The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-11-16

President declares are caused by the mot
TO. In God We Trust" are nothing as
compared with the anathemas provoked
IN the Philadelphia mint when the first
attempt was made to strike the new gold
coins from the Roosevelt-Saint Gaudens
design.
The presses in the big money-making
establishment would not work at all, when
run at the ordinary rate Of speed. and
even now, after the introduction Of spe-
cial devices TO overcome the difficulty.
the conditions are far from satisfactory.
Even at the Philadelphia mint. where
the machines used IN making the sold
eagles have been altered to handle the
new high-relief dies, the work OF turning
out the coins is slow and expensive; while
at the New Orleans, Denver and San
Francisco minis 1t is impossible to make
the new coins.
The principal difficulty. from a mechani-
cal standpoint. is that the design for the
new coin provides for an extremely high
relief on both sides OF the piece. and the
ordinary coin press used in the minis Is
incapable Of turning out the coins in per-
feet condition. IL was found Immediately
that nothing but medal press could be
used successfully without altering the
machinery, and medal presses are run SO
slowly as to prohibit their use for ordi-
nary coinage. TO turn out SO gold pieces
at the slow rate of speed of a medal press
would make the coins so expensive that
they could not be produced for general
circulation.
Must Coin 100 a Minute.
III
eral weeks by the mint officers. with the
result that the machines used on this
particular coin have been provided with
q mechanical attachment which permits
the presses TO be run at somewhere near
the usual rate Of speed. The same de-
vice will have TO be installed in the other
minis Of the country. The ordinary gold
coinage press turns out coins at the rate
Of considerably more than 100 a minute
The difficulty will be multiplied when the
mint undertakes 10 execute the gold
coins Of the dOuble-eagle and five-dOllar
denominations after the new designs.
Il is an open secret now that the new
coin designs are not distinctly the work
OF Augustus Saint Gaudens, the noted
sculptor. The fact is, the coin has been
changed in two or three respects from
the designs approved by the late sculptor
and that while the design was in prep
aration, Mr.. Saint GaUdens was constant
~ embarrassed and restricted by sugges-
tions and commands from the President
But even after the sculptor had finished
his work. and the designs were approved
10y the higher executive, notifications
were made which utterly changed the
appearance Of the finished coins These
changes were dictated by practical con-
siderations, but taken all in all, the new
coins are said 10 be badly botched by per-
sons who have had experience in the
coinage branch Of the government.
May Change Double Eagle.
Preparations are now being made TO pro-
duce the twenty-dollar gold piece after
the new design, but the design will have
20 be changed. or at least an entirely
new effect will be impaired 20 Il. 20 make
the coin acceptable in business and IN
order that it may be produced economi-
caliy by the mint
A few pieces from the double eagle de-
sign have already been struck, ana they
represent a much worse appearance than
the eagle piece. to which so much OBJ
lection has already been made Instead
OF the Mary Cunningham waitress head.
one side of the tweuty-dollar piece bears
a standing female figure OF Liberty, hold
Ing in one hand torch and in the other
an olive branch. one foot rests on a
rock or other object, so that the right
knee is prominent under the drapery
which envelopes the figure
On the reverse side, instead Of the
starding eagle in trousers is the high
relief figure of the bird of freedom 1vinr
alphabetically through space. with wings
hardly half spread As in the ten-dollar
piece, the side view Of che eagle is pre-
scented. but the conception is such mat
4bn-a gc No
1t more nearly resembles the bird on the
old-fashioned eagle one-cent coins Of the
eos
The twenty-dOllar piece also differs
from the ten-dollar coin in that the words
e Fluribus Unum" appear on the edge
Of the coin. alternating with stars TO rep
resent the States Of the Union. After the
design for the ten-dollar piece was an
proved. 1t was found that the coins would
not stack, and so were unfit for circula-
ton. At about the same time the Phila-
delphia mint authorities called attention
TO the fact that the relief OF the coin was
so high that the pieces would last only a
few months in general circulation. so
great would be the damage from abra-
sion.
Would Soon Wear Ont.
Accordingly, it was decided to reduce
the relief presented by the Mary Gun
ningham head and the strutting eagle |
and, in addition TO this, it was decided
to erect around the edge OF the coin "a /
high ring, as further protection against |
abrasion The latter process had the eff |
feet OF greatly emphasizing the "dished'
effect Of that part of the gold piece sur |
rounding the head and the eagle. so that
the whole appearance Of the coin is as
II the medallions on either side had been
struck with hammer until the center |
of the piece was sufficiently depressed.
The so piece, nOminally designed by 4
Saint Gaudens, will have to be treated 10 4
n similar process, for the first pieces
struck have convinced the mint authori- 4
ties that the coins would last only a short
time in circulation. The edge Of the big 4
coin is especially vulnerable. for the rim
is exceedingly sharp and thin at the ex- /
tremity.
There is an interesting story connected |
with President Roosevelt's part in the
new coinage designs. The design which
now appears on the Liberty side of the
$40 gold piece was intended By Saint
Gaudens TO be used for the copper cent.
but the President liked 1t so well that he |
directed its use for the gold piece There
is. therefore. no new design for the l-cent
piece. and il was learned yesterday that
one viii be made probably in the near
future. either by the mint designers or
by an artist appointed for the purpose.
PLANS CATHOLIC BUTIDTNGS