The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1908-12-17
hDOUT PAPER CURRENCY
Some Bank Notes From a Dis
tance Seen in New York.


The money panic gave New YORK.
ers chance to enlarge their lGeas
of geography. They had got used
in this town to handling almost eX-
clusively certificates issued by the
United States. Now and then bank
note would appear, but usually II
would be one issued by some well
known New York bank.
When money began to get scarce
more bank notes appeared. and then
people got to checks. When paper
currency again circulated somewhat
freely a marked change In It's CHAR
acter was noted. An employe OF
business concern which paid In
checks for few weeks put his oXpe-
rieuce this way:
1T sure was n great relief to ma
real money in my envelope on pay
day But there was never yellow
back or other Treasury note in the
lot. II was all new money which the
bank where my employer deposited
had issued as part of the authorized
relief measures.
Next week we got some more
new money issued b. the same bank.
Then came a change. Little banks
out of town had doubtless issued new
circulation and had met their New
York balances with it. Anyway |
began to find in my envelope 50 and
$40 and $50 bills bearing the name
10 Ia, al
rarely or never heard of.
1T got to be an interesting prac-
tice to read the names Of places on
the bills in the very brief time had
them before passing them over to
their rightful owners. my esteemed
creditors.
81 know II was all good money,
guaranteed practically by the United
States. but Invariably spent first the
currency which had its origin furth-
est away from New York. One week
all the money | got came from a
string of small places in Wisconsin
and that went extra quick. | helped
II go.
We'll, sir, my money for month
o. two did great stunts in geography.
The week after Wisconsin string
of banks up in Connecticut furnish
ed ME with spending money, and the
week after places in Pennsylvania
previously unknown to me contrib
utted to my support.
Now we're getting good old
Treasury notes again. The yellow
boys are certainly good 10 look at. |
suppose they have been repos!ng in
bank vaults in the shape of legal re-
serve, whatever that is, or hidden
away in the mattress OF some tight
wad who was scared. But wher-
ever they were, welcome home!"
Persons who handle the currency
of different countries, find American
money the most durable. The Crane
mills in Massachusetts, turn out the
paper used by the Treasury IT. max
ing currency and the secret OF its
manufacture is we'll kept.
= Most of the paper money you get
in Canada is atrocious unless It hap
pens to be American. II you ever
go to Canada you don't have to both
er to get your money changed; Amer
lean money is good throughout the
length and breadth Of the Dominion
In the larger cities there Is about as
much American money as there is
Canadian in circulation.
English money is as much rarity
to Canada as 1t is here. The Cana
dian notation is the same as the
American, which makes the inter-
change very simple. They have two
coins in Canada not used in this
country-the silver five celt piece
and the twenty cent piece Beware
of both.
The five cent piece is so small you
are pretty certain TO lose 1t, and
every one is waiting to stick you
with a twenty-cent piece in the hope
you will take It for a quarter and
slip it into your pocket unnoticed.
Then in Canada you don't get the
modest cents used here but copper
pieces as large as a silver quarter.
But the paper money! Beware OF
that, too, in the smaller denomina-
ttons. The Dominion Government
issues one, two and five dollar bills
and they are printed on mighty poor
paper.
After they have been in circulation
T. little while they become frayed al
the edges and seem to increase in
thickness. They are larger than the
American bills, too, and a dozen OF
them make a package uncomfortable
to carry in the pocket. And this rag
ged money gets dirty quickly.
The bills of larger denomination!
are issued by the banks. Canadf
has a number of big banks which
have branches all over. They ar,
chartered by the Government anC
presumably inspected carefully, foI
they are hard to break.
Some of the bills issued by Cana
dian banks are works of art. Tn,
Royal Bank of Canada issued a tel
! dollar note " hirh ic "a hormonIya,