54 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



ting, on the part of Canadians with the nation whose encroachments 

 they had resisted for two years, almost single-handed ? Nay, rather, 

 that it was issued by a merchant from Boston, who, having settled in 

 Montreal at the close of the war substituted the eagle of his native 

 country for that of the Wellington of patriotic money-grubbing 

 Canadians. 



The Magdalen Islands penny, dated 1815, records the most 

 interesting fact, that, at the beginning of last century, the inhabitants 

 of these Islands did not own allegiance to any of the other Provinces. 

 The Islands had been granted, by George III, to Sir Isaac Cofhn, who, 

 before setting out for his only visit to his "Kingdom," as he called it, 

 ordered a large coinage of these pennies from Sir Edward Thomason, 

 of Birmingahm. These he took with him and distributed them as 

 loans to a number of his subjects. Although he was apparently well 

 received by them, or his loans appreciated, they, as he was about 

 leaving their shores, shouted after him "Fouettez King George and 

 King Cofhn." He never visited his "Kingdom" again. 



Coming to the Province of Nova Scotia, where a similar condition 

 of the currency existed, we find more variety in the historical subjects 

 displayed on the merchants' tokens, issued at Halifax, than on those 

 at Montreal, evidencing much greater enterprise on their part. There 

 was the same expression of intense patriotism on their tokens. While 

 most of them bear the bust of George III some are inscribed "Genuine 

 British Copper" or "Great Britain" and one the "Broke" token, 

 dated 1814, has a local patriotic reference, commemorating, as it does, 

 the bringing into Halifax harbour of the American frigate "Chesa- 

 peake," as a prize of war after its capture by the "Shannon." This 

 was the first and most signal naval victory of the war of 1812. The 

 token displays the head of Captain Broke on the obverse, with a 

 figure of Britannia, watching the naval engagement in the distance, 

 on the reverse. 



Besides these, six Halifax merchants perpetuated their names on 

 the tokens they issued. They are John Alexander Barry, a stormy 

 petrel in those days of intense political strife in Nova Scotia. He 

 was several times expelled from the Provincial Legislature and as 

 many times re-elected; W. and A. S. Black, who were sons of an early 

 Presbyterian Minister; John Brown, who on his token displayed the 

 Scottish thistle and motto in such a manner that Lindsay classed it 

 among his "Coins of Scotland;" Carritt and Alport, who display a war 

 vessel, probably the Shannon, on their token; Hosterman and Etter, 

 whose tokens give a view of the Provincial building, still standing; 

 Star and Shannon, with a representation of an Indian, with bow and 



