The native Virginian. [volume] (Orange Court House, Va.) 1867-187?, 1869-03-12
WHAT HAS PASSED Foa MONEY,

Many things have been used at differ
ent times as money: cowrie shells ir
Africa, wampum, or beads made of clan
smells, by the American Indians, soal
IN Mexico. The Carthagenians used
leather as money, probably bearing
some mark or stamp. Frederick Ii. at
the siege OF Milan. reviving this custom.
llsed stamp leather as money, In 1850
Joln, the Good King of France. who
was taken prisoner by the celebrated
Black Prince. and sent TO ENGLAND nm
I'll ransomed, also issued leather mo-
ney. having a small silver nail in The
middle. Salt is the common money i'm
Abyssinia, Goldfish IN Iceland and New
foundland. Living money, slaves and
| oxen. passed urrent in ancient Greece
ana among the Anglo-Saxons in pav-
ment OF debts. Adam Smith SAYS that
IN ms day there was u village in Scot
land where 1t WAS not uncommon for
wofkmen to carry nails instead of mo-
hey 10 tne bakers shop and the ale
house. Marco Polo found in China
money made of the bark Of the mulber-
~ Tree, Deorlng the stamp of the SOW
efelgn, which was death TO counterfeit
being the earliest specimens of paper
money.
Tobacco was generally used as money
IN Virginia up to 1860. 81 years after
the foundation of that colony, and men
botighi wives for such weight oftobac-
c.; Wnile III Canada the beayerSkin. be-
ing the great staple, was in like mai-
nef maze unit, and all transactions
were estimated in beaver. In l64l :he |
Legislature of Massachusetts enacted |
tiat wheat should be received in nav
uieilt OF all debts. and the convention in /
france, during the Revolution. on the |
proposition of Jean Bon Saint Andre.
oeiiis discussed, the propriety OF adopt
lnS wheat as money, and. the measure |
OF stlIe of value of all things. Platina
was coined in Russia from fS2S to I845
But the metals most adapted and most
generally used as coin are copper. nick
el, silver and gold, the two first beinp
now used Tor coins of small value. to
make change, the two latter, common
ly designated 1.-The precious metals"
measures OF value and legal tenders,
Oi tie continent of Europe compo-
si'lon OF silver and copper, called bull
non, mas long been used for small coins.
whicn are made current at much high
er value than that of the metals t'Iey
contain. In China Cyce silver il the
rlneipal currency. andis merely inpot
siiVef oi uniform tfneness, paid aud
received by weight. Spanish dollars
also circulate there. but only after they
have been assayed and stamped rs proof
that they are of the standard fineness.
As Asia Minor produced gold, its earli-
est coinage was of that metal. italy
and Sicily, possessing copper, bronze
was first coined there. Herodotus saws
the l.! dianslwere the first people known
to have coined gold and silver. They
had gold CONS at the close of the ninth
century b. G., Greece Proper only at
the close of the eighth century. BIC.
Servius TullIus, King of Rome. made
the pound weight OF copper current
money. The Romans first coined sill
yer 2Sl, b. c.. and gold 207. b. c.
Some nations although, they worked
the metals with skill. seem never To
have coined money. and such was the
case with the Irish, of whom no coins
ire known pli ior to the English invasion
n the twelfth century.