Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-11-12
CENTS AND NICKELS.
How the Supply is Kept up by Uncle
Sans MINIS.

Cents and :iiCkeiS wear out rapidly be-
cause they are passing constantly from
hand to hand, and the immense numbers
of them that pour into the Treasury at
Washington are carefully sorted for the
purpose of throwing out those which are
too much damaged and worn to remain in
further circulation. These coins arrive in
bags from banks all over the country for
redemption in more convenient money,
and the first thing that is done is to count
them. This process is performed by MIN
BILE fingered persons, mostly women, who
accomplish the task with a rapidity little
short of marvellous, and this is the way
they do it.
The counter takes newly received bag
of cents, pours a quantty-a double hand
full. say-.upon the table in front of her,
and with two or three quick motions of
her hands spreads them out so that they
lie fiat. no one of them upon another.
them. two at a time, from the table into
ner left hand, which she holds beneath
the edge of the table. Her eye scans
every piece. and if there is counterfeit
touch and sharp eye. Usually the coun-
terfeit betrays itself by difference in
color but if not thus detected its ring as
it drops into the palm with the other coins
discovers it.
When a counterfeit is found the counter
with a big pair of shears cuts the bogus
coin in two halves. laying the pieces aside
in a little box which is reserved for this
large number of bad cents and nickels do
not turn up at the Treasury, most of them
coming from New York and Philadelphia.
where the business of making such small
coins occupies the attention of many
Italans and Polish Jews. The profits of
the copper counterfets industry are
small but the pieces. being of such small
value, pass without much trouble. Event
ualy the counterfeits. cut in halves. are
transmitted to the Secret Service Divis-
ion of the Treasury. under whose direc-
ton they are destroyed and melted in a
furnace. TO be finally sold as old metal.
The pieces that are too much worn to be
of further use are thrown into a separate
receptacle, and every few weeks a large
consignment of them is sent to .adel-
phia. where they are melted for rccoinage
Quite frequently foreign coppers turn up
and they likewise go to the melting pot
Some Of these foreign copper coins are
of about the same size as our cents. and
will pass for the latter pretty we'll for
lack of scrutiny-a fact which on one oc-
CaSion induced in ingenious person to i'm
port several bushels of Austrian kreut-
Zers for circulation in this country. They
circulate fairly well. but the author of the
scheme soon found himself behind prison
bars.
Ninety-five per cent. of the cents and
nickels are in sufficiently good condition
to go out again into circulation, and for
this purpose they are put up in paper en-
veOpeS and cloth bags. Bags that con-
tain $50 in cents or more are sewed up
tied and tagged. with a wax seal over the
string for additional security. the initials
of the counter and note of weight of the
sack giving a guarantee of correctness.
Some of the money is packed in paper
rouleaux, called cartridges. one woman
being kept busy all the time rolling on
round stick for this purpose little sheets
of paper, each of which bears on It's sur
face in printed letters the amount repre-
scented by the contents. II bank cashier
anywhere hands one a cartridge marked:
give dolls: dimes: Treasury, L. s." one
fy the contents.
considered no great feat for one of them
to count and do up in bags or cartridges
$4,000 pieces in six hours, incidentally re-
iecting every counterfeit, foreign or mu-
tilated coin.
When a twenty-cent piece turns I'D it
goes to the melting pot, because the
United States is no longer minting or cir
culatng that kind of money: and the
same applies to the nickel with the big
" which was found dangerous be-
cause when gilded it could be passed for
s. gold piece. Old fashioned copper
cents are used for minting new bronze
cents with the addition of some tin snd
zinc to make the necessary alloy and the
same thing is done with the oldtinae COP
per half cent.
Cents are subject to more accidents than
any other coins. Being of small value
little care is taken of them. and th1t *
why the Treasury has to so on turning
out new ones at the rate of Jo,0y1UUv a