Set Description:
The San Francisco mint had been able to keep up with the demand for new Philippine coinage until the middle of 1917 when a confluence of events led to a severe shortage of circulating coin. With World War I intensifying, domestic demand for U.S. silver coinage rose and U.S. Mint resources became strained. The Philadelphia mint was producing more foreign coins than usual for Central and South American countries in order to fill the void left by the incapacitated European mints, and the San Francisco Mint was having to produce more domestic coinage to satisfy the increased war time demand. The Numismatist magazine reported in September 1917 that: Minting silver coins is proceeding in every mint in the country at from five to eight times the volume of past years … Forces at several of the mints probably will be augmented soon and may go on longer hours to meet the demand. In the Philippines, the increased world demand for raw materials such as hemp for rope, coconut oil, tobacco, and sugar all caused an unprecedented economic boom which increased the demand for circulating coinage in 1917. Silver prices began rising in 1916 and it seemed very likely that they would cause the bullion value of the reduced size and weight silver coinage to exceed it's face value. This happened briefly in September 1917 when the bullion value of the 10 centavos coin rose to 12 centavos. This caused hoarding by the public and possible exportation and melting of all denominations of silver coinage. The coin shortage became so severe in the fall of 1917 that, upon suggestion of the government, the Philippine National Bank issued PhP2,700,000 of fractional currency notes in denominations of one peso and 10, 20, & 50 centavos in the fall of 1917. Laws were enacted quickly by the Philippine legislature to keep the coinage in the county, and enforcement was actually very effective, so relatively few of the silver coins of the period were exported or melted locally. Hoarding was however a significant contributing factor to the disappearance of circulating silver coinage.
Charles A. Conant recommended the creation of the Philippine National Bank when he initially created the Philippine financial system in the early 1900's. It did not actually become a reality though until February 4, 1916. These fractional notes and the one peso note known collectively as the Emergency Circulating Notes of 1917, were only the 3rd through 6th notes issued by the bank. All four of these notes were printed in the Philippines on a light cardboard stock. The signatures on all four of these note were the acting Bank President V. Concepcion, and Cashier J. Elmer Delaney, and this combination of signatures only occurs on these four notes. All of the notes are printed with one date although the 50 centavo and one peso notes were produced in two separate printings. No official documentation has been found for the total number of notes printed. The total number printed for each denomination reported here was taken from contemporary press releases.
Silver prices receded slightly for the next seven months, and the U.S. Mint was able to again supply sufficient quantities of minor coinage in the early months of 1918, to satisfy the needs of daily commerce, so the crisis passed very quickly. Beginning early in 1918, the emergency fractional notes were gradually retired as they were returned to the banks.
Although the crisis lasted only a few months, we are left with these interesting historical remnants born out of the necessity to transact daily commerce.
References:
- Shafer, Neil - A Guide Book of Philippine Paper Money, Whitman Publishing Co., Racine, Wisconsin, 1964 (pp 83-86)
- Philippine Treasury Reports for the years 1916-1920
Rev. 8/28/2023
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