Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-09-23
MONEY OF MEXICO
!. IMAM UPSET STATE
Consul Canada Reports Three
Kinds in Use in Vera
Cruz District.
ISSUE BY CARRANZA
TAKEN AT LOW RATES
Problem of Foreign Exchange a Diff
ficult One for Merchants OF
the Port.

William w. Canada. United States
consul at Vera Cruz. has sent to the
Department of Commerce, through the
State Department, a report on the
monetary situation In the Vera Cruz
district, which is being given considera-
ton by the Washington government In
connection with the sessions OF the
Mexican commission which have been
held in New London and which Will
probably be held here next week.
Mr.. Canada, after pointing out that
the monetary situation in the vera cruz
district is in great confusion, says tna'
there are three distinct forms OF money
in use there namely. Mexican gold AND
silver coins, bills of the Vera Cruz issue
and the constitutionalist army issue
and bills of the CarranZa government
new issue. In his report he says:
are only and 10 peso pieces, are
quoted by the Treasury Department OF
the United States at $0.49so American
currency per peso, making them equiv
For a time, while the government had
sort of commercial agency in Vera
Cruz where gold coins might be op-
tanned for paying customs duties and
other dues, the ten-peso gold pieces OF
'hidalgo' was worth somewhat less
present, owing, it is said, to the fact
that since the giving up OF this vera
Cruz commercial agency the gold Is
sent to Mexico City. gold coins are get
ting scarce and are now obtainable only
at a rate of over IS for l hidalgo.
I'm Vera Cruz the Mexican silver peso
is taken at it's par value in national
gold and the smaller silver coins at go
per cent of their face value. Metallic
currency is no longer in general circu-
lation.
Vera Cruz and Army Issues.
"Of the paper money issued by the
Carranza government in Vera Cruz only
the bills of the 1, 2 and peso demon
nations are now in circulation for pri-
vate transactions. Different DEGREES
made those of higher denominations
unavailable for ordinary business deal
ings.
"a decree of May 81, 1916, stated that
if bills of the higher denominations
were deposited with certain govern
ment offices by the end of July certifi-
Gates would be issued to the depositors
and redemption at the rate of 10 CEN
tavos national gold per peso would be
made during the years 1917 to 1921, the
order of redemption of the various GER
tificates being determined by drawings
the both of June of each year. The
bills of lower denomination of this old
issue have been made fractional cur
rency of the new issue, / Vera Cruz
peso being treated as 10 centavos.
Those bills of the Vera Cruz issue now
in circulation will. according to a re-
cent decree, cease to circulate after
September 80, 1916, instead of June 80,
1916 the date set by a former decree.
"Of the same value and in the same
category as the bills of Vera Cruz are
the ConstitutionaliSt army bills, issued
at Chihuahua and elsewhere before the
CarranZa government made it's head
quarters at Vera Cruz.
Bills of the New Issue.
THE de facto government began to
place in circulation in May of this year
bills of new issue which were made
in New York. The authorities state that
these bills cannot be counterfeited and
allege that one reason for the low value
of the Vera Cruz and constitutionalist
army bills is that counterfeits of them,
difficult to distinguish from the gen
uine. have become common. The new
bills are now generally designated in
falsificables, i. e., 'non-counterfeita-
bles.'
THE value given in May, 1916, by the
de facto government to each peso of
its new issue was one-fifth of Mexi-
can gold peso. thus making 10 pesos
of the new issue equivalent in effect
to about 81 American currency At
present. three months after the new is
sue came into circulation, the rate of
exchange with American currency is
about 80 pesos for 81. and the condi-
tons causing the rapid decline in value
still eHist.
Exchange Difficult to Procure.