First Principles of General Knowledge

ging one thing, of the same value, for another; it is entirely used now by uncivilized nations, who will give the produce of their country to strangers, in exchange for beads, nails, and steel articles. Q. Was barter practised among the ancients ? A. Yes; Homer describes the golden armour of Glaucus to have been worth one hundred oxen, and that of Diomede ten. Q. To whom do the Greeks ascribe the invention of money? A. To the wife of Midas, king of Phrygia, who is said to have had the power given him by Bacchus, of turning everything he touched into gold. Q. What is the earliest account we have of the use of money ? A. That in the Bible, where it is said Abraham gave four hundred shekels of silver for a burial-place for his wife Sarah. Josephus, who wrote a history of the Jews, ascribes the invention to Cain. Q. To whom is it ascribed by the Bxjmans ? A. To Janus, the god of the present, past, and future. They called it pecunia, the Latin name for money, either because their chief wealth was cattle, or because, as Pliny says, their first coin was stamped with a cow; pecus being the Latin word for cattle. Q. What are the metals most used for coin? A. Gold, silver, and copper; but, in the earlier ages, iron rings, leather, andeven wood, were used for money. Copper was first used, then silver, and lastly gold. Q. When was the first silver money coined in Rome ? A. In the year of Rome 484 B.c. Gold was not coined till...