The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1899-12-29
RARE SILVER COINS.
The Diamond Dollars of 1904 and
Their Value.
Four of Them Are Now I'm the Treas
ury vaults at wasbington-Very
Few of the Issue In
Existence.

every now and then one reads about
the discovery of another of the famous
Diamond Dollars of 1904" said agentle-
man of this city, who owns one of the
finest private collections of coins and
medals in the south. "The dollars OF
that date are popularly supposed TO be
worth from $500 to $4,000 apiece, and
If few originals could be produced
dare say they would bring that figure
eisily enough. But it happens, unluck-
lily, that there are only four on earth,
and they are locked up in the vaults of
the treasury building at Washington,
and couldn't be bought at any price.
They are what are known as the test
pieces which are always laid
aside whenever a new coin is struck,
and the rest Of the issue is at this mo-
ment quietly reposing under several
miles of deep blue sea. The true story
is rather interesting. In 1904 the mint
at Philadelphia is known to have
turned out 1880 silver dollars. That
was the entire issue barring the test
pieces / have just spoken Of, and 1t was
never put into circulation. The whole
lot, just as 1t came from the stamping
presses, was dumped into an iron chest
and put On board amerchantman bound
for China. 1t was directed to the cap
tain of the United States frigate then
in oriental waters, and was intended to
be used in paying certain expenses con-
nected with the service. The merchant
man ran into Chinese typhoon and
went to the bottom, where, to the best
of my information, she still remains,
iron chest and all, and that Is the rea-
son why your Uncle Sam is the only col
lector in the world who has complete
set of American dollars. Every other
collection, including my own, is short
one issue, and the gap will never be
filled till the sea gives up its own"
do you mean to tell us, them" said
the listener to the foregoing, that all
the diamond dollars now in private
cabinets are counterfeits?
"By no MEANS" replied the collector.
81 own an 1904 dollar myself, and there
are at least three others, to my knowl-
edge, in the south. They were issued
by the government and are perfectly
good and legal coins, but they are not
originals. They are what are known
technically as 'restrikes.' In the early
days, when the mints had a few coins
left over from one year to another they
would change the date by striking
them with a special die, an operation
that can always be detected by an ex-
pert. For some reason or other, nobody
knows just why, lew dollars of the
1900 issue were restruck in 1904 and put
in circulation. 1t is probable that the
total number was not over 40 or so and
good many have been lost. The ones
in existence are worth $3.50 apiece, and
you may rest assured that all the 'dia-
mond dollars not mere limitations be-
long to this little lot of restrikes. OF
course some of them have been sold to
green collectors as originals, and was
myself the innocent cause of such
transaction only few years ago. A
friend of mine who lives in an adjoining
state, and who owns great many rare
and beautiful coins, telegraphed me
one day asking whether $500 was too
much for a genuine 1904 dollar. took
1t for granted that he knew the facts
about the issue, and, after puzzling over
the message for a considerable time,
concluded that 1t was an obscure joke
of some kind, and that was simply too
stupid to see the point So wired back
advising him to buy bushel at that
figure, and he promptly closed the deal.
1t turned out afterward that the coin
was restrike, and my friend has never
quite forgiven me. What deceived him
was that the piece was positive
ly to have been locked up in an old chest
at Savannah since 1912. That did away
with the counterfeit theory, and the
only thing he was doubtful about was
the price."-N. o. Times-Democrat.