Written for Moore's Rural New-Yorker. 
NUMISMATICS.-No. II. 
THE STRUGGLE AND THE VICTORY, 
“Johnny,” said a farmer to his little boy, “it 
is timo for you to go to the pasture and drive 
home the cattle.” 
Johnny was playing at ball, and the pasture 
was a long way off, but ho was accustomed to 
obey; so off he started without a word, as fast 
as his legs could carry him. iking in a great 
hurry to get back to play, ho only half let down 
the bars, and then hurried the cattle out; and 
one fine cow in trying to crowd over stumbled, 
and fell down, with her leg broken. 
Johnny stood by the suffering creature, and 
thought to himself, “Now, what shall I do? 
That was the finest cow father had'and it will 
be agreat loss to father. What, shall I tell him ?” 
“Tell him,” whispered tho tempter, “you 
found tho bars half down, and the cow lying 
there.” 
“No, I can’t say that,” said Johnny, “for it 
would bo a lie." 
“Toll him,” whispered the tempter again, 
“ that while yon were driving tho cows, that big 
boy of fanner Brown’s threw a Btone, and hur¬ 
ried her so that she fell and broke a leg." 
“No, no,” said Johnny, “I never told a lie, 
and I won’t begin now. I’ll tell my father the 
truth. I was in a hurry, and frightened the poor 
creature, and so she fell and broke her leg.” 
So, having taken this right and bravo resolve, 
Johnny ran home as if ho was afraid tho tempter 
would catch him; and he went straight to his 
father, and told him the whole truth. And what 
did his father do ? 
He laid his hand on Johnny’s head, and said, 
“My dear sou, I would rather lose every cow I 
own than that my boy should tell an untruth.” 
And Johnny, though very sorry for tho mis¬ 
chief he hud done, was much happier than If ho 
had told a lie to screen himself, even if he had 
never been found out. 
Tradesmen’s Cards, as they are termed 
among collectors, are not strictly or in any 
sense currency, yet they are a very important 
feature in Numismatics, and are classed by 
themselves. Some collectors profess not to 
collect them, yet when their stock is examined, 
or sold at auction, you will generally find there 
some of the richest and most rare, and very 
often much that is quite common in this line. 
It is not positively known what the intentions 
of the parties who first issued these cards were, 
but it is supposed that it was on account of the 
scarcity of copper currency at that, period, and 
also for the purpose of advertising th* name of 
the firm, and the character of their business. 
The first card issued in Ibis country that we 
have any knowledge of was by the firm of Mott 
& Co., in 1789; they were importers of Jewelry, 
Watches, &c. On the obverse, or principal side, 
was a large, old-fashioned clock,—a style not 
ofteD seen now, but such an one as was used in 
the time of our grandfathers. On the reverse 
was a spread eagle. The workmanship of this 
piece was quite inferior compared with the next 
one issued, which was by the firm of Talbot, 
Allum & Lee, Wholesale Grocers, in 1794. On 
the obverse of this card was t he figure of Liberty, 
on the reverse a ship under full sail, and on the 
edge these words, “ We promise to pay the 
bearer one cent.” These dies were made in 
England, and the workmanship was very fine. 
These cards were both struck in copper, and 
after them we cannot trace any regular issue, 
but will name some of the most prominent 
throughout the States. 
Bailey, Ward & Co., No. 41 Maiden Lane, a 
celebrated jewelry firm, issued one in tin which 
is very rare and valnable, and is found in but 
few collections in fine condition. They simply 
advertised their business, without any promi¬ 
nent obverse or reverse. Wolf, Clark & Spies, 
dealers in Guns, Military Equipments, &c., 
issued several varieties of an unique character, 
all of which are very rare and valuable, more 
particularly on account of their having on them 
the busts of Washington and Jackson in a panel, 
which makes a very beautiful piece. Bale & 
Smith, tho well-known die-sinkers, Issued sev¬ 
eral varieties ; all, except one, had for their 
obverse Washington; the exception was the 
head of Franklin. The workmanship of this 
firm was of such a fine character that all of 
their pieces are eagerly sought for, and are 
ornamental to any cabinet. The head of Frank¬ 
lin was one of their best efforts, and in an un¬ 
circulated condition is the gem of their series. 
One Field, a Hatter, issued one of the most 
rare; on the obverse of these was a Beaver, and 
on the reverse a Hat. Only one or two of this 
variety are known. Hooks’ ia another of the 
rare ones. The obverse Is the head of Franklin, 
the reverse the place of business, but not its 
character. Green & Wetmore, the well-known 
Iron Merchants, corner of Vesey and, Washing¬ 
ton streets, issued two varieties, one In brass, 
the obverse an Anvil, Hammer and Tongs; the 
other, which is most rare, in tin. This has for 
its obverse the well-known face of the Brown’s 
Card, (Hardware Merchants of Canada,) and a 
distinct reverse die. Day, Newell <v Day issued 
two varieties. D. L. Feuchtwungcr two varie¬ 
ties in German silver. R. Lovett, Beal Engraver, 
is another rare variety; on the obverse is a ship 
lying at a wharf, on which Is piled bales ofgoods. 
The above are all of New York. 
A. D. Angue, Umbrella Dealer; Cogan, the 
old veteran, and always reliable Coin Dealer, 
has several varieties. Hooper, Martin & Smith; 
R. Lovett, Jr., Die Sinker; Richardson, Um¬ 
brella Manufacturer. These are of Philadelphia. 
Tilley, Haines A Co., Currier A Groely, Horace 
Porter i\r Co. of Boston. TIitviland, Stephenson 
A Co. of Charleston ; Evans of Cincinnati; F. 
M. Jensch of Chicago; Woodruff, Serantom A 
Co. of Fair llaven; M. L. Marshall of Oswego; 
J. A. Merle, and Folger of New Orleans; Mt. 
Holly Paper Co. of Pennsylvania, are among the 
most prominent varieties of the original cards. 
New Jersey claims one of the most rare of this 
series; on one side is “ Pay the bearer one dol¬ 
lar and charge the same to John Stevens. Hobo¬ 
ken, June 20th, 1S29. To John V. Boskerk, 
Ferry Master.” On the reverse in a wreath is 
“One dollar payable In specie.” But little is 
known of this piece. John Stevens was one of 
the Hoboken Laud A Ferry Co., and is since 
deceased. John V. Boskerk was the Ferry 
Master or Superintendent at that time; he is 
also deceased. Although diligent inquiries have 
been made of the oldest ferry-masters, none of 
them have eyet- seen the piece, and but one knew 
anything about it. This valuable piece, and the 
only one known of the kind, is in the collection 
of Mr. J. T. Levick of this city, where all that is 
i leb, rare and valuable in this series can be found. 
Many of these early cards became in time 
quite valuable, which induced some speculators 
to search for the dies. In some cases they suc¬ 
ceeded in finding them, and immediately struck 
such quantities that they are no longer valuable, 
and not satisfied with re-striking them they 
made use of the dies of one obverse to the re¬ 
verse of another, and vim-verm. This* mutiny 
process, as it is called, discouraged many of our 
collectors and induced them to sell them collec¬ 
tions ; rfhd to show to what an extent this pro¬ 
cess may be carried, I will state that with eight 
dies a person can make twenty-six varieties of 
pieces; then adding the six varieties of metals 
you have a grand total of 150 pieces; thus you 
see the number can be increased to an almost 
uulimited extent without nDy actual benefit to 
the collector. It is true it makes a variety in 
one 6ense of the word, but many of them arc 
without 6ensc or reason; for Instance, the two 
They live in tho 
taken from specimens exhibited at an English Archipelago aud New Guinea, 
Poultry Show. Fancy Pigeons form an impor- dense forests, and feed upon berries, seeds, 
tant part of these shows, and some thirty or grain, Ac. They form their nests upon trees 
forty varieties, and several hundred cages, are and lay but two eggs. We believe this variety 
sometimes shown at one exhibition. This va- has been brought to this country, though they 
riety, which is one of the most beautiful, is are rare. Other fancy varieties have been illus- 
found wild on the large islands of tho Indian trated and described in previous volumes. 
Nothing looks prettier as an accessory to a 
rural home than a tasteful pigeon house, espe¬ 
cially when it is inhabited with some of the more 
curious and fancy breeds. In a previous Hum¬ 
ber we gavo an engraviug of the Crown Pigeon , 
and now we present our readers with a view of 
the Goura Victoria Pigeons. The drawing was 
LACE LEAF, OR LATTICE PLANT 
Nothing is more captivating to the inquiring, 
yonthlul mind than the investigation of the 
wonders and curiosit ies of the vegetable world. 
Ellis, in his work on Madagascar, describes a 
very curious plant, growing on the Island, with 
a leaf like lace or lattice work. Its botanical 
name ia Ouvirandra fcncsiraU s. Mr. E. thus 
describes It: 
A CONGRESSMAN ■ AT • LARGE 
reverses are sometimes united without the name 
of the firm on either. If collectors would 
always denounce this kind of business, and re¬ 
fuse to purchase, there would be an end to it. 
Of late years many of these cards have been 
struck in 6ets of metals to suit the fancy of col¬ 
lectors; that is, In Silver, Copper, Brass, 
Nickel, German Silver and Tin. These metals 
constitute a very neat and beautiful set, and 
some collectors will pay a large sum for any 
piece they may lack In making up their seta. 
In many instances a large number are struck in 
one metal for circulation, and only a few In the 
others for Cabinets. This makes them more 
rare and sought alter. 
One cause of varieties is that die-sinkers 
sometimes make an error in lettering the dies, 
and are compelled to make new ones after the 
error is detected and some pieces struck. For 
instance, a firm doing business In Old Slip, fouud 
themselves advertised In Old Ship. The mistake 
of a single letter spoiled tho die, and in another 
instance the letter D was reversed, and I pre¬ 
sume a new die was made, as those with the 
reversed letter are extremely rare. In this con¬ 
nection I will 6tate that much of the increased 
value of these cards arises from the simple fact 
that, besides their variety, they have for their 
obverse the head of some favorite national char¬ 
acter, and for this cause they can also be classed 
in the series of American Medals, so the Medalist 
comes in competition with tho Card Collector. 
Copper Heads.— Uuder this heading we class 
all of those small pieces struck in 1861, ’69 and 
’63, by various persons, and circulated as pen¬ 
nies for some time, or until an order was issued 
for their suppression by the Government. Some 
of these had on them the name of the firm who 
issued them, and in many instances they were 
compelled to redeem them. The driuklng sa¬ 
loons issued large quantities, and consequently 
retained much custom by so doing, as they 
would not elrcnlate tdsewhere. Many die-sink¬ 
ers made large sums of money by manufacturing 
them; they charged for the dies, and sold the 
pieces from SO to NJ cts. per hundred, and besides 
those made for general circulation, they struck 
many varieties for collectors in various metals, 
charging prices in proportion for them. Some of 
the manufacturer^ of these pieces worked secret¬ 
ly, knowing it was an unlawful business, and a 
collector who took much trouble to find out the 
various establishments in order to get a lew of 
the pieces struck in different metals expressly 
for Cabinets, told me he wa3 astonished to find 
so many of them in private places, and in a 
number of cases he was suspected of being a 
Government detective and refused admittance 
until they were perfectly satisfied as to the ob¬ 
ject of his visit. 
When these pieces first made their appearance 
a great number of persons began to collect the 
dffereut varieties, but they increased so rapidly 
that they became discouraged and gave it up. 
A few courageous oucs persevered and have suc¬ 
ceeded in obtaining fine collections. One gentle¬ 
man in particular, Mr. Groh, made it a special¬ 
ty, and has the largest and fi tie,-A collection in the 
United States, numbering about 5,000 pieces. 
By many these are considered mementoes of the 
war times, as they were struck daring the de¬ 
pression of the money market, and many of 
them are ornamented with the heads of noted 
characters connected with the rebellion. Many 
of them are beautifully designed, but most of 
them were very coarse and common, and the 
suppression of them was a great relief to the 
people. These were not confined to any partic¬ 
ular State, but were issued by every Northern 
State, as any one can see by reading the Numis¬ 
matic Journal of N. Y., where a complete list is 
being published. Now and Then. 
New York, October 29,1866. 
Illinois is distinguished above all the States 
in tho Union. She has a member of Congress- 
at-Large. That our readers may understand just 
how this comes we will give a solution to the 
question. The law of the 23d of May, 1850, 
fixes the number of members of Congress at 
233, who arc re distributed among the States 
after and in accordance with every decennial 
census. An act of March 4, 1802, increased, 
however, the number of Representatives from 
233 to 211 by allowing one additional Repre¬ 
sentative to eight States, of which Illinois was 
one. The number of Congressmen of Illinois 
was thun raised from thirteen to fourteen. The 
State Legislature of Illinois, instead of dividing 
the State iuto fourteen districts, preferred to 
elect only thirteen members of Congress in 
separate districts, aud to have the fourteenth 
elected by a vote of the whole State. This is 
the “Cougressman-at-Large,” for which ®flice 
General Logan has just received a majority ap¬ 
proaching 60,000. 
CALIFORNIA WONDERS, 
Mr. Bowles, in one of his letters from the 
Pacific side, givcB a description of the Yo Sem¬ 
ite Valley in California. It is a cleft in the 
rock, about half a mile wide and ten to fifteen 
miles in length. The walls which bound Us 
sides arc perpendicular, and from half a mile 
to a mile in height. These walls appear to have 
been split oil' from each other and moved their 
present distance apart. 
There are three noted waterfalls in the valley. 
One of them is nine hundred feet high, formed 
by a stream coming over the mountain sides 
into the valley, aud anothyr, the loftiest cataract 
in the world, is two thousand six hundred feet 
high. On the stream which runs through the 
valley, are two other falls, one three hundred 
and fifty, and tho other seven hundred feet 
high. 
In the vicinity of Yo Semite is a grove of big 
trees, about six hundred In number. The largest 
are thirty and forty feet in diameter, and two 
hundred and fifty feet high. Congress has 
donated this valley aud the gro^e to the State. 
The trees are to be preserved from wanton 
destruction, and both, as great natural wonders, 
are to be retained for the future as objects of 
public curiosity and interest. 
AN ANTEDILUVIAN MONSTER, 
At the last sitting of the French Academy of 
Science, M. Berres communicated a pnpe.r on 
the C'lytodon Clavipes , an enormous antediluvian 
quadruped of tho armadillo genus, but of the 
size of an elephaut. Hitherto no complete 
skeleton of this wonderful animal has been 
found. Owen, Lund, Nodot, Huxley and Bur- 
incister had only had incomplete fragments at 
their disposal; but M- Serres has at length suc¬ 
ceeded In reconstructing its skeleton, which will 
very shortly be exposed to public view at the 
Museum of Comparative Anatomy at the Garden 
of Plants. Tho total length of the creature is 
three hundred and thirty meters, or nearly 
eleven feet; its hight from the grouud to the 
top of the crests which support its bony armor, 
is four feet. The head, which bad only been till 
now described on the evidence of mere fragments 
belonging to different individuals, is entire; its 
vertical diameter is equal to its transversal one, 
namely, about 15^ inches. 
EFFECT OF LIGHT 
Dr. Moore, the metaphysician, thus speaks 
of the effect of light on body and mind: — “ A 
tadpole confined in darkness would never be¬ 
come a frog; and an Infant deprived of heaven’s 
free light will grow up a shapeless Idiot instead 
of a beautiful and responsible being. Hence, in 
the deep, dark gorges of the Swiss Valois, where 
the direct sunshine never reaches, the hideous 
prevalence of idiocy startles the traveler. It is 
a strange, melancholy idiocy. Many are incapa¬ 
ble of any articulate speech; some are deaf, 
some blind, some labor under all these priva¬ 
tions, and arc all misshapen in some part of the 
body. I believe there is in all places a marked 
difference in the healthiness of houses accord¬ 
ing to their aspect with regard to the sun; and 
those are decidedly the healthiest, other things 
being equal, in which all the rooms are, duriug 
some part of the day, fully exposed to the direct 
light. Epidemics attack inhabitants on the 
shady side of the street, and exempt those on 
the other side; and even in epidemics, such as 
ague, the morbid influence is often thus partial 
in its labors.” 
“ The Ouvirandra is not only a rare and curi¬ 
ous, but a singularly beautiful plant, both 
in structure and color. From the several 
crowns of the branching root, growing often a 
foot or more deep in the water, a number of 
graceful leaves, nine or ten Inches long, und two 
or three inches wide, spread out horizontally 
just beneath the surface of the water. The 
ilowcr-stalks rise from the center of the leaves, 
and the branching or forked flower is curious; 
but the structure of the leaf is peculiarly so, and 
seems like a Itviug fibrous skeleton rather than 
an entire leaf. The longitudinal fibers extend 
in curved lines along its entire length, and are 
united by threadlike fibers or veins crossing 
them at. right angles from side to side, at a short 
distance from each other. The whole leaf looks 
as if composed of line tendrils, wrought after a 
most regular pattern, so as to resemble a piece 
of bright green lace or open needlework. Each 
leaf rises from the crown on the root like a short, 
delicate-looking, pale-green or ycliow fiber, un¬ 
folding its feathery-looking aides, aud increasing 
its size as it spreads beneath the water. The 
leaves in their several stages of growth pass 
through almost every gradation of color, from a 
pale yellow to a dark olive green, becoming 
brown or even black before they finally decay; 
air-bubbles of considerable size frequently ap¬ 
pearing under the full formed and healthy leaves. 
It Is scarcely possible to imugine any object of 
the kind more attractive aud beautiful than a full 
grown specimen of this plant, with Its dark- 
green leaves forming the limit of a circle two or 
three feet in. diameter, and in the transparent 
water within that circle presenting leaves in 
every stage of development, both as to color 
and size. Nor is It the least curious to notice 
that, these slender and fragile structures, appa¬ 
rently not more substantial than the gossamer, 
aud,flexible as a feather, still possess a tenacity 
and wirlness which allow the delicate leaf to bo 
raised by the band to the surface of the water 
without injury.” 
One of these curious plants was procured 
some years ago by James Dcndas, Esq., Jof 
The National Capitol Extension.— The 
north wing of the Capitol or Senate extension, 
is now complete, and so is the south wing, or 
House extension, with the exception of the 
large monolithic columns, which are from Ma¬ 
ryland quarries. The reminder of the marble, 
of which the extensions are constructed, by the 
way, is from quarries at Lee, Massachusetts; the 
sandstone, of which tho main edifice was con¬ 
structed, was from Virginia quarries ; much of 
the ornamental marble in the Interior is from 
Tennessee; the colossal dome contains about 
nine millions of pounds of Pennsylvania iron; 
the copper of which the rooting is made is 
from Lake superior; and much of the lumber 
used is Georgia pine. 
Railroads. — The celebrated statistician, 
Hon. Samuel B. Ruggles, has collected the fol¬ 
lowing figures concerning railroads in this 
country aud in EuropeWe have 36,000 miles 
of railway, which have cost 51,330,000,000. In 
Europe there are 30,000, which cost the enor¬ 
mous sum of 53,500,000,000. The construction 
of railways in an old, closely settled country is 
of course more expensive than in a new, while 
European roads arc more solid and permanently 
built. But the saving in the transportation of 
freight and passengers amounts in each hemis¬ 
phere to 5500,000,000 per annum. Mr. Ruggles 
estimates the telegraphic lines in this country 
at 90,000 miles in length, and in Europe at 60,000. 
60 that the New World decidedly leads the old 
in its facilities of communication. 
National Peculiarities. — A bet was once 
made in London, that by a single question pro¬ 
posed to an Englishman, a Scotchman and an 
Irishman, a characteristic reply would be elic¬ 
ited from each of them. Three representative 
laborers were accordingly called in, and sepa¬ 
rately asked; “What will you take to run 
ronnd Russell Bquare stripped to the shirt ? ” 
While the Englishman unhesitatingly answered, 
“A pint of porter,” the humorous response of 
the Irishman was “ A mighty great cold! ” The 
man of the North, however, instead of conde¬ 
scending upon any definite “ consideration," 
cautiously replied, with an eye to a good bar¬ 
gain, “ What will your honor gie me? ” 
A Simile. —The old Duke of Cumberland was 
one night playing at hazard at Beaufort-House, 
with a great heap of gold before him, when 
somebody said “he looked like the prodigal 
son and the fatted calf, both.” 
some years ago by James dcndas, Esq., Jof 
Philadelphia, irom a leaf of which the above 
drawing was made for the Rural, 
Sorrow shows truth, as the night brings 
out stars. 
