Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-02-10
MONEY GOOD TO BUY THINGS.
What the Coins of the Realm are Really
Worth lntrinsicaIly.

What the Coins of the Realm are Really
Worth lntrinsicaIly.
"Supposing that the business of manufactur-
| ing United States dollars Of legal intrinsic
| value has been successfully prosecuted there
| would be no reason why other coins of this
country should not be produced even more
probably in like manner by private industry"
This was the sum of what Mint Director
Leech at the Treasury department had to say
yesterday to STAR writer.
1.-THE silver dollar" he remarked" is worth
at present intrinsically three cents more than
when it was first coined under the Bland act,
owing to the higher price of silver. 1t now
contains. as issued by Uncle Sam, IS cents
worth of the precious metal. have heard
| surprise expressed because the dollar, one
might say, was not originally made worth a
dollar. The reason of this, however, Is very
| simple. To begin with, the silver dollar was a
| coin adopted by the Spanish colonies of the
Americas. 1t was accepted by the United
States as a standard of value in 1892. and has
been kept of the same intrinsic worth ever
since, for one reason because it would not do
to have United States silver dollars Of different
| issues varying in such point. The amount of
silver in it was determined by law at 81
grains.
THIS HAS NOT CHANGED,
but the fneness has been altered--n other
| words less copper is put in now than formerly -
which means that the so-called dollar of our
| daddies was heavier than ours. The silver dol
| lar now is composed of nine-tenths silver and
one-tenth copper, conforming to what is called
| the 'ninc-tenths standard"
| .How about half dollars?"
1.-THE silver half dollar has less intrinsic value
| propOrtionally than the dollar-that is to say,
there is not as much silver in two fifty -cent
pieces as in one whole dollar. Half dollars are
worth, in the sense we speak Of, IS cents apiece
at present market rates for metal. They are
made purposely debased, SO that they will not
be taken out OF the country for circulation
abroad. Likewise this same remark applies to
the quarter dollar and dime. which have an
| intrinsic value exactly proportionate to the
| fifty-ccnt piece. In fact all three are made
| from the same metallic mixture. The quarter
Is worth ia cents and the dime cents"
| GOLD PIECES.
"Thus it would appear that the government
makes twenty-five cents on every silver dollar
it coins and more yet on the three fractional
| silver pieces?"
THAT is undoubtedly true; but so long as the
| government is the people and the people are
| the government, what is the odds? On the
other hand every United States gold piece con-
| tains it's full face value of gold. beside one
tenth OF its weight in copper for hardening. 1t
| might appear that person provided with suff-
Gent capital could buy great quantity of ten
/
| the mint to be recoined free of charge-as
| Uncle Sam is obliged to do it-and have the
| copper left over as 80 much gain. Unfortu-
| nately. however, there is a certain loss of gold
| in separating the metals. not to mention the
expense OF performing the operation, and go
| such a scheme could scarcely be managed For
| turning ordinary old gold not melted coin, into
| new-minted gold pieces the government charges
| two cents an ounce-not for the coming, but
| for the copper necessary to put with the gold"
"And how is it with nickels and pennies?'
with them it is quite different matter.
| They are merely tokens, not supposed to repre-
| sent anything like full intrinsic value The
nickel so called has only three-fourths of cen
worth of metal in tin fact that is all it costs
Uncle Sam apart from the expense OF stamp
| ing. 1t contains three-fourths copper and
one-fOurth nickel. The copper or bronze penny
| il only worth three-tenths OF a cent 1t is COM
| posed of IS per cent pure copper and per
cent tin and zinc. The government does not
make its pennies and nickels itself, you know.
! dry up in Connecticut, owned by the Philadel-
.phia firm Of Merchant l. Co., where they are
cut by Yankee machinery from sheets of m etal
rolled the proper thickness. subsequently
they are stamped by the mints and put in cir
| cuation as COIN"
| at is proposed to discontinue the coinage Of
| the three-cent nickel?"
Eyes, and of the one dollar and three dollar
gold pieces. too. The nickel three-cent piece
never had any use except to dishonest persons,
lar gold coins are no longer seen save on
| bangles and in coin collections. As for the
three-dollar gold piece, it is only to be regret
ted because it is the prettiest coin ever issued
! by this government"
| The American window glass trust organized
about six months ago has run the price Of glass
up from Is to rs per cent. The price of the
French glass has been made to run from Is to
20 per cent higher than that produced by
American manufacturers.
| The fencing championship of the Amateur
athletic union was decided in favor of Samuel
| I. Shaw, who won the foils; A. Oregon, the
dueling sword championship, and Geo. Hentz,
New York turn-verein, the broadsword con-
/ test.
| Ex-Gov Scales of North Carolina ID conva-
lescing from dangerous illness.
The Moore memorialchurch ct Richmond, Va,
has been presented with q beautiful memorial
window by Mr.. Thomas Nelson Page in memory
| Of his lovely young wife.
The National educational association will
open q convention in the teachers training col
lege in New York on February 10. 1t will be in
| Rev. Hugh Francis Griffin, one Of the oldest
and best-known Catholic clergymen in Mary
land. died Saturday at St Charles college, near
Ellicott City, Of influenza complicated with
other complaints due to old age. He woul
| next March.
It is unlawful now 10 load or unload the car.
goes of steamships or steamboats in Virginia on
| sunday.
| A farmer named Poster went turkey hunting
in Randolph county, NC, Friday and his gun
was 80 heavily loaded II exploded and killed
him instantly.
An ''old folks homo" for the First African
Baptist church has been Incorporated in Rich
| mond.
Gov. Mckinney has not Jet appointsd and