EDWARD HULSEMAN'S CATSKILL BANK COUNTERFEIT

Bill Groom writes:

MORNING HERALD – NY City – July 27, 1840

Progress of the Morality of the Age — Daring Forgery , Also, Escape of the Forger — More Running Away — Almost every one in this city knew Hulseman, the celebrated banknote engraver in Nassau street. Well, he has engraved his last plate in this city and sloped. He has engraved a sort of semi-counterfeit $10 plate of the Catskill Bank, of which the following is a copy:

Copy of a $10 Demand Note, drawn on the NY Safety Fund. Vignettes of Mercury, a general officer and a steamboat. Dated Nov. 1, 1836 and drawn on The Catskill Bank, it was signed by cashier, H. Hill, jr. and president, Thos. B. Cook.

What renders this counterfeit extremely puzzling is, the fact that the dyes of all the vignettes, five in number, were taken from the same bad plates from which the genuine bills were printed. - These bad plates came into Hulseman's possession, it appears, in the way of trade; and the only counterfeit, there fore is in the lettering, which is extremely well done. , The signatures are very faithful copies, being first etched in the plate and then inked over afterwards. So true are they, that Mr. Cook, the president, found it difficult to tell his own signature from the counterfeit. The bills may be known by the coarseness of the paper used, and by one other curious fact, which is this: Mr Cook happened to sign a few of the $10 bills with a steel pen; this made his writing appear finer and more scratchy than usual and as we think, a little snore trembling. It so happened that Hulseman copied one of the signatures signed with a steel pen. With these exceptions, the counterfeit is perfect. Edward, Hulseman, who engraved the counterfeit, has run away, and those who catch him will do the State some service. He was convicted with Tozer in engraving notes of the "Jefferson Banking Company of Vermont," and in one or two other curious tricks. He is, by birth, a Frenchman, 35 years, old; about five feet 6 or 7 inches, thick set, dark complexion, dark hair, speaks good English, with a French accent, and takes snuff constantly — He has a disagreeable and forbidding aspect. and his looks would "hang him at Tyburn”; as they used to say, in the days of Jonathan Wild. There is a curious history connected with this affair, which we will give in full hereafter . The community are indebted to Oliver M. Lownds, Esq. for nipping this counterfeiting in the bud.

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