The Punta Gorda herald. [volume] (Punta Gorda, Fla.) 1893-1958, 1902-01-24

MiNNa ANo o1reHe WgaH LIKE UNTO
GOVERNMENT eoNoa

hhe nays Wheu huHkrnan and C0Onn
und Foxes aad wolves and Dear,
Were enc Peoples Money, no 20
speak, ia New York stade,
Tho man Of leisure from New York
city who had been laEing nway
fortnight or DO OF lila not particularly
valuable umo at Kysorick, 10 Ulster
county n v, had made up his mind
to return 70 his hunts In the metropo,
lI5 ana nonchalanliy tossed tho taycrn
kcepor o ono hundred dollar note out
Of which TO take pay for bis blll. The
landlord could not change tho note
Neither could beacon RlImber. who
wag by.
u was not until Il had been sent oil
about tho nolghbothood that any ono
was found with currency enough on
hand TO 'brcnk' tho bill. Farmer
neacks had Just received pay for his
aoasons tater crop and had change Tor
moro thon 800.
'lt bouts all, an It's singular" said
tho landlord IA ho counted out tho New
Workers. change, .''whut FOLKS goes an
docs with all their ready money. There
don't seem TO be no currency no moro.
no currency a.circulatln' at ALL"
This seemed 20 DO Deacon climbers
opportunity,
you Orto ben here, then" said he,
"when my folks settled, somothln' like
seycuty.iyo years an moro ago, There
was currency enough thon l want 20
tell yg Il wa'E't silver. though. Nor
1t want gold. Nor II want paper. II
was poltg
"rhe clrc'la,In mejum O tho deestrIc
IN them days run from muskrat clean
up TO bar, There was mlnks an' there
was offers, an tho man that could !
manage TO harvest plenty o them crit.
tiers was The man that stood way up
in the money market Hut Il want ey.
cry one that could gether In nmks an
offers, an 90 muskuts an coons an
toxes an wolves an bars was tho real
cIrc'latn' mcJun In them days.
"Mlnks an offers was what you
mowt call government bonds huskrats
an cOons an foxes un'Iwolvos an bars
was tho peoples money, 30 10 speak,
II you went / the tavern an pankcd
down your my rat skin. you'd gilt your
Bnifter o. ri and lalzy, but you
wouldn't git y change II you plankcd
lown a cool Kin, though. you'd glt
your snlftor IN two muakrat skins
change.
"a fcller that went In with q coon.
skin no was tol'able well nxed, but
with foxsbn or wolfsklp he could
shop around quito some. A man with |
l-bnrskn-Oh, we'll Nobody didn't ask
no qnestiona about n man that had a
b'arskln With him whom he went trad
In'l
'tt didn't seem pertlc'lar queer In |
them days the way things WINS run on
that pelt currency, but I've an ldee It'd
strike folks n leetlo singular nowadays.
Pears to mo I'd have to snort out
my own self II a Teller should
como to me an sayi
deacon, I'm leotlo financially en-
barrassed today. Ken you lend mo q
foxslsn for a couple o days or SOP
''rhnt surely would make mo smoker
II | beord Il now. AM 10 hear some
shoppIn' goln' on today like use to
hear II many time | bot would set
no 10 gigglln' like all possessed Some
liin' like this. fer instance, over yender
o Unclo She's store;
"'IIow much fer them air cowskin
loots. unclo siloT
"Tbcmf Why, a fox an COON
"'Leetle high, Silas. Can't STAN II
Awe you three eoons fer en-
"'No Can't be did nohow. Best
ien.do Is three coons an a muakrat.'
'srhat'd DO funnlor to me than a Mig.
ger show now. An somethin' lilko this
would bust my buttons. know II
would:
"Deacon. ken yOu give mo change
Ter o wolff
ayes, but I'll have TO give you all
muskrats.'
"But we didn't think nothin' o. II IN |
them days, 'cause II was regular busi'
ness, Tint circ'latin' mejum wGD lee
tie onhandy In ono way. though. Folks
had TO carry their currency around In
n bushel bag II they was out to do
much cash business, an II they was
barskin men. why. Judas preachin'.
they Ind to cnrry II In wagon.
'But them days O pelt currency was
the good old days, tell you. StIlI." said
the deacon after pause. II dunno but
| ken manage 20 slide along Jest as
cheerful 10 these days O gold am silver
an paper currency, even though II 10
all peryadin' skeerce" = New York