The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1912-01-26

OF relics made D'
government. There
are many more such specimens. Each
n In some manner bears the pattern
OF a bill or coin minted for circula
ton In the United States.
This collection exists because many
years ago a painting of three IS bills
hung In a dingy Bowery saloon. A
man with enormously large hands
caught sight of the delicate and &C
curate tracery of the artists brush,
Each day he went into the bar the
picture was before him. Finally q
curious freak Of criminal pyscology
gripped him. and within a year he was
pen etching the most dangerous coun.
terfeits with which the secret service
has probably ever had to deal,
That painting, innocent In itself,
pointed the way and the ease with
which queer bills might be etched
with a pen on bond paper instead OF
on canvas" said Captain Moran, act
ing chief Of the secret service, explain.
Ing why such an apparently arbitrary
conflscation should be made, as In the
case Of the tin box over.
"Of course. nobody believes that
this box cover could ever be passed
as money" continued the captain. but
you know how youngsters who read
the old penny dreadfuls go out and
try to rob and kill because 1t appears
easy In the stories. This is much the
same thing. Only this Is much more
dangerous. The man with the big
hands got away with his counterfeit
ing game for a long time.
Then, too, In the case of this box
top, on which the printed face Of the
bill 10 80 per cent. perfect, think Of
what damage could be done II counter
felt bills were struck from this m
graved plate. ... .
This box was designed for a Christ
mas candy receptacle. | have found
that 1t was made In Santander, Spain,
for a Cuban firm.
"No, there isn't much counterfeiting
Of United States obligations done
abroad, but there are lots Of boxes
like this. only none so perfect, manu-
featured. We have other boxes here,
made to resemble stacks Of coins, and
the like"
In this way It really took the dan
gerous operations of the man with the
huge hand to bring the government to
a realization of the true significance
that a painting, box or advertisement
might have to a mind capable OF TAX
ing a criminal turn. .
This led to the passage OF o law in
1891 which makes the reproduction of
any obligation of the government
coins, bills, bonds, revenue or postage
%stamps--a misdemeanor and attaches
a heavy fine. ..
Over the mantel in the office of the
service hangs a framed IS bill. 1t is
nearly three feet long and proportion
Rtely wide. 1t was taken from the
window Of a Chicago shoe store some
years ago,
Before n OF the windows hangs q
transparency, made from a negative,
which shows two 81 bills and two
quarter dollars. The photograph was
made for reproduction on the silk lin.
ings Of hats sold by a Baltimore firm
for that price. Many of these hats
we're disposed Of before the secret
service took a hand.
On another wall Of the room many
paintings hang. Usually they are
made on wood, for the bills look much
more natural when they are not paint.
cd on canvas. One OF these pictures
represents a number of barrels over
flowing with gold certificates.
Almost every gold or silver certif.
cate now in use has at some time or
other been pictured to Just short OF
perfection by the brush of an artist
and has found its way into the collec.
ton.
Then there are records OF seizures
OF which M relics were obtainable, as
In a recent instance of a Baltimore
merchant. who caused a huge electric
sign to be made carefully and exactly
of minute incandescent bulbs--a re-
markedly faithful and accurate blaz.
ing dollar bill-and also In the case
Of another merchant on whose shop
window was painted a IS bill seven
feet long.
Nearly Perfect c%ountsrfelts.
, The career OF the old counterfeiter
with the big hands is classic In the
annals OF the secret service because
he Is probably the greatest example
of the criminal influence a painting OF
a United States certificate can WELD,
as we'll as because he was perhaps the
pioneer Of counterfeiters who have
etched their queer with a pen instead
OF depending on engraved plates.
Framed, as examples OF the nearly
and most dangerous of coun-
terfeits, a Farragut and two Lincoln
500 bills. and one Hamilton $40 and
one Franklin $50 bill hang In the
secret service office.
While Captain Moran, who 10 now
the acting chief of the United States
The Nokfnn ~ k~ttx-u- "