Part 2

The Ruling Engine is used for shading the letters, skies, &c. in genuine Bank notes. Underneath, and sometimes on the lace of the letters in the title or name of the Bank, as well as other lettering, there appears a soft, smooth, pale grayish color, which to the naked eye appears to be painted with a brush, but on close examination it proves to be fine parallel lines, and when done by the Ruling Engine the lines are, 1st, all exactly of the same size; 2d, regular distances apart; 3d, perfectly parallel to each other; 4th, uniformity in their direction: and it is _perfection_ in these four points which gives it such a smooth and perfect appearance, and the least deviation from which will prove it to be hand-work. In counterfeits this shading is imitated by hand, and it is impossible to do it in this way as perfect as the Ruling Engine, as some lines will be coarser than others, some wider apart than others, not parallel, and some not perfectly straight, and all are apt to be more or less _tapered_ off when done by hand with the graver, which is not the case with the genuine, and which gives the whole a scratchy appearance; in fact, the least deviation in any of the points will show at once, and destroy the appearance of the whole. In titles, or the name of a bank, where the letters are alike, as for instance,

the shading in the genuine always is done all the way across all at once, and there is a perfect _uniformity_ from beginning to end; the lines all point exactly in the same direction, whether horizontal or diagonal, on the “T” in “THE” as on “F” in “OF,” preserving the same angle and fineness throughout. In counterfeits, where the letters are shaded by hand, one letter at a time, if the lines pretend to be horizontal, some are apt to slant a little downwards or upwards, some letters shaded a little finer than others--that is where they are intended to be alike and uniform. This principle of UNIFORMITY in shading is very important, and should always be noticed. See the words “UNIVERSAL,” “DETECTOR,” “BANKS,” and “UNITED STATES,” in the steel plate, which are shaded by the Ruling Engine, while the word “COUNTERFEIT” is shaded by hand to illustrate counterfeit work.

The sky in vignettes in the genuine is sometimes ruled by the Ruling Engine, and always appears soft, smooth, and perfectly done, and in this case the lines taper off gradually. Imitations of this by hand will appear uneven and scratchy, some lines coarser than others, and some wider apart than others. All genuine skies, however, are not done by the Ruling Engine, but are sometimes fine dots or wavy lines, which fade off into fine dots, and sometimes heavy rolling clouds, circular lines, but it is always done perfectly and beautifully, and looks smooth and natural, being always done in genuine bills by first class artists, while the sky in counterfeits is generally apt to appear coarse and scratchy, and not fading off gradually enough.

Diagram G serves to represent the style of genuine Ruling Engine work as it appears when magnified 5 to 10 times, and H an imitation of Ruling Engine shading as done by hand and magnified the same. A first-class Ruling Engine is said to cost $3000.

RULE III.

MEDALLION OR PENTOGRAPH RULING.

(_Infallible when Imitated._)

The Medallions are raised patterns, or line-engravings, generally representing a head, or some raised fancy patterns in genuine Bank Notes, which look as if raised up from the paper. They are called medallions because they are copied always from and represent the pattern upon a medal. It is done by the Pentograph Ruling Engine, which, guided by the medal, rules the whole pattern in _full length lines_, and the dies are _double_ transferred to the plate, which makes the lines _black_, the same in appearance as if the pattern was ruled directly upon the plate itself by the engine. This work is done upon the same principle in mechanics of “_guides_,” as shoe-lasts are turned by the “Last turning machine.” A model last is used for a guide to the machine, which turns out of a rough-hewn block of wood a last exactly like the model. Thus in genuine medallion ruling there is always a medal or coin used for a “_guide_.” The points in determining genuine medallions from imitations engraved by hand, are, the lines in the genuine all run in one general direction; they are always _full length lines_ across the whole pattern, the lines are all _exactly the same size_ or caliber, they _never cross each other_. Every undulation in the pattern on the guide or medal is copied with the most _unerring exactness_, and articulated _distinctly_ and beautifully correct, which is impossible to be done so perfectly by hand. In the counterfeit the lines are apt to _break off_ in the midst of the pattern; some lines are apt to be _coarser than others_, which gives it a scratchy appearance. In the genuine, the lines crowd together in the parts of the pattern that appear depressed or sunken, and spread apart more where the pattern appears raised and looks whiter, producing the lights and shades with the most magnificent ease and effect. In the counterfeit done by hand the lines do not crowd and spread apart again, according to the pattern, with such ease and effect, but the patterns appear stiff, flat, or imperfectly raised. There is always one of two ways or alternatives in which the hand-work imitations appear to fail. If they succeed in making the lines full length, as they ought to be, then the pattern will inevitably appear _flat_ in expression, imperfectly raised; but if they succeed in making the pattern look _raised_, as it ought to be, then there will inevitably be _broken_ or _forked lines_ all through the midst of the pattern. It seems impossible to combine in hand-work imitations of this extremely fine and complicated work full length lines, and at the same time a perfectly _finished_ and _raised_ pattern, which the Pentograph Ruling Engine always does in the highest perfection.

Diagrams I and J represent the appearance of counterfeit Medallions when magnified. K represents the appearance of a genuine Medallion as magnified 10 to 15 times. _Every line is full length_, and exactly of the _same size_. In J the lines _break off_ and _fork together_ all through the midst of the pattern, and some lines a little _coarser_ than others, which gives it a scratchy appearance.

Whenever there are two or more medallions in a genuine bill that pretend to be alike, they are always exactly alike; being double-transferred from the same original die; (see medallion heads marked ‘3’ in the steel plate,) but two medallions cannot be made exactly alike separately by hand. The following extract in relation to this work is quoted from the Mechanic’s Magazine, 1835: “The Journal of the Franklin Institute for September contains an elegant engraved portrait of Wm. Congreve, the dramatist, executed by Wm. A. Spencer of Philadelphia, in the manner described, and has inserted the following proofs that the invention can be claimed for America. ‘Believing that the credit of the invention of a machine for medal ruling is due to America, we will briefly set forth our proofs, and then speak of the improvements which of late years the method has undergone. The proofs to be given of the existence and state of the machine are to be derived from the results produced by it. In 1817, by the use of a machine which had been invented in Philadelphia, Christian Gobrecht, die-sinker, produced an engraving upon copper, from a medal having upon it the head of Alexander of Russia. From this engraving impressions were taken and distributed. One of these impressions we have seen. In 1819, Asa Spencer, now of the firm of Draper, Underwood & Co. bank-note engravers, took with him to London a machine of the kind above alluded to, which was designed principally for straight and waved-line ruling. This machine was used in London during the year just mentioned, and the mode of ruling waved lines, and of copying medals, was then exhibited and explained by Mr. Spencer to several artists--particularly Mr. Terrell, who took by permission a drawing of the machine, for the purpose of having one made for his own use. Little however was done in the way of medal ruling until about three years since, (1832,) when a desire to apply the method to the engraving of designs for bank notes caused it to be revived by Mr. Spencer, who bestowed great attention upon it, and overcame the difficulties met with in the onset.’--The peculiar construction of this machine has never been made a secret, nor has it ever been patented, although prudential motives have required that it should not be minutely described, and thus be placed in the hands of those by whom its use might be perverted. The operations performed by this machine are the ruling of parallel straight lines at any required distances apart, either continuous or broken; ruling converging straight lines; ruling waved lines, the waves being either similar, varying by more or less imperceptible gradations; and medal ruling or transferring to copper the fac-simile of a medal without injuring its surface, the waved lines presenting a copy of the minutest parts of the medal.”

RULE IV.

VIGNETTES--A GENERAL RULE.

_Faces, Eyes, Stippling, Hair, Drapery, Limbs, Scenery, &c._

Rule IV. relates to the Vignettes, to notice whether they appear to come up to the usual standard of perfection in the following points: the faces, eyes, stippling, hair, drapery, limbs, scenery, landscapes, water and agricultural scenes, &c. This work is always done by hand, both in the genuine and counterfeit; but in the genuine it is done by _first-class artists_; men who are at the head of their profession, and who can always get such a complete remuneration for their labor that there cannot possibly be any temptation for them to counterfeit. It is only second, third, fourth, and sometimes _hundredth_-rate artists that counterfeit:--runaway apprentices and cast-off journeymen, and possibly amateurs. The points to observe are first, the human face, stippling, and the eyes. This is the most difficult of any part of the Vignette to execute well, and fails in counterfeits, more than any other part of the 4th Rule. In the genuine, the eyes have a perfectly natural expression, while in counterfeits they are, generally, merely two clumsy dots. The _stippling_ is the beautiful artistic arrangement of the fine dots which produce the shading--the smooth, even, soft _rounding_ of the features, the cheeks, nose, lips, chin, and limbs; this fails _invariably_ in counterfeits--the features, and generally the limbs also, appearing _flat_, scratchy, inexpressive, and inanimate. The human hair in the genuine will look soft, silky, and natural; displaying a _lustre_ in portions where the light appears to strike it. In counterfeits the hair generally appears _stiff_, coarse, _wiry_, lifeless, and unnatural. The drapery in the genuine beautifully represents the folds and texture of different kinds of cloth; sometimes the dark, heavy and glossy appearance of broadcloth is produced; sometimes the light, flowing appearance of silk or muslin--the folds always look easy and _flowing_--no stiffness. In counterfeits the drapery generally appears scratchy and _stiff_, sometimes having the _solid_ appearance of cast iron, and sometimes like coarse wire-cloth, inexplicably twisted up in a snarl in trying to imitate the easy and natural folds of the genuine. The limbs, hands, or feet are always well done in the genuine, but generally fail in counterfeits. It is a very difficult matter to execute well, and it requires a first-rate artist to produce an elegant-shaped hand or foot and in an easy position. To engrave human figures correctly it is first necessary for the artist to acquire a _thorough_ knowledge of Anatomy. Smoke in the genuine is always well done--generally in fine curved lines, and sometimes in straight parallels, fading off gradually at the edges. In counterfeits the smoke gradually appears coarse and _scratchy_. Also notice whether the “perspective” is managed rightly: the lights and shades, and the forms of animals, horses, cows, &c. &c. whether truthfully portrayed. Vignettes are transferred to the plates from _double_ transferred cylinder dies.

“Chambers’s Information for the People” says:--

“Engraving, in all its various branches, is a species of labor which probably requires greater remuneration than any other department of art--for not only must there be a great degree of patience and perseverance beyond what is required in most other employments, especially in undertaking the engraving of a genuine bank-note plate, which must be perfect in all its parts, showing the lights and shades true to life--one part corresponding with another as though nature herself had formed the impression. Such of course is the intention of the artist, who must be a finished workman before he can receive employment in this capacity; the perfection of the execution being of course the only great difficulty to overcome. This will be seen from the fact that in all cases from ten to fifteen artists are employed upon one bank note plate, and as this employment necessarily calls into its service the very best talent that can be secured, it follows as a matter of fact that we are perfectly safe in looking to the perfection of a note for the genuineness of the bill. Each artist has a separate part to execute; and as the whole plate is made of different parts, called “dies” or “cuts,” it is therefore evident that no band of counterfeiters can accomplish their designs--it being impossible.”

[See the Vignette marked “4” in the steel plate; also the portrait of Washington.]

RULE V.

LETTERING, AND ENGRAVERS’ NAMES.

Rule V. relates to the perfection of lettering. In the genuine the lettering is done by a first-class artist, whose particular branch it is to devote exclusively to that part of the work alone, and of course he arrives at a degree of perfection that could not be approached without such a sub-division of labor. In the genuine the letters are all exactly of the same size, where they _pretend_ to be, and on the same _angle_ and same size stroke, where they pretend to be. There are two great points to observe as regards lettering, viz. _neatness_ in form, and _uniformity_--the most important is UNIFORMITY. The want of uniformity in size, slant, distances apart, thickness of stroke, and any deviation from the line of the letters of a title, or the name of a bank for instance, will show counterfeit work. See the lettering in the word COUNTERFEIT in the steel-plate illustration compared with the lettering of the “UNIVERSAL DETECTOR,” “UNITED STATES,” &c. The engraved writing in the genuine, “Promise to pay on demand,” &c. is always beautifully done, the down strokes _uniform in size and slant_, and the hair strokes extremely fine, the curves _easy_ and _flowing_, while in counterfeits the down strokes are apt to point in different angles, and the hair strokes coarse, and the curves _stiff_ and defective. But perhaps the most important part of the 5th Rule, as it fails _invariably_, without exception, in all counterfeits, is the engravers’ names or “imprint,” which in the genuine is a _die_ cut in the most perfect manner, the letters very neat and perfect and perfectly _uniform_ in every respect. In counterfeits it is not a die, but letters cut in by hand, and never so perfect as the genuine, but clumsy, not uniform distances apart, nor in size and slant, and not all in a straight line, &c.

RULE VI.

SIGNATURES AND FILLING UP.

The 6th Rule relates to the signatures, and filling up the No., date, to whom payable, cashier, and president. To notice whether the whole filling up appears in two or three different hands, as it ought to be. In the genuine the _No._ and _date_ is generally written by a bank clerk, who writes a very neat, rapid _business_ hand--but of course there may be exceptions to this Rule--but in counterfeits the No. and date is _almost invariably clumsy and unbusiness-like_. Where the officers’ signatures are imitated there will be a slow, studied, and stiff appearance, not easy, natural and _original_-looking. Some men acquire an almost intuitive knowledge of _original_ handwriting at sight, and the writer has seen many excellent judges of Bank Notes who have acknowledged that they were guided almost entirely by the signatures, even of strange banks. Auto-chirography may be studied as a science, but it can only be acquired by long experience, and it is not infallible: the best judges of writing might possibly be deceived sometimes. In some counterfeits the signatures are lithographed _fac-similes_, sometimes traced over with a pen. In writing with a pen the ink thoroughly saturates the paper, but leaves a smooth edge to the stroke, and has somewhat of a glossy appearance, while the printed _fac-similes_ always have a _stamped_ appearance, the stroke of a dead color and rough edge, not saturated or lively, like writing ink. If traced over with a pen there will be places, especially in the hair strokes, where the pen does not follow the curves in the stroke correctly. In cases where fraudulent impressions are obtained from the genuine plate, or where the plate itself is stolen, the 6th Rule is all that will detect; but when such a case happens there are always measures taken by the bank to meet it--a new plate is ordered, and the old emission called in.

RULE VII.

PAPER AND GENERAL APPEARANCE.

Rule VII. relates to the paper, printing, and the general appearance of a note. Genuine bank-note paper is made of linen or silk, or a mixture of both, of a firm texture, and of a superior quality, (see the paper on which the steel-plate illustration is printed.) This paper is manufactured expressly for the banks and engraving companies alone, and counterfeiters can seldom get hold of paper of this kind, but are generally compelled to use slazy or half cotton paper. A counterfeit note is seldom printed as well as the genuine, but often blurred, and poor ink. As to the “general appearance,” this is produced by a combination of all the Rules. If all the Rules are good, and the note well printed, the “general appearance” of course will be perfect; but if there is any one or more of the Rules bad, the harmony of the “general appearance” will be interrupted. But if a genuine note is old, worn, and has been wet, the general appearance may be bad, but the other rules will all be good, and prove the note to be genuine.

ANASTATIC TRANSFERS, OR LITHOGRAPHY.

There was an emission, five or ten years ago, of some counterfeits on the National Bank, Providence, 2s and 5s. They were not regularly-engraved plates; and as the exact process by which they were got up is unknown, they are supposed to be anastatic transfers, or lithographs. They have a very _smoky_, brown, blurred, and _indistinct_ appearance, something similar, but inferior to, mezzotinto engraving. It is supposed that the process, whatever it was, did not succeed well enough, as there never have any appeared like them since. The shading of the letters appeared to be a solid brown coloring--no lines perceptible scarcely, and this was the character of the engraving of the whole note.

The new counterfeit tens on the State Bank of Ohio are exceedingly well done, though easily detected by the Rules. One kind--that with an X in the center of the vignette--appears to be a lithograph, a transfer from the genuine bill; but the impression produced appears to have been faint and dim in many places, and re-touched with _a graver_;--thus easily detected on examination, although very dangerous counterfeits.

ALTERATIONS FROM BROKEN BANKS.

THE “MAGIC THREE.”

The first seven Rules go to show whether a bill is from a genuine plate or not. We now proceed to discuss _Altered Bills_. In altered bills, where a genuine bill of a broken bank is altered by the counterfeiter to some sound bank, there are three places in which the alteration must be made, viz: First, the _State_; Second, _Title_, or name of the bank; and Third, the _Town_. They are generally extracted, or the letters dissolved by some chemical process, and the name of another bank, state, and town, substituted in their place. The Ruling Engine shading on the genuine will be imitated by hand in the substituted “title” and “town,” and this will detect it as well as the clumsiness of the letters generally, and also the white streak or bleaching of the paper around and between the substituted letters. Sometimes the “bank” may be in the same State, and there will be only two places to alter besides the signatures; and sometimes the broken bank bills of the _same name or title_ are selected, (for instance the Commercial Bank, Millington, Md.) and there will also be two places to alter besides the signatures, viz: the “State” and “Town.” In dissolving the signatures of the broken bank by some acid and substituting imitations of the proper signatures, they generally look _faded_, which is caused by a little acid still remaining in the paper--and also the whole filling up, signatures and all, are in one handwriting. By noticing these three points, the “State,” “Title,” and “Town,” (the Magic Three,) and the signatures, the detection of any alteration from a broken bank will be a very simple and easy matter. For instance, one of the best alterations, and one that has deceived thousands of good judges when it was first issued in 1849, were 1s, Madison County Bank, Cazenovia, N. Y. vignette three females. The “New York Safety Fund” and “Cazenovia” were rather clumsily lettered and the MADIS- was _shaded by hand_, while -ON COUNTY BANK was shaded perfectly by the Ruling Engine. This shows of course an alteration from some other name that ended in -ON; most probably CLINTON. There was no bleaching or scratching of the paper around the substituted letters, and the signatures were not faded, this shows that it was not an _altered bill_ but an _altered plate_, probably a “wild cat” bank plate, that was sold at auction, in New York, in 1841.

ALTERED DENOMINATIONS.

This is altering from a smaller to a larger denomination--as 1s altered to 5s, &c. &c. This is done in various ways. One way it is done by pasting; but it is more generally done by extracting the ink of the figure and the die containing it by some chemical fluid, and printing in its place a counterfeit die, or sometimes a stolen genuine die containing a larger denomination. The words, “ONE DOLLAR,” which generally is shaded by the Ruling Engine, are extracted, and “FIVE DOLLARS” substituted in its place and _shaded by hand_. A difference also in the color of the ink of the substituted denominations from the rest of the note will generally be seen. Sometimes the letters of the substituted denomination are _common printer’s type_, the “old English letter,” 🖙 Twenty Dollars.

OLD-STYLE PLATES.