The Washington times., 1914-01-17
DOLLAR Of 1904
RAREST OF COINS
1t is Worth Today Whatever
the Finder Chooses to
Ask for 1t.

MINNEAPOLIS, MINI, Jan. I7.-More
myths and fewer facts have been print
ed and told Of the 1914 American dollar
than Of any other coiu ever cast, save
the widows mite and the Roman silver
piece ordered by Caesar for Cleopatra
Just after the famous general returned
after his conquest OF the invading hosts
Of Egypt, and whose circulation was
limited to a hundred pieces, according
20 q nurliSmatologist who makes his
home In Minneapolis.
ITO commence WITH said this STU
dent Of the worlds coinage, after read
ing OF the 1904 dollar said to have been
found in New Haven, Conn, last week,
and valued at $500, "there is an Ameri-
can dollar worth many times more than
The 1894 dollar-that of 1865. None to-
day are known, and amCnC coin collect
OrS generally 1t is believed that none
exists. Yet II is an Official fact that
1888 dies were made, and Six proofs,
as they are called, impressed between
the dies and reeding hubs of the United
states mint IN Philadelphia. But Con-
gress failed to provide for a dollar
coinage that year. and none was Off
ciahy struck. What became of the
six proofs none knows, but it Is gen.
orally supposed they were thrown back
into the crucibles Of the mint, melted
and poured again into tue smaller coin
age of that year. just try some time
and see IL you can pick up silver
half dollar Of 1868. Ma:lv were made,
but they are rare sO5ay.
Orient Got Whole Outfit.
But of the 1s04 dollar worth today
whatever the finder CHOOSES 70 ask for
il. and with many purchasers in the
market, strange as may seem, over
5000 were turned out. The reason Of
their scarcity is that the entire output
was sent over TO the paymaster of the
United States fleet or three men-of-
war then lying off TripoI, on the Afri-
can coast. The sailors Whc got them as
pay carried them asLUre and IL is
thought all were traded to the natives
for such supplies as were obtatneble,
much after the fashion of mcI- o'-wars-
men even to the present day.
Coins OF that size were new to the
people of that faraway and savage
country, for nothing ever reached it
except q few English silver pieces, and
England coined nothing so large as our
dollar. AS a result Of this trading, the
dollars were scattered among the
Tribesmen from Tunis to Egypt, and
found their way ultimately into the
hands of the little bands OF wandering
Gases of the Sahara
'As a circulating medium to these
overs of the desert the dollar traded
by the United States Jackie had little
no NaAUGs DuL dc lDt b1SiE IOL A4lt
manufacture Of silver jeEelry the
dark-skinned sons of Kano and Wadal
bartered for them wherever found, for
they knew no silver coin OF that size.
Found On a Desert Chief.
One Of the few now existing Of the
senuine 1904 dollars, remembering that
many spurious exist, was found hang
ing to an armlet Of desert chief Of
the Ghadames tribe, which makes its
home in the oasis that bears its name.
It had descended from father to sen
and now is one Of the prizes Of the
famous collection Of the Banks Broth
ers, the coin collectors of Boston. 1t
cost the brothers over S2,000, and was
purchased by them forty-odd years ago.
Coin collectors generally believe all
but probably a dozen or more We're
traded to the African natives along the
east coast, and made by them into or
naments for personal adornment much
after the fashion of the Navajos and
Pueblos of our own day. he teT not
has destroyed are thought to have
ueeR brought home in ditty bags OF
some homewar5-bound memo ~arsmen,
and preserved as pocket pieces, gradu-
ally to be discovered and sold at fabu-
Gus prices TO collectors.
1t is not so strange" went on the
DIN enthusiast that this dollar should
iANG D5GU -OlE4Q Il new 116NCu- SU4lLls
'or, II genuine, this Is the second l80i
1olla- the little City Of the Elms has
laeaTthed. The most perfect 1905 dollar
Known Is IN possession Of n coin and
atamp company OF New York. and oc-
cupies q place OF honor next to the
Widows mite once owned by Hency
Ward Beecher, and given by him to Dr
Funk, Of the publishing house OF Funk
< Wagnalls-
This 1904 dolla- was found In an old
TO- vi IN homo - ..1l fgT
who lived at Savtn RocI. = subUro of |
New Haven She only recalled that her
rather. 2 whaling captain sailing
The Thimbles and Sache-n's Head, |
lust east Of the college city, the former |
being popularity believed TO have been
the island home Of Captain Kidd, had |
given il 10 her, telling her that his |
Incle, q bO'sUR's mate, who had shipped |
Inder Commodore Perry in foreign seas. |
lad brought i home to him. The cCin |
brought over $2,VDJ. one by ouC here
md there, 1904 dollars have been picked |
p. until probably = dozen genuine oaes
are know: to exist.
Many 1904 COuateTfeits.
.'E4J thu does -.ot p-erent pro
seve1sI hu-drel ardent coin collectors
throughout the country from proudly |
exhibiting what they frully believe
De genuine 1854 dollars, but they are /
spuTtous, for the coin has been several |
times more or less successfully counter |
SsIted
One Of the hrst counterfeitg known |
of this piece was what N Mt Cnsn desig- |
9ate as a nodded coin-thst is, made |
from q plaster OF paris mold. Like all |
the nodded counteTfeits, 4 lacks the |
sharply defined lines Of pressed coin |
and has the greasy feeling Of all nodded |
pieces dEe TO lack Of pressure in the |
making. These we're sold by men who |
lOst happened 10 get them in change.
aEd, learning * lad some value called |
On the collector to find out The latter, |
Unless IA absolute novice, quickly de |
yected tie fraud, and Eew were dis- !
posed Of
Mechanics and cRgrGvers 'Lupo The |
"olt and GGiseppi Morella had in pleR- |
y. They even mad a heavy hydraulic |
press, such as governments use 10 make |
genuine pressed Coin. They had a die |
Sunk, but having 10 genuine 1904 dollar |
% guide them as a model, Used al Old |
silver dollar Of about that period, with |
he Goddess Of Liberty bust, and IN |
Tented rims, without reeding or milling, |
and dated 1904. All were aged IN sand |
2y rubbing
-