"Congrats on getting an assist from Garrett Ziss. I've been amazed at what you've been able to do by yourself over the years."

"Not that you weren't juggling it all splendidly, Ye Maestro Nummorum, but I'm glad (for you) that you will be getting some assistance with the burgeoning Goliath that is our beloved E-Sylum."

Thanks - I'm very glad to have Garrett aboard; he assisted with several articles this week. -Editor

"I'm glad that you can have the support of Garrett Ziss in the weekly edition of The E-Sylum. Welcome aboard Garrett!

"For many years, I have wondered how Wayne K. Homren reads, proofreads and edits the articles submitted by readers of The E-Sylum every week and then distributes this publication in a timely manner with better-than-atomic-clock punctuality from Fort Collins, Colorado. The conclusion I have come to is that Wayne has a Personal Time Tunnel such that when he starts editing The E-Sylum he transports himself into his Tunnel so that time stands still and when he finishes editing and distributing it only a few nanoseconds have passed on Earth. In short, I can't imagine how Wayne has time to do all these activities as Editor of The E-Sylum!!!!

"As usual, many congratulations to Wayne Homren."

Drat, my secret's out. Thanks for the image, but it's making me dizzy. Wait here while I go buy some more Nvidia stock two years ago. -Editor

"This is practiced in many Spanish, Latin American & Philippine Catholic wedding ceremonies.

"The groom gives 13 coins (the arras) to the bride, symbolizing his ability to support & care for her. The 13 coins represent Jesus & the 12 Apostles. The coins are "dribbled" into the bride's hands like "flowing water". If any of the coins fall & miss her hand, the marriage is believed to be doomed. So to prevent this, the coins had a hole drilled into each one & they are tied together so that they may "flow" nicely into her hands."

Cool - thanks! -Editor

"Most especially did I enjoy seeing Gary Oddie's Boy Scout button; there is always a College Point connection.

"Daniel Carter Beard was born in Cincinnati on June 21, 1850 and died on June 11, 1941, ten days shy of his 91st birthday. Throughout his long life he was an engineer, an artist, an author and the founder of the Boy Scouts of America in 1910 in Flushing, Queens, NY. Troop Number 1 was unofficially recognized as being the first Troop ever formed.

"However, two decades later in mid-March 20, 1930 that status was challenged by the Scout Master of Troop 2 in my hometown, College Point, a small village north of Flushing. On that day the local press reported that the honor actually belonged to Troop 2, its Scoutmaster being John G. Embree, also the Principal of College Point's Poppenhusen Institute. The organization of the Troop was fixed at August 8, 1910 based on a scoutmaster's report and re-registration form signed on March 23, 1914. Queens Headquarters said that its records of the College Point Troop were very vague, but an earlier newspaper notice report dated August 6, 1910 backs up the assertion.

"Rudolph Zwicke, born in 1885, was scoutmaster at the time. He stayed at his post until 1960. While I was in a different troop, I was well aware of Mr. Zwicke who marched in front of his Troop 2 scouts in the community's annual Memorial Day parade. He died in 1978."

"I finally had enough time to go over the numbers from the newest dataset.

"It seems to me that the program has trouble with the grades of F-AU. Lots of variations, and I wouldn't say from the data that any particular number of photos makes a difference. There is no statistical way that using more photos should give worse consistency like you see with the 40 coin.

"The program is pretty close on G-VG coins, but I wonder if that might be some kind of artifact, with XF coins also being graded as G-VG.

"As to the UNC coins, the difference between 65 and 66 is something that I can't always tell. Ditto for 69 and 70, and I don't think the latter two grades have any meaningful difference. They are just the whim of whoever graded the coin, and the ego of the collector who spends for them. Your program would seem to agree. Fortunately, you picked ultra high-grade coins that didn't cost a lot. Sometimes the premium for that insignificant little upgrade is very significant.

"I admit that I'm a dinosaur. I never buy the coin at the grade on the slab unless I understand and agree with it."

"Back in 2021 April, I asked for US$12 as a Tax Refund check to put it in my collection without depositing.

"A year later I got a replacement check which I also kept.

"The next year I got a letter dated 2023 August 28th which said I needed to call them before they could send a replacement. So I thought it was the end of the story when I did not call.

"To my surprise yesterday I got another replacement check dated 2024 March 15th and posted by registered mail to me from the US Embassy in Sri Lanka on 2024 May 17th. The letter also contained a set of forms to apply for direct deposit to a Sri Lankan Bank. :-).

"This may be because a friend of mine found it difficult to deposit US Treasury checks to any local bank as they have no corresponding bank. He finally had to open an account with HSBC which is an international Bank.

"I have safely kept all the checks and envelopes. Even the envelopes from the US Embassy in Sri Lanka and associated content."

I'm impressed with the perseverance of both Kavan and the U.S. Treasury. Nice little collection he's got there. -Editor

Website visitor and new subscriber Jim Turner passed along these images of a Buick encased silver dollar. Thanks. See the earlier articles linked below for more information. -Editor

"I received it from elderly man for helping him sell his collection. I was glad I have it."

"When I took a tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) in Fort Worth Texas in 2024-April, I was able to see the Single Note Inspection Machine (SNIM), from the skywalk. They said that part of the tour had been closed for public view till recently. When I asked for details I was told that all of the rejected sheets were recycled, printed with Serial numbers and those notes alone were subject to SNIM and the good notes accepted. Those Uncirculated bundles I understand will not have *-notes and the serial numbers will have gaps in the sequence. Is my understanding correct?

"DeLaRue in Sri Lanka which has done away with Replacement *-notes, does not precheck the printed sheets, and all notes are printed with serials and then subject to SNIM. Maybe that is practical for small print orders, where the number of notes printed is relatively small, but not for the USA"

Can anyone answer Kavan's question? -Editor

"I came across an early DANSCO #7166 Kennedy Half Dollar album (without proofs) page -- only seven labeled ports.

"Oddly, the 1964-D port is labeled BEFORE the 1964 (Philadelphia) port, something I've never seen before.

"Might be worthy of asking the E-Sylum readers if this is Something of Great Importance or just a Whatever! ..."

"Hmm, the oddest thing is that the D is listed before the P. By the mid/late sixties, almost all coin album manufacturers had already switched to the PD/PDS format. I haven't seen a misprint like this before.

"Given the label and texture of the page, the album was printed in the mid/late sixties.

"This is simply a misprinted Dansco page. It's very rare to come across them, but they occasionally pop up. It is not particularly valuable. More of a hassle than anything else!"

"I am the author of The Ten Cash Commentary and the Twenty Cash Commentary, which are guides to the general issue 10 and 20 cash coins of the early Republic of China (both books available on Amazon).

"I am writing a new book, which includes a chapter on some of the coins of the Chinese Soviets, circa 1931-34. I am hoping your readers can help me with a research problem. I've been looking for two financial/monetary-related documents:

1. A December 1, 1931 document, issued by the First National Congress of the Chinese Worker-Peasant-Soldier Soviet (AKA, the 1931 Chinese Soviet Congress), entitled Economic Policy of the Chinese Soviet Republic. I have an English-language version of this document, but not a Chinese-language version (to help ensure the English version is accurate). While I am primarily looking for a Chinese-language version, I also would be interested in seeing if other English versions are consistent with the one I have.
2. A December 9, 1932 document entitled, Report on the Specific Situation in Western Hunan and Hubei. I do not know who issued this report, but it is mentioned in a 2002 article by Zhang Yigang in the Chinese-language periodical, Chinese Numismatics. I would be happy to receive either a Chinese- or English-language version.

Thanks in advance for your help."

Well, if anyone can assist, it's probably an E-Sylum reader. Can anyone help? -Editor