The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1859-03-30
NUMBER SO.
For the Register
The Old Cent,


Much has been written and more said
about the new cent" and for time
the public mind was so occupied with the
idea of having new cent, that no one
seemed to know or care what was to be
done with the old one. The wisdom OF
both branches OF Congress was brought TO
bear upon the subject, and much time and
more money were spent in discussing the
matter, until at length after long season
of labor, there was brought forth that
partially abortive thing the new cent.
But although the device on it was as
uncouth as could well be imagined, sti
it met with very general favor, owing for
the most part to its freedom from disa-
greeabe odor, and its small size, which
rendered it much more economical and
convenient to carry about ones person.
More recently, the united wisdom of the
nation has been taxed again in altering
the device on one sile of it, from that Of
Il nondescript fowl colled an eagle, to that
of the head of wild Indian. This is
decided improvement, and we have now
very respectable looking cent-one in part
that we need not be ashamed of.
Now the ostensible purpose in creating
the new cent was to bring about small
neat coin to take the place of the old cum.
brous one in use,-one in fact, that per-
son might without insult offer in change
to any gentleman or lady. 1t was not
pretended by any one that there was any
necessity for any addition to the number
Of one cent coins already in circulation,
but the idea was to bring out something
that should supersede the old. But while
this was the understanding, not the first
move has ever been made towards with.
drawing the old from circulation, which
had already become so numerous as to be
almost Il nuisance-Govornme even re-
fusing to take them, and declaring them
legal tendre only to the amount Of three
cents. The legitimate result of this policy
is to keep the new ones almost entirely
out of circulation, while the others are
kept constantly moving for lot any per-
son be in possession of few Of each, and
common sense teaches which he would
dispose of first, he would part With the
old bungling, sinking, superannusted, red
cent, which, weighs forty-thrss to the
pound, and hold on to the clean shining
little fellows one hundred to the pound.
till all the others were gone. Everybody
does this, and he must be something more
than an ass who does not know it. Why,
there are shop.keepers who have the new
ones laid sside by the quart, but they
never pass them out while they have the
others by them, and they are always
plenty.
Now | hold it to be the bounden duty
Of Government to abste this nuisance. l
for one, question the propriety of having
any one cent pieces at all--in some parts OF
the county there are none-but at any
rate they are altogether too numerous, and
Government ought speedily to devise some
means to withdraw the old ones from cir
culation. 1t might very easily be done.
Witness how quickly all the foreign coin
has disappeared. Let Government but
give notice that they will be bought at
par, or even less, and they would soon
disappear
I only wish that every person at the
head Of affairs at Washington, from the
President down to his boot.black, was
compelled to receive their pay in the old
cents until they would bo willing to do
something to rid the country Of them.
X.