The Cordova daily times., 1921-02-11
FIRST COUNT US. TREASURY
 DOZEN YEARS

"'So ASooJ' 1 llS COlupletS count or the governments cash made last week, was the first in twelve years. The total approXimated three billion, five hundred million dollars, and in cluded all cash and securities held as reserve against currency outstanding.
 The count was made by a special committee of three, assisted by eight accountants and by fifteen laborers who were 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 and silver and paper money and securities, many of which had not seen the light of day since shortly after William Howard Taft was in augurated president and a new treas. urer 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 attempt at an unauthorized raid on the treasury. The vaults themselves are supposed to be burglar proof and are of mas sive 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 twelve years for when John Burke became treasurer after President Will son was first inaugurated he accepted the count of cash in the storage sec tions which had not been opened since the previous count in 1909.
 The accountants handled money of every possible denomination from the lowly copper to $1O,O0O bills. Many of the bills, particularly those of the larger denominations, such as $l,OOO, were in sheets of four each and held as reserve against currency of smaller denominations in circula- tion. Thousand dollar bills in circu- A''IiNiA aAS lS" anu 6dCu Dduh Ill the country is kept supplied by the treasury with list of them with their numbers so that if perchance any are extracted from the treasury illegally the holder will have extreme difficulty in realizing on them.
 The count just finished was made necessary by the retirement of John Burks as treasurer and was com pleted in the remarkably short time of three weeks through the use of electric counting machines. Loose coins passed through these machines instead of being counted by hand as was necessary in the olden days. Pa per currency was counted by the piece, but stored coins and >currencv were counted by the sack or package in case where the wrappings were unbroken and the seal on each intact.
 The main supply of the govern ment's money is stored in two large vaults, but there are a 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 were counted by weight. The gold kept in sacks, sealed with the treas. urers wax seal and containing $5 900 each, weighing about IS pounds and ' ounces. First one sack was weighed and then the others were examined. If both the seal and cover ing 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 seal was broken or the sack torn or there was appreciable diff ference in weight the contents were counted by the piece.
 Standard silver dollars were count. ed in the same way as the gold coin. They are stored in sacks containing LULU and weighing about 60 pounds. Work on the silver coin was lessened officials said by the governments melting 1O0,OOO,OOO silver dollars un- der the Pittman act for sale to the British government to relieve the sill yer famine in India during the war,
 Paper money Is stored in paper packages making a cube of about 7s inches each way and contain. ing 4,OO0 notes. On each package is stamped the amount and the denomi- nation of the notes inclosed. A wax seal is attached. Except where a broken seal or package necessitated an actual count of the contents the paper in the vaults was counted by the package.
 Sealed packages of paper money are accepted from the bureau of en- graving and printing as correct when