The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-09
HIDING PLACE OF
 MILLIONS FOUND ROckefeller's Secret Vaults
 Disclosed to Public IS LARGEST IN WORLD No Other Vault Exists to Hold Single Persons Treasures Which Is as Strong and We'll Guarded.
 Holds s2O0, 100000
IS LARGEST IN WORLD

New York, April s-tSpecial 1.-The long and closely guarded secret as to where John D. Rockefeller preserved his stacks of stocks and bonds has been disclosed at last The bulk of his immense treas ure, estimated at s2oo,0oo0Oo, reposes in specially constructed bomb. burglar and fire proof vault, built under the northeast corner of the New York Pro- duce Exchange. Entrance to 1t Is gained from Beaver street, a stones throw from the Standard oil Headquarters at No. 26 Broadway.
 Between the street outside and the re- positories of the. Rockefeller securities are ten locks varied in character. Once in front of the iron vault, the largest of its kind In the world devoted to containing the properties. of a. singis person. there is presented to view a cage not at all unlike the one in which the famous Captain Dreyfus was confined at Devils Island.
 Two of the locks are padlocks, one upon each of the two combination locks visible from the exterior from the closed door of the vault. These two padlocks are usually opened with key in the hand of President Wm. H. Pearson, of the Safe Deposit company, which turn ing, releases the dial of each of tho common locks. and permits the lattcr to be set by two men from Mir. Rocke- feler's private office.
 One of the two is MT. Rockefeller's s financial secretary, while the other ;s a man he trusts equally well. Each has different combination to unlock. There are six tumblers on each lock. The numbers run from 1 to 100, which makes each lock susceptible to many changes.
 The only way to change the numbers of MT. Rockefeller's vault Is to know tho old numbers As for the man who opens the upper combination, he has not the slightest Knowledge of the numbers op- ening the lower combination lock. and neither of the two can set his part of the bolts in the great Iron door until after the padlocks have been relieved by the third. It is impossible for anybody to pick these combination locks.
 The door of the vault Is moved by hand and it opens easily owing to its swinging upon a compound double goose crane hinge which is carefully balanced on ball and roller bearings. made of the finest hardened tool stee;. This permits the door to swing lightly, although it has the weight of nine tons
 The interior of the vault Is nine feet wide, nine feet high and 15 feet deep. The wall of the vault has thickness of 40 inches In the center of 36 inches of concrete are 90 pound steel rails set six inches apart in double rows, interlocked SC as to be practically three inches apart. The remaining four inches of the wall are four inches in thickness of solid steel.
 Looking toward the interior of the vault there are arranged upon either side numerous compartments of small' safes There are from 15 to 20 of these varying
 i, sizes. Two combination locks guard each. Having swung back the steel door of one of the inner chests there are re- vealed small sheet steel boxes of thick res sof one-sxteenth of an inch There are four of these, as rule, in each chest They are equipped with a hinge and lid and key box. The last turn of the key opens one of the sheet steel boxes. Ii one of these inner side compartments is @ card index which registers the bonds, with their dates of maturity.