The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1909-12-10
A little bit of everything
China's Medium Of Exchange

!
Business transactions between Chi
nese merchants and foreign firms are
usually in taels. The tael is not a coin.
but a Chinese ounce OF silver. IL var
les in different places both as To weight
and touch" Cor fineness), and the ex-
change between the tael and the dol
lar, or between the former and the cop
per coinage, is constantly fiuctuating.
The only coin in use until recently
was the copper cash (of which there
are about 1900 To the Mexican dollar
or 1850 TO the American dollar), but
these are fast disappearing except In
the more or less remote interior. A
new coin or ten cash piece has been
made at the provincial minis, and il is
rapidly displacing the old copper cash.
The relative value between these and
silver dollars or taels is constantly
fluctuating. At first they were sup
posed To represent one ne-hundredth
OF a Mexican dollar, or about one two
hundred -and-fortieth of dollar, but
the exchange is now (Oct. - from $50
to 1876 for the Mexican dollar. or from
SO7 to 319 for the gold dollar.
For many years the Mexican dollar
was current at and in the vicinity of
the coast and river ports, but now
Chinese dollars are coined at the pro-
vincial minis at Tientsin, Marking,
Wuchang Hankow, Canton and else
where, but the mintage of one province
is only accepted at a discount in an
other province.
Subsidiary coins, 10 cent and 20 cent
pieces, are also made at the provincial
minis, but these are never worth their
face value They are discounted about
Is per cent, when exchanged for dol
lars.-Consular Reports.
Co. operation in England
The cooperative movement contin-
ues to grow in England. There were
in 1883 Is cooperative societies, doing
a business of $7S2.295 at profit of
$43,949 in 1908 there were H. such
societies. doing a business of $2O.51O ,009
at a profit of $SS,S9O Although in the
last five years there has been decline
in the number of societies from 125
to 112, there has been an increase I'm
the volume of business transacted and
in resulting profits. The decrease in
the number of the organizations is at
tributable i'm part to the purchase of
some of the concerns by the English
wholesale society. Copartnership in
housing is also growing very popular i'm
England. In 1906 there were three
20 Mt N
1873, which in that year expended $249.-
033 on building. while i'm 1905 the num-
Der OF these concerns had trebled and
the sum OF $729.999 was expended on
building. Through these societies me-
chanics, artisans, and clerks are en-
abled to secure homes, and at the same
time the habit of thrift is strongly
Observation-Disclosures Herald.
A wonderful prehistoric memorial
has been discovered in the Big Horn
mountains OF wyoming 1t is known as
the medicine wheel" and on the top
of Medicine mountain. 1t is built OF
granite powders i'm a circle around a
great rocky hub in the center. The ex-
istence OF an altar of some kind had
long been known to white men, but the
Indians always refused to talk about il,
and prospectors found il by chance
The tradition of the Indians concern
ing the wheel is that it was built by
the gods themselves and is to remain
as sacred object to the end of the
world. Medicine mountain so named
by the Indians for the reason that it
was To its rocky slopes that the In
dams went for the medicine" or charm
which was TO protect them through
life, has long been known among the
Indians as the home of the Great Spir-
it, and for generations these Indians
have camped around the great wheel
while engaged in the mystic rites and
ceremonies Of making Indian "medl-
cine" No Indian would pilot white
man TO the mystery. and only chance
brought the two prospectors to the
place Of the medicine wheel. WASH
ington Herald. -ailfxJG
The tragedy in Nicaragua recalls the
adventurous career a little more than
half "A century ago, of William Waller.
lie was well educated, graduate of a
southern university. a lawyer, physi-
clan. and a journalist. But not one Of
these callings could satisfy his adven-
turous spirit. He sought glory i'm fill
clustering. He was captured I'm So
nora, Mexico, and sent back To the
United states for trial, where he was
acquitted Of violation of the neutrality
laws. Then he plunged into a civil
war In Nicaragua. He captured Gran
ada, and the president, Gen. Corral,
made him secretary of war. He caused
Corral to be shot and had himself pro-
claimed president. But his arbitrary
rule caused another insurrectlon, and
he escaped TO the United States. Aft
erward he was shot while leading an
expedition in Honduras. one OF his
lieutenants, named Potter, escaped
the fate of his chief and afterward
became a colonel in the United States
Washington Herald