The Bismarck tribune., 1921-02-04
JUNGLE SANS
CASHC0UNTED
UNDER GUARD
More Than Three Billion Check
ed Up When Burke Retires
From Job
>ss.
FROM PENNIES TO BILLS
Handle Lowly Copper and the
$4,000 Greenbacks-Melt
Dollars
FROM PENNIES TO BILLS

just been made for the first time In
II years. The total approximate
$3.50 100000 and included all cash
and securities held as reserves
against currency outstanding.
The count was made by a. special
committee Of three. assisted by eigh,
accountants and by Is laborers who
were used to move around the heavy
sacks of gold and silver. The mel
delved into great vaults in the treas
ury building and took stock of gold
silver and paper money and securi-
ties, many OF which had not seen the
light of day since shortly after VIII
liam Howard Taft was inaugurated
president and a new treasurer OF the
United States appointed in 1909. .~
The accountants In entering the
vaults passed grim-visaged guards
who day and night sit on the lid
to prevent any possible attempts al
an unauthorized raid on the treasury.
The vaults themselves are supposed
to be burglar proof and are Of massive
concrete and steel construction. The
storage sections are kept under seal
and this was the first time that some
OF them had been opened in IL years
for when John Burke became treas
urer after President Wilson was first
inaugurated he accepted the count OF
cash in the storage sections which
had not been opened since the previ-
GUS count in 1909. is. >-
The accountants handled money OF
every possible denomination from the
lowly copper to $4,000 bills. Many
Of the bills. particularly those Of ths
large denominations, such as $1,000.
were in sheets of four each and held
as reserve against currency OF small
er denominations in circulation.
Thousand dollar bills In circulation
are few and each bank in the country
is kept supplied by the treasury with
list of them with their numbers
20 that If perchance any are extract
ed from the treasury illegally the
holder will have extreme difficulty in
realizing on them.
- eurke's Retirement IL,
The count just finished was made
necessary by the retirement of John
Burke as treasurer and was complet.
ed in the remarkably short time oi
three weeks through the use OF cleo
trio counting machines. Loose coin,
passed through these machines in
stead OF being counted by hand as was
necessary in the olden days. Paper
currency was counted by the piece
but stored coins and currency were
counted by the sack Or package in
cases where the wrappings were un.
broken and the seal of each intact. j
The main supply of the govern
ment's money Is stored in two large
vaults, but there are number OF
smaller ones in the various divisions
Of the department as we'll as in the
cash rooms where cash payments are
made by the government. ~.
Gold coins stored in the vaults are
counted by weight. The gold Is kept
in sacks, sealed with the treasurer
wax seal and containing $1,000 each
weighing about Is pounds and seven
ounces. First one sack was weighed
and then the others were examined
II both the seal and covering were
found intact they were weighed
against the first or test sack and II
the result was the same were passed
and counted. However, il a seal was
broken or the sack torn or there wa.
appreciable difference in weight the
contents were counted by thu piece
Melt Dollars
Standard silver dollars were count.
cd in the same way as the gold coin
They are stored in sacks containing
1000 and weighing about GO pounds
Work on the silver coin was lessened
officials said by the government
melting 100.000,000 silver dollars un.
der the Pittman act for sale to the
British government to relieve the sil-
YER famine in India during the war
Paper money is stored in paper
packages making cube of about Z l.:
inches each way and containing 1900
notes. On each package is stamped
the amount and the denomination Of
the notes inclosed. A wax seal is at.
tached. Except where a broken sea-
or package necessitated an actual
count of the contents the paper in the
vaults was counted by the package
Sealed packages Of paper none,