rfectly clean. Then
across a bath of silver cyanide, potassium cyanide, and water they
laid two metal rods, and from these they hung a spoon at one end and a
plate of silver at the other. These rods were connected with the two
poles of a battery. The electrical current passed through them,
released the silver from the silver cyanide, and this was deposited
upon the spoon. The cyanide that had lost its silver took enough more
from the silver plate to make up. The amount of silver on the spoon
depends upon the length of time it remains in the bath. It is weighed
before plating and again afterwards, to make sure that the proper
amount of silver has been deposited upon it. On the back of many
plated articles you will see the words "Triple plate" or "Quadruple
plate." If the article has been made by a reliable firm, this means
that the triple plate it manufactures contains three times as much
silver as "single plate," and that quadruple plate contains four times
as much. A piece of silver looks just as well if it has stayed in the
bath only a few minutes, but of course it has taken on so little
silver that this will soon wear off and show the cheaper metal.

A large amount of silver is used for coins. When the United States
needs dollars, half-dollars, quarters, and dimes, notice is given and
offers are called for, stating the quantity for sale and its price.
When it is delivered, it is first of all "assayed"; that is, tested to
find out how nearly pure it is and how much it is worth. Next it is
refined, or purified from other metals, mixed with a little copper to
harden it, then melted again and poured into moulds to make bars. If
dollars are to be made, the bar is made thinner by passing it between
heavy rollers, and blanks for dollars are cut out with a die. These
blanks are weighed and every one that is too heavy or too light is put
back to be melted over again. Thus far these dollars are only round,
smooth pieces of metal. They must be milled to give them a rough edge,
and they must be stamped. For stamping, the piece of metal is placed
between two dies, one above and one below, and these close upon it
with a force of one hundred and fifty tons. Every part of the process
of manufacturing money is carried on with the utmost care. The places
where coins are made are called "mints." The United States has four;
the oldest is in Philadelphia, and there are branch mints in San
Francisco, New Orleans, and Denver. Coins minted