Coins Minted, Bills Printed
Two days this week The Times has printed stories stating that U.S. paper money--bills--is “minted.”
* To quote from “Big West Title Serves as Tark the Shark’s Hors D’Oeuvre” (March 11): “ . . . made of paper and minted in the U.S.A. . . . That’s the money for winning the tournament.”
* And the article “Dealer in Old Money Feels Aura of History in His Coins, Currency” (March 12) reports on John Fitzgerald’s business of collecting and selling old money. The article indicates that Fitzgerald feels he’s spreading the word about American history, pointing out that “each of the bills were minted while the country was growing up, and there is history attached to them each step of the way they were minted.”
The references to minting U.S. paper money are in error. All U.S. paper currency is printed by the U.S. Treasury’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington. U.S. coins are minted.
The first error, in a sports column, could be passed over. The second error, in a feature article that refers to “spreading the word about American history,” indicates a sad lack of knowledge about how our currency is manufactured.
JOHN WILL, San Clemente
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