Friedberg 7a. 1861 $10 Demand Note. PMG Choice About Uncirculated 58 EPQ. Serial Number 5. A remarkable "for the" $10 Demand Note payable by the United States Assistant Treasurer at Philadelphia. Demand notes were initially intended to be hand signed by the register of the Treasury and the treasurer of the United States. That practice quickly proved impractical, and soon other federal employees were pressed into service signing the notes. At first, signers would hand write "for the" after their signatures signaling that they were signing in place of the actual register or treasurer. Later the language was added to the actual printing plates. All handwritten "for the" Demand notes are quite rare today. The presently offered example is one of just three known for the catalog number. What makes this note even more fascinating is the penned annotation found on the back of the note. It reads as follows:"August 24, 1861Received at the Counter in Treasury Department, this day, being the 5th demand Treasury Note issued by the United States of America for War Expenses to Suppress Rebellion. D.H. Dalton of Mass."August 24th, 1861, was the very first day newly authorized "Demand Notes" were issued into circulation. On the day they were issued the Treasury Department began using them to satisfy war debts and make government payrolls. Assistant Quartermaster Dalton received some of these new Demand Notes and kept the $10 example offered here away as a souvenir. The face of the $10 Demand Note features the portrait of Abraham Lincoln, his first depiction on a federal note, there being no restriction against placing the image of a living person on money. The engraving was by Charles Burt who utilized a photograph taken by C.S. German. At the top is a stock vignette of an American eagle created by Toppan, Carpenter and Company for use on state bank notes, passing to the American Bank Note Company in the merger of 1858. To each side is a green "10" counter. To the right is a standing woman, an artist with palette and drawing board, variously called <em>Art</em> or <em>Painting</em>. Patent imprints of 1857 and 1860, similar to those used on other Demand Notes, Legal Tender Notes, and certain other issues, refer respectively to the Patent Green Tint franchise held by the American Bank Note Company and the cycloidal configurations technique of the National Bank Note Company. Both claimed these deterred counterfeiting. As a class, Demand Notes were issued from August 26, 1861 to March 5, 1862.The note itself is wonderfully original, essentially new save for a light centerfold likely from Daltons preserving it for posterity. The green protector inks are vibrantly displayed in the form of die counter 10s that flank the magnificent eagle at center as well as the security bar centered below. The bold red serial number 5 is proudly presented below Lincolns portrait. Neatly penned Treasury officials signatures are seen in the signature panels along with their important "for the" notations. The paper is creamy white in color, clearly hand cut with the right end of the note being cut slightly into the frame of the design. Daltons inscription on the verso is wonderfully inscribed in careful hand with bold inks and his signature at the bottom. It should come as no shock that this is the finest known example of the catalog number. This is without a doubt one of the most interesting Demand Notes in existence and a bona fide trophy piece for students of United States currency. Its significance to the financial history of our nation cannot be overstated. <em>From C.H. Dalton; Allan Forbes; our (Stacks) sale of January 1953, lot 1102; Bill Donlons sale of May 1971, lot 631; Frank Levitan; Lyn Knights sale of December 1998, lot 3. </em>
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