The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1921-02-03
GOVERNMENTS CASH
COUNTED TO A PENNY
This Was the First Time in a Dozen
Years That Thorough Invoice
Has Been Made.

mas Just DteH ulduc ipi '"S 49,
in u years. The total Appropriated
| thirteen billion, five hundred million dol
lars and included all cash and secur-
tiles held as reserves against currency
, outstanding.
The count was made by special
| committee of three, assisted by eight
accounts and by Is laborers who We're
used to move around the heavy sacks
of gold and silver. The men delved into
great vaults in the treasury building
and took stock of gold, silver and paper
money and securities, many OF which
had not seen the light of day since
shortly after William Howard Taft
was inaugurated president and new
treasurer OF the United States APP
pointed in 1900,
The accountants in entering the
vaults passed grim visaged guards who
day and night "sit on the lid to pre-
vent any possible attempts at an I'M
authorized raid on the treasury The
vaults themselves are supposed to be
burglar proof and are OF massive con-
crete and steel construction. The stor-
age 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 treasurer,
after President Wilson was first in
augurated, he accepted the count OF
cash in the storage sections which had
not been opened since the previous
count in 1909,
The accounts handled money Of ev-
cry possible denomination from the
lowly copper to $4,000 bills. Many Of
the bills, particularly those OF the
large denominations, such as $1,000,
were in sheets of four each and held as
reserve against currency of smaller de-
nominations in circulation. Thousand
dollar bills in circulation are few and
each bank in the country is kept sup
piled by the treasury with a list Of
them with their numbers so that if per
chance any arc extracted from the
treasury illegally the holder will have
| extreme difficulty in realizing on them
The count just finished was made nee
essary by the retirement Of John Burke
as treasurer and was completed in the
remarkably short time Of three weeks
through the use of electric counting
machines. Loose coins passed through
| these machines instead Of being count
cd bv hand as was necessary in the
olden DAYS. Paper currency was count
ed by the piece, but stored coins and
currency were counted by the sack or
package in cases where the wrappings
were unbroken and the seal on each in
tact.
The main supply of the government s
money is stored in two large vaults
but there are a number Of smaller ones
in the various divisions of the depart.
ment as well as in the cash rooms
where cash payments are made by the
government.
Gold coins stored in the vaults were
counted by weight. The gold is kept
in sacks, sealed with the treasurer's
wax seal and containing 5000 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 if the result was
the same were passed and counted
| However, if a seal was broken or the
sack torn or there was appreciate dif.
ference in weight the contents were
counted by the piece.
Standard silver dollars were counted
in the same way as the gold coin. They
are stored in sacks containing 900 and
weighing about 60 pounds. Work on the
silver coin was lessened, officials said
by the governments melting 100000
600 silver dollars under the PittmaD
act for sale to the British government
to relieve the silver famine in India
during the war.
Paper money is stored in paper pack
ages making a cube Of about seven and
one half inches each way and contain
ing 1000 notes. On each package j:
stamped the amount and the denomina.
ton of the notes inclosed. A wax sea
is attached. Except where a broken sea
or package necessitated an actual couni
of the contents the paper in the vaults
was counted by the package.
Sealed packages of paper money arr
accepted from the bureau Of engraving
and printing as correct when the wrap
pings are intact because the issue di
vision of the treasury maintains al
office in the burtau and in reality
counts all the paper money before j
leaves the bureau.
]. Coins of smaller denominations
quarters, dimes, nickels and copper
stored in sacks were counted in tn
same manner as the silver and gold b,
taking the weight Of a test sack 70
each denomination and weighing tn
other sacks against it.
Upon completion of the count tn
storage compartments Of the vault
were sealed with the seal OF the specia
committee and a receipt was given t
Mr.. Burke, the retiring treasurer, BY
Guy +. Allen, his successor, for tn
cash and securities Of the government
held in the treasury. When he signe,
the receipt the acting treasurer b
came personally responsible for tn
! safekeeping Of all the cash and Sc
curities in the building
The new treasurer was represented
on the special counting committee b.
r. +. Reppert. vault clerk Of the casl
division Of the treasurer Office. c. y
NcGrOaty, chief Of the division q
loans and currency. wsz chairman o
the committee and. with John Moon
chief Of the coupon surrender scctioi
81 that division. represented the secre
taTy Of TIE treasury.