Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 July 1877 — Black Hills Currency. [ARTICLE]

Black Hills Currency.

A correspondent of the-St. Paul Pio-neer-Press describes the use of gold dust as currency as tlie greatest nuisance of the Black Hills. Each man is provided with bis buckskin sack, and, no matter what he buys, be it a plug of tobacco for 10 cents, or an outfit for several hundred dollars, he must weigh the amount out in dust. This is a vexatious process, and of course it cannot bo often repeated without a considerable percentage of waste. Gold is taken at $lB in greenbacks, and all shopkeepers give two prices. A movement is on foot to remedy this evil by adding a considerable percentage to tlio prices of goods sold for dust, and many of the more sensible miuers are beginning to sell their dust as they bring it in, and do their trading with paper money. Formerly there wasmuch risk in taking gold dust, as it was mixed with a material that it was impossible to detect by any test except that of acid, and few could spare the time to submit the dust to that process. Now the dust is comparatively clean and safe to handle.