Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-02-03
neware of Csunterrrll Halr poIInr.,


BeWare Of CsunterTrit HaIT Dollars,
Mr.. William e. Dubois, assayer
of the United States mint in Phil
adelphia, warns the public against
counterfeit half dollars, as follows
AS these pieces are beginning to
show themselves, though not in an
alarming quantity, a few simple di-
rections for detecting them may be
useful, especially in the stores and
shops. Counterfeiters generally
content themselves with the chear
aud quiet process of casting from
molds, though sometimes they
strike the pieces from dies. The
mold is made from the genuine
coin, and yields a fac Simile. They
use type metal, somewhat hard.
ened and sonorous by the addition
of copper, aud the whole bein2
slightly silvered over in a battery,
and the "gate" neatly ribbed out
on the side, such a piece may pass
while fresh and new. They are,
however, rather too white and too
thick, or, if of a right thickness,
too light. There is something
about the genuine coin that ordi-
narily puts it above suspicion, par.
ticularly after the new white sur
face has given place to the inimit.
able and permanent "nine-teuths
tint" 1t may be abused by heat
Ing or staining, or by contact with
gum elastic bands. 1t has been
disfgurcd with tin foil for the
small purpose of provoking a bet.
In rare cases it may have a flaw at
the edge, or shut in, which de.
stroys the ring. But generally il
speaks well for itself as to col6i
and sorority. The genuineness Of
a half dollar is something worth
looking after to any of us, and es
pecially to a store-keeper taking
them often through the day. 1t is
therefore, worth the trouble to have
on the counter one or two witnesses
easy to be had. First, a balance,
which need be no more than thin
strip of wood, eight or ten inches
long, neatly poised. Place a good
piece on one end and the suspected
one on the other, and have a
weight Of three grains at hand.
If the difference is more than that
decline taking the piece. A much
better instrument would be the one
in vogue many years ago, for gold,
made of brass, and taking not only
the weight, but also the gauge OF
diameter and thickness. Any one
wishing to see this simple affair,
with a view of making it for sale,
may call at the Office Of the under
signed no doubt it could be sold
at fifty cents. 1t should be adapted
to the half and quarter dollar, and,
perhaps, the whole dollar, Second,
a liquid test composed as follows !:
Twenty-four grains Of nitrate of
silver in crystals, one gramme (Say
fifteen grains) Of nitric acid, and
one ounce of water. Any druggist
can put this up in a small bottle,
with a pointed glass stopper made
for lifting drops, taking care TO use
pure ingredients. Remove a little
of the surface of the coin by a knife,
and then touch the place with a
drop from the stopper. If good,
there will be no action; if bad, it
blaokens at once. 1t should be OBJ
served this is not the compound we
use for examining gold oounterfeits
and jewelry; and further, some
persons use nitric acid alone, which
will discolor q good coin as well as
a bad one. As for the pieces struck
from dies, they are generally such
poor limitations that the taker al
most deserves to lose by them, Such
q piece, dated 1875, is now before
me; good color, feeble and faulty
devices, right weight, but quite too
thick. 1t would be caught by the
gauge already mentioned. 1t is a
whitish brass, with silver plating
more substantial than the electro
1t is well that the courts
and officers of the law are diligent
in arresting this business, while the
tellers of the treasury and the
banks throw out spurious offers, SO
that it will not commonly be neces-
sary to use any other test than the
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