Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1907-06-25
THE UNITED STATES
COINAGE S UNIQUE
Differs From Other Nations
Because of the Exchanging
Countenance of the Goddess
of Liberty

tulnH nf most ff lft fAlifiAa Hthi hiv
them the faces Of their rulers. In IN
irmited States each coin has an emblem Q
lluhsftV. representing the American Goodies
n a sitting posture. or displaying her pro
file. The first coin struck after the fOrmH
ltion Of the federal union bore the face. o
George Washington, Father Of his Country
J General Washington disapproved Of the Gus
tom. and ~ was dropped, II has never bee
revived ana probably never viii be. Tor
TRAITS Of prominent Americans appear upC
postage stamps, Internal revenue stamps an
papfr money. but never on coins. And /
has been the custom, considered a wise one
10 use no portraits of live men even on ia.
currency and the stamps. In England a
soon az King Edward succeeded Queen Vie
toria, the queens face gave way to that %
Edward on an the coins and STAMPS in m
British otnplre.
The rise OF a new ruler In most monar
chtes means an instant change in tb- desigf
NJ the coins. In the United State the iaN
requires thai the design shutl not De
I changed oftener than once in went ave
years, that on each coin shat appear ~
emblem Of liberty, the year of It's coinaget
and the words ~ Pluribus Tuum.' Anon
those requirements are fulalled the presi-
dent Of tho United states may do as he
pleaseH with q design. President Roosevelt
has decided 10 change the design on the
| gold coins Of the country. ana % celebrated
artist has been commissioned to submit the
new designs. The present gold coin design
was adopted In 1S49 ana has remained un-
changed ever since. execpt that IN 1885 the
words In God We Trust' were added To
ram but the one dollar piece. which is no
longer coined. AS the last change was made
| rorty-one years ago, the president has his
way with the gold pieces
No SILVER dollars have been coined Tor
Two years. but the design has not been
changed since 1878. so that I their coinage
rs resumed the president NAV make a
change it he so desires The subsidiarg all
yer coins. the half dollar, the quarter-dol-
lar nnd the dime are now coined from a de-
sign adopted in 1882, so that they must re-
main as they are-duite the most artistic
aud beautiful Of the American coins, at least
until 1917 The nickel 6-cent pieces ot to-
day dates it's design from 1882 and the l.
cent .lece from 1864.
The emblem Of liberty on the 1-cent coin
Ii the goddess In an American indian head
dress. but the face shows no characteristics
" the North American aboriGinc. 1t Is the
face " a little girl, sarah Longacre Keen.
upon whose head was placed the feathered
ornament ~ q Sioux Indian. Her father was
an cnRraver and he took the idea and
placed his daughters head on the coin, Sa-
rah Longacro Keen died In philadelphia not
long ago. after having served thirty. 1ve
years as the secretary Of her citys branch
Of the Methodist Women's Foreign Mission
AIRY society.
nv frs, oufGing ever erected In the
United States for the public use of the fed
eral government under the constitution was
he mint at Philadelphia Robert Morris,
the patriotic nnancicr Of the war for indie
pendence, was ir-, to bring IN the quest lon
Of IA national mint. and Il was he who
worked with Thomas jefferson and Alexau-
der Hamilton to induce the congress to adopt
the decimal system Of money arithmetic.
Let every hootteeoer and every business
man rise ua and bless these men for that
work, ~ was Jefferson who wrote the re.
port 10 the congress urging the adoption
OF the dollar as a money unit standard in
stead of the English pound sterling. and it
was In his mind that the system OF dimes,
cents ana mills' was horn. He is best known
as the author OF the Declaration Of Inde-
pondcncc which freed this country from En-
gllsh political rule. but ne ought to he re-
memberod as the author Of the Declaration
uf Independence which freed the American
people from the -confounding system ~ reck-
lng IN pounds, shiuings and pence.
The first mint was provide for in a bill
which President Washington signed on April
p t792. and it was erected In Philadelphia,
in that year on seventh street, near Arch,
on the site Of an old distillery. II was used
as a mint for over forty years, In the eHrls
days OF the republic many branch mints
were set up, most OF which have been ahan-
doned. Although the states were prohibited
from coming money. private individuals
we're permitted to coin gold and silver. The
coins that were issued. however, had to no
nssayed by the federal mint authorities.
In Georgia ana North Carolina, where golc
mines We're Of great inheritance before the
California discoveries of iSt7. private minis
were established on IA large scale, and one In
North Carolina coined several million dollars
IL 80 H-sA- an ]
mint at Charlotte. eight miles away. In
1854 there were twenty-sevcn different kinds
" gold co,ns issued from fifteen private
mints.
Al that time the California mints were ex-
coedinglN busy, one " the curious products f,
being a 81 octugonal coin Nearly an " the
coinage " the private mints had been re-
at the government minis and only a
o fow pieces are now ta he found ont
side ~ numismatists collections
Coins had been minted for tho federal
hy a contractor before the frat
philadelphia mint was built The first was a
copper cotn hearing ON one side thirteen cir
les linked together, a small circle in the
With the words Omitted States"
around e. and In the center the words We
one on the other side was IL dial
With the hours marked. % meridian sun
above with the word "fugio" ON one side and
The date "ttN7" on the other and below the
tlal. the words. Mind Your Business.
to this. in the year 1iS2. under the ar
.icies of the confederation. had appeared the
coins viii the bust Of Washington In mill.
Iary dress and the legend, Washington ami
independence" This coin was opposed by
The general but in 1s92, the appearance D.:
he words. Washington. President" on the
coins, with a classical undraped bust 81 the
President himself offended the modestv Of
he great American and he stopped IL 10
would be interesting la view Of this fact
e know what his opinion would be uf the
itatutc in the capitol grounds at Washington
which represents him half way cut OF a
Greek classical costume.
The first Ncrth American COINAGE " any
was the "hogsic money OF the Der
nudas. so-oailed from the representation OF
hog upon the coins The first coinage i'm
What Is now the Omitted states. was struck
IA Massachusetts In 1893. Mn. Hun the mint
kept the same date going for thirty
cars. and as he received one shilling nut Of
ver, thirty he made he became exceed
ngly rich. 10 was he who gave his daughter
ipon the occasion 81 her marriage TO Snm-i
Ici sewat her weight In New England shit
nicyiy balanced upon the scales 90 a
'uge steciyard MARYLAND had issued a
pine 'rcc shilling in 1850. hut the die was
repaired iu England, and some on tho COINS
.rought oysr him.
Coin was issued at one time or another by
ll the original thirteen states. as wen as
rrmnnt and kcuturkv. the first two 10 he
tn the Union. The Kentucky one
rni pIrrv has on one side e hand holding a
crou inscribed "Ou Cause Is Just. and
round DO the legend "unaulmltY is the
ireugth - a society ON the reverse side
s. a triangular pyramid 81 fifteen stare
.nited hy rings each star bearing the ini-
HH M ID HHHHa EarHHHHNn h4fum ~ HH. 80