San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1886-01-11
FILTHY LUCRE.
II is the Root Of all Evil Without a
Doubt.

You see those small masses Of dirt
upon this quarter, =" remarked DR. Menger
TO LIGHT reporter this morning This
coin has been too long In circulation,
and all these black incruststions on the
surfarce of coins in the depressions be-
tween the images, are nothing but
micro organisms algae and bacteria. Mr.
Rsinsch, Of Erlangen, has lately udied
this subject, and his Investigations have
embraced the copper, silver and gold
COINS OF all the states in Europe. lfyou
take q needle and scrspe OFF this in
crusted formation, and placing il in dis
microscope you will At onoe see that
this 10 true. Here are some specimens,
remarked the doctor, and ne invited the
scribe to look through his microscope.
The appearance was quite startling. the
minute specks revealed under the strong
magnitiestion fragments Of textile tibres
and numerous granules, which DIR. Men
ger said were composed Of starch. wheat
and cellular algae. The power was then
increased and numerous spots appeared
which were in q state of active motion.
and here and there could be seen elOnga-
ted or rod shaped specimens which had
peculiar Oscillating motion. These, the
Doctor informed the LIGHT reporter,
we're what were called yibrIo spIriiium
and globular forms of micrucoccOid
bacteria. Resuming his conversation,
the Doctor said that MIR. Renisch de-
clared that bacilli are almost always
found upon copper, gold and silver coins.
The algae or water plants are met with
only on old coins, new pieces containing
bacteria emily. In addition the incrusta-
lions upon coins are found to contain
spores Of fungi like those found in
mould. This incrusIation is not only
observable on silver coins, but the same
has been discovered on paper money, on
notes, which to the naked eye appear
to have clean and unaltered
surface. The vegetation on paper money,
according TO the researches OF Mr..
Renisch, consist of the following plants,
the names of which are long, but do
not know how to popularise the scien-
tiSc names So rs to render them intelli-
gibls to the unscientitic reader: First,
MicrOcoccus various fOrms,) Bacterium
Termo Bacillus various tOrms.) Lep-
visae, ChrocOccus Monetarum, PlemOcOc-
Gus Monetarum. This subject ia q very
interesting and also serious one as II es-
tablishes without doubt that filthy lucre
is fertile agent for the spread of con-
tagiOus diseases. 1t is highly probable
that even the musty old tome that the
book worm delights in, has spread dis
ease in a virulent forI, but books OF
course do not circulate like money, and
1t is Of great Importance to public hy-
giene that this fact should be known.
Mr.. Reniscb deems it prudent that in
times Of epidemic. such as smallpox,
etc, coins that have become coated by
too long a circulation should be cleanssd
by being boiled in an alkaline solution.
The reporter left the Doctor and the
subject jubilant, feeling that all newspa-
per men we're involuntary philanthro-
plsts from the fact of it being impossible
for them to spread or catch any con-
tagious diseases, the idea of their re-
ceiving or paving away money being
ludricrous. This is indeed another in
stance Of the apethegm that "money is
the root of all evil