The Washington times., 1913-07-19
BANKERS OPPOSED
TO WASHED MONEY
Senator MARITIME Wins Fight
When He Gets Leave to Put
Letters in Record.

When Senator MARITIME of New Jersey
obtained leave to print In the Congress
sfonal Record twenty-six letters from
bankers all over the country denounc-
ing the system of washing paper money,
instead of destroying ii and !ssling new
oliis, he won fight he had been va:
ing for three months, though ne was
disappointed in not being able IL &C.
the entire 5S letters in his posscSs
printed.
Most of the letters in the Scnal ;
possession are in reply to inquiries IL :
last spring and they represent Z er.-
state and every large city IN the III on.
Among the number is one from Cha les
McCulloch. son of Hugh McCulloch, VINO
was Secretary of the Treasury under
President Arthur, now president Of the
Hamilton National Bank of Fort
Wayne, Ind
THE washing business is a strange
economical proceeding for a great Gov
ernment like ours" wrote NJ. McCul-
ioch to Senator MARITIME. The Bank
OF England never pays out a note the
second time. This proceeding may be
extreme. but certainly the Government
Is rich enough and should have pride
enough to keep in circulation fairly
clean bills
Cite -Counterfeiting Peril.
Most Of the letters to the New Jersey
Senator, however, Law particular stress
on the danger of counterfeiting, which
they claim will be greatly enhanced by
the process Of washing currency.
"The bankers of the country are prac-
dcally unanimous against the innova-
ton, chiefly because IL destroys the
engraved on the bill and affecting the
paper" said Senator MARITIME. The
task of detecting counterfeits has al
ways been difficult, and laundered
money viii make it several times as
As an instance Of this the Senator
cited letter from A. s. Frissell, who
since 1855 has been president of the
Firth Avenue Bank. New York city.
The letter reads:
''Our teller says that it is much more
difficult to detect a counterfeit, now
that washed bills are in circulation.
Aside from the fact that a washed bill
hes lost in some degree the sharpness
OF the engraving. the paper has been
changed in a way difficult to describe,
30 that II is very similar to the paper
OF most counterfeits, and therefore the
delicacy of touch, by which a counter
felt is Otter detected, is apt to be lost
or greatly diminished
II seems pity to diminish the safe
guards against ceunterfeits to save the
cost of destroying old bills and issuing
new ones in their place"
Against Washing Bills.
II can see no good reason for the
adoption of the washing plan." wrote
William Sherer, manager of the New
York Clearing House. who like Mr..
Frissell. has been in the banking busi-
ness for fifty years.
1T aids the counterfeiter's industry
and will cause great loss TO the people
larger. believe, than will be saved by
this mere experiment of washing" #
Western bankers are especially vigor-
ous In their opposition to the rensva-
uoG process. claiming that they do not
get their proportionate share of new
money anyway, and that under the
washing system they get even less.
practically the only new currency
we have is what We get from Washing
ton" wrote Z. r. Heaton, of the Yank-
ton, S. Oak, First National Bank, 'on
account of our $4,000 circulation. The
farmers, being the people with whom
We deal, appreciate what little new
currency We have to give them, and
We find that this washed currency does
not take its place. We are oppOSed to
the Government trying to reduce eX-
penses in the currency department, for
the reason that our present currency
has high standard"
W. G. Plantz. of the First City Bank,
Of Pomeroy, Ohio, says that his or
SANITATION lis against the whole plan
Of washing money, and we consider II
q wrong kind of economy
Favors New Money.
I'VE rather favor an increased ex-
penditure in the direction of putting
new money in the peoples hands," he
continues. THE money is circulation
even this far West is far too dirty to
be a credit TO the Government So far
we have had no washed money to con-
tend with. 1t will not reach us through
any of the local banks, i am sure, for
none of them would receive any such
bills from their city correspondents IL
they should attempt to force them on
cur community"
The most original idea comes from
President J. w. Temple, of the Spencer
Savings Bank, Spencer, Mass, whose
letter follows:
1T seems to me that q washing ma
chine will simply result in being of sery-
ice 10 the counterfeiter.
"If this is done for the sake of econ
oDy, then why not establish for the
sake of economy a bureau for reno
yattng secondhand clothing for the use
of the military branch Of the Govern
ment?
-.Soapsuds cleaning and such a bureau