Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-05-05

ject-the materials most employed by GRIM
1nal cotners for their compositions are pew
ter, block-tin and solder. Each Of them,
however. has his own special recipe. Pew
ter for the purpose Is usually obtained in
the shape Of spoons.
The loss to the government by wear and
tear on silver coin in circulation Is con.
siderable. 1t averages 3 cents on every dol
lar. Last year, as reckoned on pieces re-
minted, 1t amounted to $239, 293. Coin of the
white metal is redeemed at face value by
the treasury as long as II has not been will.
fully mutilated and retains enough of its
design for Identification. Congress makes
an appropriation annually for recoining
abraded pieces-not, be ii understood, to pay
the cost of minting, but to square the cash
account Of the treasurer of the United
States. He is only credited by the director
or the mint with the bullion value of the
worn pieces when he delivers them. On the
same account there was during the last
year loss by gold reminted of $2,3S4. But
the government will not accept gold coins
that have lost more than very small
fraction Of their weight, which is termed
the limit of tolerance"
The Columbian coins, so widely advertised
at the time of their ISSUE were sad fall
ure. 1t was expected that people would he
eager to pay double their face value in or
der to obtain them as curiosties That
this was mistake is proved by the fact
that 3,641, 16O unsold half-dollars are now
lying In the treasury. Most of them were
never taken out, while the rest have been
returned for redemption. They are to be
recoined at the expense of the EXPOSITION
management in order to protect the holders
OF those which were actually purchased
Inc o,OOOOOO souvenir 50-cent pieces were
MADE out OF abraded silver coins furnished
by the treasury. For their manufacture
2,o40,OOO worth Of such coins was required.
$4OUU having to be added to compen sa re-
Tor loss by wear. OF the 10000 silver SOU
venIr quarters minted at the same time
IN t..
not known what will be done with them.
Why Subsidiary Silver Coin f. Not
Counterfeited.
A silver dollar Is now worth forty-six
sents. but the bullion value Of half a
dollar is only twenty-five cents, that Of a
quarter dollar, eleven cents, and that Of a
dime less than four and a half cents. The
intrinsic value Of the subsidiary coins Is
made less than that Of the dollar for a
very useful purpose. If 1t were not so, the
small pieces, which are Of the greatest
importance as a medium of exchange
would be most frequently melted up for
commercial purposes. OF course, very little
OF that Is done at present, on account of
the low price of silver, and the proportion
ate poverty OF the silver coinage. But In
old times the practice referred to gave rise
to famines Of small change, during which
there was great difficulty In procuring frac-
tional money, and postage stamps and car
tickets were frequently employed as SUBJ
stltutes. incidentally TO the discussion of
this subject 1t is worth mentioning that
the withdrawal by the government of
postal rotes has already greatly increased
the practice of sending coins in cards.
Charitable organizations country news
papers, and many business firms send out
cards with circular holes in them to con-
tain silver pieces. Two glued flaps hold the
coin in position, and in this shape il is sent
through mails ont ~ C,,he
tions or what not.
Until within the last few years cents
were not recognized as currency in the
west and south. OF late they have begun
TO be used all over the country, though
their introduction has been gradual and
their acceptance reluctant. During the last
year California received from the treasury
and ciculated $1,000 cents, Louisiana took
5000 cents, Utah 1900 and New Mexico
1000. These are small amounts but they
show that coppers are making their way in
states which until recently have refused to
recognize them. Cents are as yet prac-
tically unknown in Nevada, Wyoming and
Arizona. New York employs the greatest
number OF pennies. Last year that state
drew for currency $4,000 brand-new
cents from the treasury. Illinois came
next, with a demand for 5,57S, 600 coppers.
partly on account of the worlds fair
Massachusetts, was third. calling for 4,2JS,-
Oo0 cents, and Pennsylvania fourth, with
5, 1913 500 cents.
During the last year the treasury manu.
featured 4S. T3l, 100 new cents. About that
many have to be turned out annually in
order to keep the requisite number of cop
pers In circulation, because so many OF
them are lost Being transferred from hand
to hand so often, they are exposed to mafiy
more dangers than are incurred by coins
of higher denominations and their value
Is so small that people do not take much
care OF them. They have recently become
redundant in New York and Chicago, large
ly on account of the fact that those two
cities are the headquarters for slot ma
chimes. In each of the dozen biggest cities
in the country supply of coppers Is kept
on hand by the local subtreasury, which
viii furnish them on demand. Anybody re-
siding in any other town may procure any
quantity of new cents by sending a check
to the superintendent Of the mint In Phila-
delphia, who win ship them at the expense
of the government. All of the coppers are
made at the mint in Philadelphia. Uncle
Sam makes large profit on his minof
coins, as pennies and nickels are termed
Blank pieces all ready to be stamped are
furnished to the government by contract.
The bronze discs for cents cost ~ cents a
pound-14S to pound. Nickel blanks cost
81 cents pound. A notion Of the rate at
which these small coins are lost is given
by the fact that lie, 0o0,00o OF the old cop
per pennies remain to this day unaccounted
for. They have not been returned to the
treasury for redemption or reminting, and
1t Is very rarely that one Of them is seen.