Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1895-07-26
NEW COINS FOR OLD.
|. A BIG BUSINESS IN SMALL PIECES OF
MONEY AT THE TREASURY.


"Chink, chink, chink chink, slide"
The sound is made infinitely quicker
than it takes to write or speak the words.
1t is heard in the minor coin department
in the treasury building, where all day
long the chink, chink, chink of nickels
and pennies is sounded AS they are counted,
weighed and tied securely into bags ready
for the calls for small coin that are con-
stantly coming in.
"There really are no pennies" said r.
G. Half, chief of the department, to an in
terested visitor the~ether day. "Pennies
are English coins and we have cents, but
common usage has made the word ours,
and we seldom say anything else. We have
/ three men who do nothing but count pen
MES all day from 9 o'clock in the morning
| until o'clock in the afternoon, stopping
half an hour for luncheon.
"Thcre are five counters kept constantly
/ busy, the work varying little according
to the proportion of pennies and nickels
brought in during the day. 1t takes three
minutes to count 600 coins. The pennies
are put up in bags containing $40 each
The same numbered uiciri, H. also put in
to bag. The whole process takes five
minutes including cutting the string to
the old bag counting and putting the
coins into the now one, tying that and
fastening on n tag giving the amount and
the counters initials which is necessary
in case of error, which is in this way traced
back to its proper source.
"You see, " said Mr.. Half, 1.-THE man
takes two coins at each count. That is
quicker than taking one and easier than
three or four. He counts one for every two
pennies dropped into his hand, 50 that
when he has counted 100 he has 200 pen
MES, or So. The counting is not done with
the lips 1t would not be possible to move
them quickly enough to keep up with the
rapid movement of the fingers.
'When a man begins counting, he can
count ten bags a day, or ten times 1000
coins BY the time he has had six months
experience he can count 60 bags day.
THE white pennies, mashed or mutt
lated coin, or even those that are sOiled or
corrodcd arc thrown aside and sent off to
be melted over The idea is to keep as
clean money as possible in circulation.
When the count of each bag is concluded,
the mutilatcd coins thrown out must be
replaced hy good ones This does not in
clude plugged, counterfeit or foreign coins
These are returned to the senders to be
made good.
There is greater demand for pennies
l.
this catchpcnny business, charging 40
cents instead Of 80 cents, etc. one large
dry goods firm up town which sells "a great
many small wares gets in regularly about
$500 in pennies day for making change.
The firms bankers come here about once
in two months and take away 50, 900 in
pennies, which they keep in their vault
and hand out to this one firm as they are
needed.
"Other dry goods houses come here d.
rectly for their pennies, which they use in
quantities of from $500 to 5000 week
"Thcre is $3.50 in pennies that has just
come in from an ice cream firm, waiting
, to be counted One days record of our
work shows -, 069 taken in in pennies and
s.. go in nickels. We seldom take in less
than 1000. We receive a great many
nickels from the elevated roads Yesterday
they brought in SIG, 600 in cent pieces to
} be exchanged and last Friday they brought
in $50, 600 in the same way. They come in
, every day. 1t shows the number of nckels
! in circulation on the road when you think
t of the quantity also given out in ex-
change"
, Mr. Half was not idle as he talked, and
} continuous string of callers at the little
! window mt the front Of the department re-
ceived penniea and nickels in varying
! amounts.
"You see, people are willing to give
gold for "copper" he said as he dropped 4
> gold $50 piece into the box and handed
l out two bags of pennies.
; "Oh, yes; people bring very small sum:
t to be redeemed. have had brought in d
| black . cent piece, and the person bring
t ing it had come from away up town. Pos
: sibly he had some other errand besides. A
/ great many people think because the
= money is old we will give more than its
/ face value People have heard that the
I pennies of 1890 were mixed with gold and
! expect to get price on them greater than
their original valuation. One man tolt
D me that he had IA penny of that date rs
Q sayed, and it was worth 81 cents. They
t think the cent pieces on which the wore
4 cents was omitted should bring more
f money. 1t is the same way with fractional
, currency
@ There; that was case in question
s That man had some old scrip, and III
+ wouldn't believe me when told him i
n was not worth more than it's face value
n He has gone off to inquire.
= "It is estimated that there is SIS, 900, 00t
4 small scrip unredeemed. Probably IS, 900,
t 600 of it has been destroyed. Here come
that man back.
"He has gone off again to count hi
o money. There is $500 l counted i
carefully, but he was not satisfied"
Il Then for third time the stranger ap
d peared and departed for good with his NJ
e to date coins.
> 1.-THE brokers those people go to" con
: tinued Mr.. Half, will only give them 8
per cent of the face value of their currency
They bring it to us and expect to make
little something for their trouble Man
r people are annoyed because we will not re
?, deem mutilated coins 1t is government
IS money, they say, and the government
should be responsible for it, But when tn
:. government makes it "A punishable otfens
/ to mutilate coin it is not going to Civ
e good money for it. New York Times.
l. Nervous Breakdowns.