Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-09
Ancient Chinese Cash,

A
Ancient Chinese Cash.
moor are the offices and dining and recep-
ton rooms, while the upper floors contain
the bed rooms and other apartments. For
merry whole firm, families included would
live In the hong. an arrangement no less
advantageous to business than TO safety IN
the early and somewhat perilous years of
Foreign settlement In China
The Merchants Stamp.
To return. however, to the Mexican DOL
lars. When a Chinese merchant has re-
cefved your dollars and his shraff has ex-
amined them, those that are declared good
are laid one by one on a wooden block and
receive chop" inflicted by a hammer
and steel die. This chop is the mer-
chant S stamp Of guarantee that the coin is
gooo; Ihe next merchant into whose hands
tne dollars fall give them his chop, and SO
tne poor coins go from hand to hand until
they are stamped out of shape and literally
battered to pieces. But even then the end
II not yet, for these pieces are used by
weight as money. Every shopkeeper. and
indeed almost every man in China has a
small pair OF scales. which he carries around
with MIN Tor weighing broken silver Most
OF the small trading is done by means of
TINS money; but sometimes-especially In
the interior-great quantities of IL are melt
ed up into fngots or Jumps of va-ious sizes
called ,r SHOES OF sycee" The largest sycee
n.
bear the official stamp of the district mag
istrate under whose supervision they We're
melted. The common people in the interior
keep their silver in this small bullion and
pay their taxes with IL or with unadulter
ated cash, and there are local banks where
they can deposit their sycee, receiving a
certificate of deposit. and draw out in cash,
which is exactly our system of banking
The Chinese weigh their silver by a decf-
NAL system, the largest weight being n
taeI or Chinese ounce. equal to one and
third English ounces. One tael equals
ten mace" one mace Ten "candareen,"
one candareen ten "tsien," or copper cash
There are no coins for the caniarcen, mace
and tael; they are merely weights, and
USED as such in all business transactions.
and In trading Of precious stones and
drugs. pearls. silver. gold. and other valu-
able metals.
Gold.
Gold in China II largely used for 1eweiry.
ornaments, and gliding. but never us mon
ey. 1t il usually found melted into bars
worth $40 to SIS each. or else beaten into
gold leaf about the thickness Of note paper.
This heavy leaf goes to Siam and India, 10
be used for covering idols ana affairs In the
gorgeous temples OF Buddhism Several
millions Of thin gold leaf ere estimated to
be burned or otherwise destroyed annually
In the Chinese funeral ceremonies. when
sycee. made OF paper gflded over TO look
like solid metal, are sacrificed with the
same purpose that coins are placed in the
dead mans mouth, i. e., that the spirit Of
the departed may not be compelled to re-
turn to this wearisome world but may
continue on its road to heaven In peace
and plenty.
Paper Money.
Besides having the Oldest continuous
series Of coinage in the world China can
Justly boast Of being the first nation TO
use paper money. II is said to have been
sr,fr nad l,,rsv
the dynasty preceding the Mogul conquest.
Marco Polo mentions the fact with great
ciearness in his book Of travels, and Chinese
history fully confirms his statement The
Emperor kublai ordered his people to coll
lect the bark of the paper, bearing mulberry
and from the thin rind between the bark
and the interior wood slips OF various sizes
to correspond TO various values were cut
These were stamped with the emperor's
seal and were passed as money. P2ymsnts
in them were legalized. and they circulated
through all the provinces over which he
held dominion, and no one dared refuse
them under pain OF death. wheneSev any
or this paper became torn or spoiled the
owner simply carried IL back to the place
whence ii was issued and received In re-
turn fresh supply with a deduction OF 2
per cent for the favor granted. For many
decades this system fiourished until a new
emperor issued such a vast Quantity-about
SOS 900, 0o0-that the Chinese became sus-
picious. then alarmed, and when they dis
cally a fraud and worthless inasmuch as
the government had no money wherewith
to redeem them, panic ensued. followed
by rebellion, which resulted in the over
throw of the Mogul dynasty. The present
dynasty has issued a certain amount Of
paper money, but has limited it's use to
Picking and the neighborhood. SO that out
side of Picking paper money is now seldom
seen, unless ii be as spirit charms and fever
cures.
A Pekfng Bank Note.
The original OF the accompanying cut Of
Picking bank note lies before me. II is a
piece OF fiimsy straw paper about five inches
by three in size and would not begin to
stand the wear and tear of American paper
money. 1t reads I'D and down instead of
across like United States certificates. In
the left hand upper corner is the seal Of
the province, while to the right is part OF
a seal which is guard against counter
feiting. 1t would be almost impossible to
duplicate the seal as IL Is on the note and
make II agree exactly with the other part
which Is kept by the bank authorities. The
characters between these two seals are the
banks pledge to pay to the bearer the
amount named in the right hand bottom
! corner, and the characters on the left side
are the official number OF the note, while
the two remaining seals. the circular one
and the oblong. both of which are printed
| in red. are the banks private stamp. The
note has been Endorsed across it's face In
heavy black strokes. The face value of the
note is about a dollar and a half but as
curiosity it Is worth several times that