The conspirators bought gold on margin and then attempted to circulate a false proclamation from President Abraham Lincoln among New York newspapers, that called for a national day of prayer and the conscription of 400,000 additional men into the Union army.
Howard and Mallison hoped that this proclamation would lead investors to believe that the Lincoln administration thought the war was going poorly, and cause them to abandon the Union greenback currency and instead buy gold, driving up its price.
Misunderstanding the hoax as an intelligence leak Lincoln and Secretary of War Edwin Stanton ordered two newspapers to be closed, and numerous reporters and telegraph personnel arrested.
The purpose of the late-night drop off was to get the proclamation printed as a breaking story that night editors would be eager to insert into the next day's paper, but would have little time to check its validity.
The financial nature of the hoax was soon uncovered by General John Dix, and Secretary of State William Seward issued an announcement that afternoon denouncing the proclamation as a fake.
The president ordered General Dix to arrest Manton Marble and William Prime, editors of the World and Journal respectively, and to occupy their newspaper offices with federal troops.