The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1890-05-02

ademund Is made, but this occurs only qC.
casionally, and then the coins are sent to
the mint, cleaned up and sent into circula-
ton again.
It is ABOUT the same story In reference
to pennies. The Government buys the
metal out of which they are made ready
for use and pays SO much q pound for it,
when 1t is cut and prepared for stamping.
Then the mint puts the legal mark upon
the coins and they ere turned out by the
million. What do they cost Well, every
cent that is coined brings in a profit Of
threc-eu .rters of o cent to the Govern
Ment. More pennies thau nickels are re-
turned to tho Treasury IN exchange for
other money, but they ure sent promptly to
the mint, and soon get into the hands Of the
public once aguin. A bronze penny or q
nickel fve-cent piece does not wear out as
rapidly as q dollar bill.
But there is still another source of profit
TO the Government in the issuing of these
small coins One Of the most expert Of
men at the Sub-Treasuryi in Wall street de-
clared u day or two since that there are
still iu existence somewhere, floating. aoout
the country, punched up in old stockings or
in the hands of curiosity collectors, over
100, 100000 of the old-fashioned copper
cents, about 20,000,OU0 OF c~opper-nickel
SSutoS hSSiAt OSoSOOvsVVO Va Vto HASSVAV
| issue of bronze pennies, %, GOO, 600 of nickel
3-ccnt pieces and about 2Oo,0 o0, O0 Of nickel
E-cent pieces. The total value of these out
standing minor coins is, put in round num-
bers, :123,000.0c0, and every dollar Of this
is absolut, profit to the Government.
The coinage of silver pieces is lone main
ly by the National mihts, and, strange to
say, there is more profit in The work than
any thing else that the mint does. Under
tho present lew the Treasury is required to
buy and coin Mt least s2,00o.CO worth Of
| silver into dollars. This s2.0G0.o00 worth Of
silver makes nearly 81, ss5o, 600, Sc that tho
profit on the monthly purchase and COIN
e of silver dollars is fully S150,000. So
the profit on the sllver collars, you SEQ, 10
about; 9.A0O,GM a year or more, and adding
TO it the profit on the pennies and nicle!s
brings it up to nearly $40, 000,0O0. OF course,
there must be taken out OF that the expen-
scs of the mint, but they are a comparative
ly small sum.
Tie process Of coming silver pieces Is an
interesting one, and is the same practically
for dimes ami for dollars. The silver bull
i'm is first melted and run into bars. These
in turn are run through immense rollers
and tlatscned out to the thicl.iess of tho
coin. These silver strips are ti,ci, passed
through o machine which cuts them INTO
the proper size for tie press q, the strips
first having been tra:tcd With u kid us tai
low to prevent their being scratched in
their passage through the cutters. Tho
silver pieces are thea put into ti.a feeder of
the printing prcssea, and are fed to t:.e die
by automatic machinery. As tho smooth
pieces are pressed between the p,ntero,,,
printing dies they receive the lct.ered and
figured impression in q manner similar to
| That Of paper pressed upon q form OF type;
ut the same time the piece is expanded in o
slight degree and tho small col'rngations
are cut into its rim. Tue lnachiue drops
tho completed coin into IL receiver. and it is
ready for the counter's hand.
The instrument used by The counter is
not a complicated machine by any means,
as one might suppose. 1t is a simple cop
per-covered tray, having raised ridges rum
nm across its surface at q distance apart
the eject wiltilo dime. From the receiver
the money is dumped on to this board Or
tray, and es 1T is siiilscn rapidly by the
counter, the pieces settle down into the
spaces between the ridges. All these spaces
being filed, tho surplus is brushed back
into the receiver, and the counter has ex-
ac:ly 1850 dimes, S125, on this tray, which
number is required to fill the spaces. The
tray is then empt;ed into boxes, md the
money is ready for shipment.
The dime does not pass through the
wcigher's hands, as does tho coin of a larger
denomination. One and one.half grains
is allowed for variation or .stolerance,, in
all silver coins from M dollar down, and
the deviation from the standard In the ten
cent pieces Is so trifiing thatt the trouble Of
weighing coins Of this denomination is dis
| pensed with.