Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1896-11-19
PENNIES OF ALUMINIUM.
The Mint Making Tests to See if The,
Are Practicable.

The Mint Making Tests to See If They
Are Practicable.
In the short period that will elapse be-
| fore Congress conveneS again in Oecem-
Der, a series of interesting experiments
in coinage will be conducted at the mint
| in this city. Metals and alloys hereto
| fore Hntried for the purpose will be test
ed and stamped into token coins. Their
availa bifity as substitutes for the alloys
of which the minor coins-nickels and
cents-are now made will be ascertained
and samples submitted to Congress.
Of all the countless possible alloys to
be obtained from copper, tin, nickel and
aluminium in different combinations, per-
haps fifteen or twenty may be found
fairly satisfactory. 1t is possible that
one or two of these may adyantageously
be brought into use for general coinage.
No fault has been found with the pres
ent 1-cent and 5-cent pieces. The ex-
periments are merely ordered to keep in
touch with the times and to gain. a
knowledge of resources. The PhIiadel-
phia mint, while having no regular ex-
detrimental department. is well equipped
to make the tests.
Aluminium. which has never yet found
a place in the currency of any nation,
is to be worked up into trial coins. 1t
is also to be given chance IN new al
Toys. Aluminium is a metal OF which
but little has been known until recently,
and it has been found useful in so many
ways that sort of popular idea prevails
that it would be gooo Tor coins. Chief
among it's advantages would be its very
light weight. Gents made Of it could
readily be distinguished from coins of the
same size by this remarkable lghtness
DR.. d. X. Tuttle, the chief rehner at
the mint, who knows I'll about the prop
critics of metal, is somewhat skeptlcal,
however, as to whether aluminium will
- nnfV fnS<fC "
ing colors. 1t is extremely difficult to
anneal, and when heated will suddenly
run like butter instead of becoming plas-
tic. There would be trouble in rolling
it into the long strips from which disks
are cut preparatory to stamping. ~
course, it can be worked, but not with
sufficient ease and rapidity to make it
practicable for coming on large scale.
Pure nickel has recently been coined in
Switzerland, but it has been found just
as difficult to handle as aluminium,
though for a different reason. Such
great heat is necessary to bring it into
condition for coming that the operation
is slow and expensive. While pure nickel
coins might be satisfactorily made in the
minis of Switzerland. it does not follow
that the same would be true at the
Philadelphia mint which is called upon
to turn out fifty times as many 3-cent
pieces as the minis of that country, and
e'A~A~
them.
The 5-cent coin now in use contains
only % per cent. of nickel the reWain-
ing IS per cent. being of copper. Nickel.
more than any other metal, has 1.-The
property of giving its color to an alloy.
Even an alloy of so per cent. of copper
and 10 per cent. of nickel will be nearly
white. The advantage of using Il greater
proportion of nickel in the 5-cent pieces is
therefore not apparent, especially as
more than % per cent Of it makes the
alloy refractory.
The experiments at the mint will in
clude different combinations of nickel,
copper and zinc: forming the alloys
known under the head of German silver;
copper and tin, which. produce the
bronze; aluminium and copper. which
make aluminium bronze. German sill
yer has been used for coins by one of
the small South American states. and
proved fairly adapted for the purpose.
Bronze is commonly used for coins of
small value. 1t is doubtful if aluminium
bronze in any form will be found ac-
ceptable, as it is hard to work, and has
yellow. brassy appearance, resembling
gold, which is to be avoided in All coins
of small denomination. : Philadelphia
Record