The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1912-08-17
WILL REDUCE SIZE
:. OF PAPER CURRENCY
Uncle Sam Intends to Diminish
Size Of Paper Money to
Make It Wear.

are Mailing with delight the news
from washington that Uncle Sam has
decided that his paper money is too
big land SO will cut it down to two
thirds its present size. Bills of all
denominations today are more than
three inches wide and little over
eight and one-quarter inches long.
The reduction will be to 6x2 II inches.
Treasury officials are of the opin-
lon.' says a local government Off
c1al, that this reduced currency will
be vastly more convenient to handle.
Also, it will save great deal of ex-
pense. understand that the. saving
on paper alone will amount to
$4,000 a year. You must remember
that Uncle Sam issues something like
240,O00,000 notes per annum.
Then. too, it is figured that there
will be an increased output Of at
least rs per cent. for a given amount
of labor at the bureau of engraving,
where all che paper money is printed.
This gain, carried through all the
processes of printing, examining,
counting, drying, numbering, etc. will
In itself represent saving Of more
than 100000 a year.
Notes to Be Smaller.
THE notes being smaller. less en-
craving will be required for the plates
from which they are printed. Less
ink will be used-an item much more
important than one might imagine.
Taking other items into account, the
treasury officials reckon that the to-
tai saving to the government by re-
duclng the size of paper currency
will be in the 'neighborhood Of $612,-
600 a year."
A dollar bill of the new size is ex-
pected to have a much, longer life"
than one of the pattern now in use.
Requiring one less fold, in order to
be slowed away conveniently in the
pocket or pocketbook, it will last at
least one-third longer in circulation,
according to the estimates of the
treasury experts. Consequently, there
Will be fewer notes to be redeemed as
unfit for. further use. This will make
it possible to cut down the working
force in the redemption division at
Washington. 1t is expected that the
reduction will be sufficient to effect
saving Of $4,000 a year in salar-
les.
Costs One Cent to Print.
1t costs the government 1 cent to
print a paper dollar and put it in
circulation. Thus, the importance of
prolonging it's life" can be readily
seen. -.
The treasury officials got the
"hunch' for cutting down the size of
the paper money of the United States
from the fact that all the paper cur
rency of the Philippines, printed at
the bureau of'engraving, is Of exact
ly the size of the proposed new paper
currency for 5this country. The small
er sized paper money of the islands
replaced the old Spanish notes and
up to date has been exceedingly sat-
isfastory in every respect.
The government intends to obviate
as much as possible the circulation
of two sizes of paper money at the
same time by preparing in advance
great quantities Of the small note,
which; on a fixed date, will be
changed for the big ones at SUBJ
treasures, banks and other large fl
nancial institutions all over the
country.
MOI 1Or q ear or So.
1T will take some time to prepare
the new bills year or So" contin-
ued the government official, "for it
is planned to reduce the 10 designs
on the currency now in use to nine,
using the same portrait on one de-
nomination throughout. Thus the one
dollar bill, whether it be treasury
note, bank note or certificate, will
bear the head of washington in the
center of it's face. It's holder will
know the denomination without re-
ferring to the numbers on it. It will
help US, the secret service men, bank
cashiers and all others to detect
counterfefts more readily. Few
things are so difficult to do as to re-
produce a portrait with exactness.
An engraver, cannot even reproduce
his own work wiehout variations, and
the slightest variation alters the ex-
preston Of the face. Handlers Of
money get accustomed. to printed
faces on paper currency. With the
number of faces cut from 10 to nine,
it will be much easier to memorize
the minutest lines.
We Teach the World.
incidentally, this country Is teach
ing the entire world how to make
counterfeit-proof paper currency. Our
paper money affords much better Sc
curity against: counterfeiters than
does that of any European country.
Mechanically, they are far behind us.
In Germany, for instance. it's. costs
$40 cents to put dollar in cir
culation. But notwithstanding the
perfection to. which note-engraving
has been brought, the possibilities Of
.photo-mechanical processes are be-
ing developed to such an extent as
to be regarded as serious threat to
the safety of the currency. This is a
matter that is attracting. attention
in all civilized countries. BY the
'autotype' and other processes, the
color and texture of any printed
matter can be initiated with aston
fishing accuracy. Accordingly, as a.
precaution against counterfeiters, the
bureau Of engraving may yet be driv-
en- to the expedient Of using tints Sc
lected for their non-photographic
quality. '5.#.& 2.& 5.st [. + ~
up to the present time the most
satisfactory DreCauti0n AGAINST conn.