8. A portion of the cargo of the ship Cuba from Havana was invoiced as follows: 40 hogsheads of molasses, 63 gallons each, at 3 reals plate per gallon; 24 boxes of brown sugar, 400lb. each, at 1 real vellon per pound; 260 boxes of oranges, at $2 per box; and 410 boxes of cigars, at $7 per box. The tare on the sugar was 10 per cent., and the leakage of the molasses 2 per cent. Allowing the value of a real plate to be 10 cents, and a real vellon 5 cents, and the rate of duties on the molasses and the sugar to have been 24 per cent., on the oranges 8 per cent., and on the cigars 30 per cent., what was the whole amount of duties? 9. 270 tons of railroad iron, invoiced at $50 per ton, cost, when the duties were paid, exclusive of other charges, $16740. What was the rate per cent. of duty? Ans. 24 per cent. 10. A merchant of Baltimore makes an importation of goods invoiced at $20560. On goods invoiced at $3000 the duties were at the rate of 4 per cent.; on goods invoiced at $4200 the duties were at the rate of 8 per cent.; on goods invoiced at $2100 the duties were at the rate of 15 per cent. ; goods invoiced at $6000 were free of duty; and on the remainder the duties were at the rate of 30 per cent. What was the whole amount of the duties? 11. Willard, Fairbanks, & Co., of Boston, import from Liverpool 10 pieces of Brussels carpeting, 40 yards each, purchased at 5s. per yard, duty 24 per cent.; 200 yards of hair-cloth, at 4s. per yard, duty 19 per cent.; 100 woollen blankets, at 2s. 6d., duty 15 per cent.; and shoe-lasting to the cost of 60£., duty 4 per cent. Required the whole amount of duty, allowing the value of the pound sterling to be $ 4.84. Ans. $173.635. 12. A merchant imported from Bremen 32 pieces of linen of 32 yards each, on which he paid for the duties, at 24 per cent., $122.88, and other charges to the amount of $ 40.96. What was the invoice value per yard, and the cost per yard after duties and charges were paid? Ans. Invoice value per yard, $ 0.50; cost per yard, $ 0.66. COINS AND CURRENCIES. 461. COINS are pieces of metal legally stamped, and issued for circulation as money. The currency of a state or country is its money or circulating medium of trade. 462. The former currency of this country had the denominations of sterling money, viz. pounds, shillings, and pence. On the adoption by Congress, in 1786, of the present decimal currency, with the dollar as its unit, there were in circulation colonial notes, or bills of credit, which had depreciated in value. This depreciation, being greater in some States than in others, gave rise to the difference in the States as to the number of shillings equivalent to a dollar, as shown in the following NOTE 1. = = $21; 1s. 12 cts. 7s. 6d. £., called Pennsylvania currency; of which 1£.—$ 23; 1s. — 13 cts. 4s. 8d.£., called Georgia currency; of which 1£.= $44: 1s. 21 cts. The State currencies are now merely nominal, accounts being nowhere kept in them. Articles, however, are sometimes priced in them, but much less often now than formerly. == 25 $ 1 equals about 4. = £. of English or sterling money; and $4.84; 1s. = $0.24. Also $1 5s. = £. of Nova NOTE 2. consequently 1£. = Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Canada, called Canada currency; of which 1£.: $4; 1s. 20 cents. = 463. The legal tender in payment of debts in the United States is gold and silver. NOTE. The gold coins of the United States of coinage prior to 1834 are a legal tender for the payment of all debts, at the rate of 943 cents per penny weight, or about $10.66 for each eagle; and all the gold coins of a subsequent coinage are a legal tender of payment in any sums whatever, according to their nominal values. Of the silver coins coined prior to April 1, 1853, the three-cent pieces are a legal tender of payment in any sums of thirty cents and under, and the dollars, half-dollars, quarter-dollars, dimes, and half-dimes are a legal tender of payment in any sums whatever, at their nominal value, and all the silver coins of a subsequent coinage are a legal tender in sums not exceeding five dollars. 464. Besides the coins of the country, foreign coins, whose value has been fixed by law, and bank-notes, redeemable in specie, pass as money. However, by the act of Congress passed February, 1857, all former acts authorizing the currency of foreign gold or silver coin, and declaring the same legal tender in payment of debts, were repealed. 465. The intrinsic value of foreign coins is the value depending upon the weight and purity of the metal of which they are made; their legal value is that fixed by law; their commercial value is the price they will bring in the market; and their exchange value is the nominal price assigned to them in reckoning exchange between one country and another. 466. The United States mint, at present, purchases standard silver at $1.22 per ounce, and fine silver at $ 1.36 per ounce. NOTE. At these rates of purchase, five-franc pieces yield about 98 cents each; Mexican and South American dollars, 1064 cents each; old Spanish dollars, 105 cents each; half-dollars of the United States coined before 1837, 52 cents each; half-dollars of the United States coined since 1837, and previous to the change of standard in 1853, 52 cents each; German florins, 41 cents each; Prussian and Hanoverian thalers, 72 cents each; best manufactured American plate, from 120 to 122 cents per ounce; and genuine British plate, 1254 cents per ounce. 467. By the act of 1843 the gold coins of Great Britain, if 915 not less than in fineness, were rated at 94 cents per pen 1000 1000 nyweight, and the gold coin of France of not less than 8.99 in fineness, at 92 cents per pennyweight. By a previous act, the gold coins of Portugal and Brazil of not less than 22 carats fine were rated at 94 cents per pennyweight, and the gold coins of Spain, Mexico, and Colombia, of a fineness of 20 carats 3 grains, at the rate of 89% cents per pennyweight. NOTE. The relative value of gold and silver in the United States, at pres 29 100 ent, is nearly as 143 to 1; in England, as 14 to 1; in France and in Russia, as 15 to 1; in Spain, as 16 to 1; in China, as 144 to 1; and in Portugal, as 135 to 1. 468. The value of certain foreign coins and currencies, as fixed by law in the collection of duties at the United States custom-houses, is shown in the following TABLE. Pound Ster. of G. Britain, $ 4.84 Dollar of Mexico, Peru, Specie Dollar of Denmark, Rix Dollar, or Thaler of Florin or Guilder of Netherlands, 1.00 Millrea of Portugal, 1.12 Millrea of Azores, .83 1.06 Ducat of Naples, .80 1.05 Sicca Rupee of Bengal, or .783 of Bombay, } .50 Rupee of British India, .44 .35 .71 Mark Banco of Hamburg, .75 Lira of Lombardo-Vene- .18 .16 } .16 .40 .48 Lira of Tuscany, .16 .18 .10 .05 469. REDUCTION OF CURRENCIES. Reduction of Currencies is the process of finding the value of the denominations of one currency in the denominations of another. 470. To find the value of the denominations of one currency in the denominations of another, when the values of a unit of each are known. Ex. 1. What is the value of 18£. 4s. 6d. of the New England currency in United States money? Ans. $ 60.75. Ex. 2. What is the value of $ 60.75 in New England currency? OPERATION. 60.75 X = 18.225£. 18.225£. = 18£. 4s. 6d. Ans. 18£. 4s. 6d. Since 6s., or a dollar of this currency, is of a pound, we multiply the given sum by the fraction, and find the value of the decimal in shillings and pence. RULE.Multiply or divide, as the case may require, by the value of the unit of the given currency expressed in United States money. NOTE. When one currency is to be changed to another, and neither of them is United States money, the value of one of them may be found in United States money, and the value of that result be found in the other currency. EXAMPLES. 3. Change 46£. 16s. 6d. of the currency of New York to United States money. Ans. $117.06. 4. Change $1032 to the currency of Pennsylvania. Ans. 387£. 5. Find the value of $515.70 in Canada currency. Ans. 128£. 18s. 6d. 6. Change 160.50 francs to United States money. 7. Change $728.41 to English money. Ans. 150£. 9s. 112d. \8. Find the value of 12£. 12s. of the currency of Georgia in United States money. Ans. $54. 9. Find the value of 128£. 18s. 6d. of Canada in United Ans. $515.70. States money. 10. Find the value of 740.45 rubles, silver, of Russia, in Ans. $555.333. United States money. 11. Find the value of 46£. 16s. 6d. of New York currency Ans. 35£. 2s. 44d. in the currency of New England. 12. Change 151 millreas of Portugal to real plate of Spain. 13. Find the value of 1000 specie dollars of Norway in francs. 14. A merchant of Quebec bought in London 30 pieces of broadcloth of 30 yards each, at 15 shillings per yard; what is the amount of his bill in Canada currency? Ans. 816£. 15s. 15. A merchant of Prussia bought in Naples silks to the amount of 410 ducats; what was the amount of his purchase in thalers? Ans. 475 thalers. |