Los Angeles herald., 1907-10-12
PLEADS FOR
CLEAN MONEY
GERMS IN BILLS AND COIN a
MENACE
MANY REMEDIES FOR CONDITION
SUGGESTED
Cleansing by Business Houses, Banks
and Corporations urged-HandIers
of Large Amounts Realize
Necessity of Move

dirty, unkempt, ragged hobo" just out OF
the town lookup should come to your
door for "hand-out," and while telling
his story and fumbling with his un-
washed hands in his filthy pockets should
drop an old suspender button, and your
sweet creeping baby. seeing 1t roll along,
should grasp 1t and, as babies invariably
do should put the button into its rosy
little mouth, would you not spring to
take it out and Instantly wash the child s
mouth, perhaps using some germicide, Tor
fear that the thing should give 1t some
contagious disease? How about any
penny that the baby may pick up from
the floor? How do you know where that
penny has been? Did you not give ore to
Jamie to spend little while ago? He Is
q tiny boy and he put the penny in his
mouth while he tied his shoe. He now
lies sick with diphtheria. You cannot Inn
agine how he could get diphtheria Your
home is absolutely sanitary. You pride
yourself on that The penry could tell
Very strange, isn't it, that dear friend
of yours, lady whose character is above
reproach, whose husband adores her and
is q dignified representative of your
church, should be suffering from disease!
You gave her beautiful pocketbook for
4 Christmas gift. She had cut her finger
q little that day. She had quite roll of
bills and she changed her money from her
old purse to the new. She had occasion
to handle certain 81 bill several times.
That 81 bill looked innocent enough, but
1t could have told a story II 1t could have
spoken. The trouble that renders your
dear friend mentally and physically mis-
erable had hidden itself in that 81 bill
But 1t came forth out of its vile lurking
place! 1t was tiny, invisible, unthought
of. 1t made no impression at first but
L.. l.
ousy. and has become living death to
your friend.
Coin Must Gllsten
When such things can be and we, the
people, who have but to utter our de
mand to have it gratified, wish it, shall
we not have clean 81 bills, clean ones.
clean bills of all denominations? Shall
we not have bright pennies, cleansed
nickles and silver? II we buy goods shall
we not expect clean money for change?
Why insist upon clean goods if we can
not pay for them with clean money?
But" you say, there is so much
money in circulation everywhere, how
can it be cleansed?" 1t is already done
TO a great extent by the United States
government. The honorable secretary of
the treasury has sent us a report show
ing how part of 1t is redeemed. The gov
ernment does not cleanse the dirty money,
it does better. Like the old peddler In the
story of "Aladdin's Lamp" who Went
about crying. New lamps for old!' our
treasury takes back the old bills and
gives out new The paper currency re-
deemed at Washington during the fiscal
year 1906 amounted to S5T, AS, 100.
More thar. half billion of money was
exchange the new put in circulation and
the cid destroyed. But the report says
that tine condition of the paper circu-
lation CT the country cannot be accu-
rately described by the experience of this
office through it's redemption division,
for the reason that only the unfit United
States paper currency is redeemed, while
all the national bank notes, fit or unfit,
are only redeemed upon presentation.
The redemptions of currency during 1906
were less than in 1905, owing to the great
demand for money in all sections of the
country and the reluctance of the hold
ers thereof to lose it's use from the chan
nels of trade while in transit to and from
the treasury However there is a notable
and widespread interest among the pub
lie in the supply of a cleaner and more
sanitary currency and it is suggested
that provision should be made that win
enlarge the facilities of all holders to ex-
change worn tor new currency, and in
furtherance of this object section 1892 of
the revised statutes may be amended to
permit holders of worn and defaced
United States currency to forward same
by registered mail, without charge, to
the treasurer of the United States for re-
demption. This desire, this sentiment, is
a laudable one and should be attainable,
because the expenditure as per tables of
cost is but a trifle compared with the
beneficent results.
Conveys Infection
currency a source of conveyance of in
fectious diseases or a menace in any way
to the public health. The profit it de-
rives from the issuance of currency is
ample compensation for the small ex-
pense that this change would involve It
is gratifying to note that the house. COM
mittee on banking and currency have this
matter in charge and are making most
investigation as to the merit
of this proposition
Undoubtedly this sensible suggestion
will be carried out and become a law
Then, If you have a dirty and worn
bill in your pocket and do not take al
vantage of this proposition or cause
your banker to do so, your eryslpelas
be upon your own head.
Few know what is the average 'Iife"
of dollar bill. The national govern
ment furnishes nearly three-fourths of
the paper clrculatlOn ana II Is thus en-
abled to give an account and accurate
estimate of the time bill averages to
be in circulation. For instance, there
was an issue of treasury notes which
began in 1890. The one dollar bills
lasted in circulation about a year and
eight months. The two dollar bills
lasted nearly the same length of time.
The fives lasted nearly three years be-
fcre they were redeemed and the tens
three years and a half.
Now If those one dollar bills had a
chance to accumulate disease microbes
for twenty months no wonder they av-
eraged to contain 1900 living bacteria
apiecel And they did for we have had
a most painstaking report from the di-
rector of the research laboratory of New
York whose conclusions, after continued
and repeated tests and experiments on
pennies, nickels, ten-cent pieces and bills
taken from cheap grocery store, as fol-
lows
Dirty pennies averaged 26 living bacteria each
Dimes averaged 40 living bacteria each
clean bills 2250 living bacteria each
Dirty bills $4,000 living bacteria each
And mind you. your grocer and butcher
handle this bacteria laden money and
then hand you your food or throw your
meat upon the scales.
Lives Threatened