Counterfeit Coins.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 174, 11 July 1901, Page 3

Counterfeit Coins.

Invercabgull, July 8. For some weeks counterfeit silver Coins have been in circulation here. Last wpek the police got information that young men were congregating in a hut in the suburbs, and on search being made, rude appliances were found. Coins made of babbitts metal had been cast in moulds of sand.

Four young fellows were arrested and charged with coining, two with passing a base half-crown, and one with having Counterfeit coins in bis possession

All the .silver Coins exCept the threepenny bit had been crudely imitated, and had it not been that the people here are not suspicious of that sort of fraud, they would have been detected weeks ago. That the industry has been worked to some purpose is evident from the fact that ode house detected three in ode day;

The young fellows are all resident in' the vidihity of the imt. Ode had been; employed in a foundry, and therefore knpw something of the modus operand!. - .. July 9j what tir&iSpired' at the

Police Court to-day it is evident that the real distributors of counterfeit coin here have not been caught. The four young men before the Court to-day had taken possession of an old hut near where they lived, and fixed it up for a rendezvous, where they played cards, read and amused themselves. One was an apprentice moulder, and they tried their hands at moulding small articles in soft metal, horses’ medals, etc. Then they tried coins of the realm, and one of these One of the accused said he passed by mistake to a fruiterer and was afraid to say anything about it. One or two of the coins were produced in Court, but they had not been passed. The inventory of the contents of the hut did not show any skilled attempt at fraud, and Detective Mollveney admitted that but for the youths’ own . statement no charge could have been laid against them.

Experts deposed that the counterfeit was very poor, and a foreman moulder said that the articles made were a common pastime amongst apprentices.

Three of the lads said that the fourth had nothing to do with the matter.

All were committed for trial on the charges in which all are involved, bail being allowed. The other charges will be hoard on Thursday.