£25,000 Worth Of New Pennies

Press, Volume C, Issue 29633, 2 October 1961, Page 12

£25,000 Worth Of New Pennies

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, October 1. Under the unconcerned looks of pedestrians, Reserve Bank officials yesterday stacked £25,000 worth of pennies into a city strongroom which is built of extremely thick concrete.

This was the last shipment of 1961 coins to arrive in the country. Some of it will be introduced into circulation next week.

The new currency cannot be issued until the complete supply has arrived from Britain. The pennies were the last shipment. The money, in 1000 boxer containing £525 worth of pennies in each, was unloaded off a ship in Wellington on Friday. The significance .of this year’s new currency is the minting of half crowns and florins for the first time since 1953.

Eighty thousand half crowns and 1,500.000 florins have come into the Reserve Bank store during the yeai and will be in circfilation soon. In 1953, 127.000 half crowns and 257.000 florins were minted, the first in the reign of Queen Elizabeth 11. Since then banks’ requirements have been drawn from these supplies. Thus it is not unusual, according to one city numismatist, that there is a big number of new 1953 florins in circulation at the moment Since 1953, the full ra-** of New Zealand coisi, ex-

eluding the crown, which has been minted in only three years, has been minted in only 11 years. In 1938, no new coins were minted at all. The amounts of this year’s currency, with last year’s supplies in parenthesis, is—half crowns, 80,000 (nil); florins, 1.500.000 (nil*; shillings, 400.000 < 600,000); sixpences, 800.000 (1,600,000); threepences. 4.800.000' (4.000.000); pennies, 7500.0001 (7,200.000); halfpennies' 2,880.000 (2.400.000). When asked the reason l for such a large amount of copper coinage, a Reserve Bank spokesman said it was necessary because of trading firms that sold articles for 2s lid, 3s lid, 4s lid, etc. The introduction of postage stamps costing 2|d had also made heavy demands on the half-penny supplies, he said.

Seaman Fined Charged with drunkenness and casting offensive matter in Norwich quay, Lyttelton, at 10.25 p.m. on Friday even, ing. Frederick Stanley Cole, a member of the crew of an overseas vessel, was convicted and fined £1 for drunkenness and £3 for casting offensive matter when ne appeared before Mr {-J. Shuker. J.P., fa toe Magistrate's Court, Lyttelton, on Saturday morning.