QUEER BANK NOTES

Shannon News, 8 June 1926, Page 4

QUEER BANK NOTES

INTERESTING COLLECTION, OVER 27,000 SPECIMENS PAPER OF SIX CENTURIES. FORGERY AND THE GALLOWS Consisting of over 27,000 specimens, many of which are believed to be ths only ones in existence, the Avonmore collection of banknotes and other forms of paper currency is easily unique. The actual face value of the specimens reaches the colossal figgure of no less than £600,000,000, says Mr. Richard Barber, in an English magazine, but the owner, Mr. Fred Catling, is unable to estimate the intrinsic value of this collection, as it is the only comprehensive one known to have been made from the inauguration of paper money, which had its origin in China 600 years ago, to the present day. i It has taken three generations of the owner's family to bring the collection to its present dimensions, and it has necessitated journeys to many parts of the earth. Strange to say, it has been the privilege of only six or seven persons to examine it, and it was only quite recently that Mr. Catling, on the advice of a friend, took the precaution to safeguard his specimens by insuring them. Many Rare Specimens.

According to a bank manager, not one of the great banks of the world possesses anything like so many rare specimens as this collection includes. There are hundreds of examples, which, so far as is known, have no counterpart anywhere, such as the notes printed on paper made from mulberry leaves and issued in China as far back as 600 years ago. There is also a specimen of the earliest British banknote for £IOO, which was issued in 1713, and gained for the Bank of England its first Charter. This Charter was granted in pursuance of ,an Act of Parliament and in consideration of £1,200,000 being raised by the Bank of England in the form of Exchequer bonds of the denomination of £IOO each, with interest at the rate of 2d per cent, per f . diem. The first Bank of England note for £l, several of Avhich ar e included in the collection, was issued in 1813. It has been inaccurately stated that after a cartoon which was designed and published by Cruickshank in 1817, the bank ceased to issue any further £1 notes, but the contains one dated 1821, which has a remarkable history. A man named Thomas Ransom was arrested and tried at the Old Bailey for forging the note, but was ultimately discharged after experts of the Bank of England had pronounced it to be genuine. Women Hanged for Forgery.

Another very interesting relic is the forged Bank of England note for the making of which two women —Kath- ] rsrine Doland and Joanna McCarthy — were put upon their trial at the Old Bailey and subsequently hanged, for forgery in those days,; rendered one liable to capital punishment. A portion of the actual indictment, which is engrossed on sheepskin, is also a treasured item. It charges them with having "feloniously disposed of and put away a certain false forged and counterfeited promissory note for payment of money." The forgery is dated December 1, 18ir>, and as far as research has been able to decide these

,wo, women were the last persons to je hanged in England on being con- , victed for this particular kind of crime.

One of the rarsst specimens in the whole collection is an English banknote for £2, dated June 11, 1807. The first of these \va? issued in 1797, and the last one in 1821. Among the many other curiosities is a banknote issued by the City of Mayence in May, 1793,'during its historical siege. It is of the value of three livres. The issue of these notes was brought about by some of the French cities siding with the Royalists against the Republicans, and printing their own money, a precedent which was later copied by Mafeking during its siege. , Some of the wording on the Mayence note is similar to that which appears on the assignats,. which were issued in great numbers from the birth of the French Republic in 1792. These were very beautiful engravings, and a notable feature of them is the words "La loi punit de mort le contrefacteur" (the law punishes counterfeiting with death). lU-fated Riftian Notes. The war in Morocco between the Riffs and the Spanish and French was responsible for the issue of enormous quantities of Riffi an banknotes. These were printed in London, and are of two values, viz., 1 Riffan and 2 Riffan. A Riffan is the equivalent of lOd. There is an atmosphere of romance in connection with these notes. Negotiations had taken place between the Riff authorities —including Abd el Krim — and certain interests in London, with a view to exchanging them for French and Italian notes. It is somewhat difficult to gauge accurately how far the negotiations had proceeded, but one thing is certain, that when it came to exchanging the notes in the Riff territory, the arrangements en'iieij fell thiough. This resulted in their being reshipped with a view to sending them back to England, but it appears that the boat that was carrying them was chased, and the notes were thrown into the sea. The case containing them was salved a little later on, and at present is believed to be in British territory. Prolific Printing of Notes.

Germany probably holds the record for prolific banknote printing. As fat as is known, the Avonmore collection has a specimen oL' practically every kind that has been issued there. Many of these notes dispav <n a marked degree a vengeful mentality on the part of the authorities responsible for issuing them. The workmanship of some of them is truly remarkable. Some are printea en satin with a neautifuliy designed border of knitter! silk. Others are printed r.n very line kid leather in variou? colours acco • Uag co their denominations.

It is impossible in a short Tticle to deal with this unique collection at any length, but practically every item is of historical interest. In consideration of this fact, it is to be hoped that the owner will one day be prevailed upon to exhibit thorn', so that students and others can have an opportunity of inspecting one of the most interesting collections in the world.