION of any counterfeiter. But
lni+ perniciOus practice was not con-
Litrd entirely to Individuals The
Lh@i!9h government employed 1T very
extensively. John Adams declares that
th@ Prltish placed greater dependence
Ill being able to crush the Americans
~ Destroying their revenue than upon
ILeir ability to conquer them by means
q their armies. The same publica-
ions printing the official documents
q the English government sometimes
contained advertisements which read
a. follows:
Persons going into the other colo
mes may ge supplied with any num-
Der OF counterfeited Congress notes
i0F the price Of the paper per ream.
'Ht| are so nearly and exactly exc
I,'t"a that there Is no risk in getting
nom OFF, 1t being almost Impossible
a. discover that they are not genuine.
rms mas been proved by bills Of a
very large amount which have been
successfully c~irculated.'
Il whole ship load of this bogus
money which had been sent out from
an i-hSl!Sh port was captured during
ne war by an American privateer.
ne great amount of counterfeit
paper money that was forced into cir
IoIalon had the effect Of greatly de-
"'''1atlhg the Continental currency.
veil as the State. The great
amounts issued. ever if they had not
"" counteTfctted you'd have pro-
'I the same results. In any sys-