Daily Iowa State Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1856-1859, 1857-06-03
Iasuing the New Cent-Tho Hint Over
A RIM with Apoaicenfss q
prom IT, PhIisde,phaa DsI1esia, Hay 3.


prom ~ PhIIssespssa DsDssia. Hay =.
Nioe o'clock SHE noseing was Tie
houR fixed fos-ss NJ. T.susose Tit
mssse elegantly phrassd ie.''sssttsrise
che shinefs"-but when tho morning
sua first reached the esps Of the marble
columns Of the Mint, long before
o'clock he cast his benignsnt rays upon
. numerous Grew Of psss0ns Who we're
gathered under the portico waiting for
the doors to open, that they might get
their email silver and their large cop.
per exchsngcdsor the bright little stran
| gers who were so spxiously looked for.
] Every man and boy 10 the crowd had b..
package Of oOin with hin. Some had
their roulesux OF Spanish coin done up
n bits OF Dewspap Is, or wrapped in
hsndkerchiefs, and other carrying con.
tr.v~ncies hl,ed with coppsrs-''very
cheap and filing" like boarding house
fare.
The officiating priests 10 the Temple
OF Msmmon bad anticipated this great
rosh and crush, and every possible pre-
psration was made in anticipation OF it.
Con picuous among these arrangements
was the erection Of . neat wooden bull.
ding 10 the yard Of the Mint, for the
special accommod stion Of the great
crowd OF money changers. This tempo
rary structure was furnished With two
open windows, which faced the south.-
Over one Of these windows vas inscribed
the words scents for cents" and over
the other scents for silver" Inside the
little office were scales and other appa.
ratus for weighing and testing coin. q
goodly pile Of bags containing the Cewly
struck compounds OF nickel and copper,
and detachment of weighers, clerks,
10.
The bags containing the "Nicks" we're
neat little canvass arrangements, each
Of which held five hundred Of the dimin.
utive strangers, and each Of which bore
upon its outside the pleasant inscription
"S5." just as the State House bell had
finished striking nine O'Clock, the doors
Of the Mint were thrown open, and in
rushed the eager crowd-psper parcels,
well flied handkerchief, carpet bags
and oil. But those who thought there
was to be grand scramble, and that
the boldest pushcr wouli be first served,
reckoned without their host. Tho inva'
ding throng was srrayed into lines which
led to the respective Windows; those who
bore silver had the post OF honor assign
ell them, and went to the right, while
those who bore nothing but vulgar cop.
pers were constrained to take to the
lett.
These lines soon grew 10 On unconsci'
enable length, and to economlze space
they wound around and around like the
COW olutions Of enako Of whimsical
turn Of mind. The clerks and the weig.
hers exerted themselves to the utmost to
meet the demands Of all corners and to
deal out the little canvass bags to all
who were entitled to receive them !; but
the crowed grew apace,, and We estimated
that at one time there could not have
been less than one thousand persons in
the zigzag lines, weighed down With
small change, and waiting patiently for
their turn.
Those who we're served rushed into the
streets with their money bags, and many
OF them were Immediately surrounded
by an oLteside crowd who were willing
to buy out in small lots at an advance
en- first cost. We saw quite number OF
persons on the steps of the Mint dealing
out the new fav0rites at an advance OF
from thirty to hundred per cent, and
some Of tho outside purchasers even
tuckstered ont the coin again in smaller
lots at still heavier advance. The
great majority OF those who came oat
"msdtracks" with their bags Of money,
and not an omnibus went eastward past
the NJ mt, for several hours, that did not
like California steamer, carry ''specie
in the hands Of the passengers"
Those who made their way homeward
foot attracted tho attedtion of a psssers
BY their display Of specie bsgs, and We
doubt much whether, in the history Of
the mint, there was ever go great rush
inside the building, or so animated a
scene outside Of It. 1t was in effect Ut
once the funeral Of tho old coppers ami
OF the ancient Spanish coins, and the
giving Of q practical working existence
to the new cents.