Smyrna times., 1881-12-07
WHOLE NO. 1879.
For the S@yrna TINES
coinage, or Manufacture of Money
BY CALIB.

"oid ana silver were used as ''uonc,.Y
ana as the best medium of EXCHANGE ror
values, i'll the remotest periods of 49,,
tlqulty. In order to present clear idea
OF now coins and medals are mad, nr
mlnted' at the present day, it is only
necessary to give briefly description or
the process pursued at the United States
mint at Philadelphia, which is believed to
Dc behind no other mint in the world in
the perfection Of its machinery. In cam
Vertmg gold, silver and copper Tor conner
and nickel into the coin of the countrv
the processes are 50 nearly similar thar :,
detailed description of the manner nj
mlntlng gold will be sufficient. The cold
alloyed to the proper standard fo, coin
comes to the mint in ingots, generally Of
about one hundred and eighty ounces. the
larger share of it coming from the Ne,y
York Assay Office. The standard in En-
land is twenty-five parts of pure gold and
TWO parts of pure copper and in the United
States and most nations, is it nine tcntbs
pure gold and one tenth ALLOW. The in
gots are taken first to the rollino roo,n
where they are heated to redness. and are
then broken down between powerful
rollers Of chilled cast iron driven by steam
This operation is repeated until the inoot.
are reduced to two tenths Of an inch in
thickness and five or six inches in width
These plates are then annealed az red heat
for twenty minutes, and then plunged into
cold water, which would make iron or
steel hard and brittle, but it makes cold
and silver tough and soft. After the
plates are rolled to the required thick
ness, it il rolled into "fillets" or stripes
which 60 next TO the drawing machine
Gold in passing through this machine must
be fabricated with wax The fillet is now
cut into four pieces and the "tr;;cr" cuts
out one or more blanks from each strip.
and weighs it in delicate scale Salts
factorily tested, the hllets are next taken
to the cutting-out room, where they are
cut by machinery into round blanks or
'planchets," q trifie larger than the in
tended coin. This is rapidly done, each
machine cutting blanks for two hundred
and twenty double eagles or two hundred
and fifty small blanks, every minute. The
next process is to raise the slight rim seen
on the edge of the coin on either face.
which protects the device and letters from
wear. This is done at the rate of one
hundred and twenty double eagles min-
ute, and the edge is raised one thirty
second part of an inch. The dies from
which the impressions on the coin are
struck are operated by what is called a
transferring" or reducing lathe. In
pressing, the coin is put under pressure
of seventy-fve tons, for double eagle
and eighty can be coined in minute.
The double eagle weighs FIVE hundred and
sixteen grains; a silver dollar weighs
three hundred and eighty-four grains
The United States Mint was established in
1898. 1t was quite imperfect until 1885,
when Mr.. Franklin Peal returned after
two years examination of the mints of
Europe, with all the latest inventions,
which have since been immensely improv-
ed upon at Philadelphia. The capacity Of
the Mint is shown in the fact that nearly
seventy million pieces have been coined
in single year 1883; nearly fifty mil
lion dollars in value were produced in
1861; and in the first FIVE months of 1861
the mint coined 12,44S,037 pieces, worth
$S1, ,123, ,206. An interesting department of
the Mint is the Curiosity Room, which
contains specimen coins from nearly all
the nations Of the world. This depart
ment also exhibits Greek coins of ages of
from seven to three centuries B. c., and
superb collection of Roman coins dating
from A. D. 396 to A. D. 144S. There is also
complete series of the coins Of the
United States dating from 1898, contain
ing among the coins cent which from its
rarity is valued at one hundred and ten
dollars, also specimens of African shell
money.
BLACKBIRD HID, Nov. 2Sth, 1881,