Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-07-27

xVYHEN paper money gets worn and
w dirty the United States Treasury
officials at Washington order the
bills destroyed and new. fresh money
printed TO replace the worn and dirty cur.
rency.
Thus 1t happens that every day in the
year thousands of dollars in one two five,
ten. twenty. fifty and hundred dollars bills
ore retired from circulation and destroyed
down in the basement of the Treasury
-Four men are assigned to this work OF
putting an end to the life Of worn. dirty
bill which has had long and honorable,
or dishonorable career
What is TO prevent these four men from
slipping into their pockets a fifty-dollar
note or a ten-dollar bill now and then t?
Nobody would ever miss this money be-
cause In one sense II is not stolen from
any person or fund. 1t would never be
missed. All these bills are dead, officially
end If few were slipped into the pockets
OF The Destruction Squad" who would
ever find 1t out?
1t has always been wondered why this
money which is marked for destruction
never tempted any OF the men whose bust
ness II is TO destroy IT, And at last the
expected has happened. Charles H. Turn
bull, one OF the four Treasury employees
of the money destruction sqrad has been
caught with his pockets full Of bills which
he was ordered to destroy. And n search
Of his house revealed thousands of dollars
OF currency Of all denominations which it
was supposed had been chopped up, ground
trto pulp and soaked in water and I've
1t is dangerous infection that is con-
veyed by the bite OF the money-bug.
Charles Turnbull was bitten by the desire
to put in his pocket the bills that didn't
telong to him.
Cashiers and other trusted employees
In banks are supposed to be immune Yet
their salaries. as a rule, are relatively
small; 1t is likely to be hard for them 10
make both ends meet, and It may easily
happen that they are in debt Stacks of
ready cash constantly surround them, and
the temptation thus offered must often be
great
The trusted bank employe is usually a
man who leads an exemplary life. He has
long record Of honesty and steady habits
But one day. perhaps, he succumbs. The
money bug has bitten him. and thereafter
the disease is incurable. He goes on pill
fcrng until no matter how ingeniously his
thefts are covered up, the inevitable dis.
covery arrives.
Money stolen from bank leaves a cor
responding shortage. But suppose that tho
bank officials were to say to the employe,
Here. Charles, take this package OF Fed
eral Reserve notes and burn them" If,
under such circumstances, Charles were to
put few Of the notes in his pocket and
burn the rest, he would not feel that he
was robbing anybody and he might con-
slider himself safe from detection
Now, 1t was just such situation that
recently confronted Charles H. Turnbull
trusted employee Of the United States
Treasury at Washington. His business
was to destroy paper money which was
deemed unfit for further circulation-the
method adopted being to boil it to messy
and unrecognizable pulp in cylindrical
tank containing a mixture Of water and
soda ash.
Four men, as already stated, composed
the so-called Obstruction committee" that
attends to this job nearly every weekday
A.