Literary Lapses

No. 1. Ancient Roman coin. Time of Caligula. This one of course was the gem of the whole lot; it was given me by a friend, and that was what started me collecting. No. 2. Small copper coin. Value one cent. United States of America. Apparently modern. No. 3. Small nickel coin. Circular. United States of America. Value five cents. No. 4. Small silver coin. Value ten cents. United States of America. No. 5. Silver coin. Circular. Value twenty-five cents. United States of America. Very beautiful. No. 6. Large silver coin. Circular. Inscription, "One Dollar." United States of America. Very valuable. No. 7. Ancient British copper coin. Probably time of Caractacus. Very dim. Inscription, "Victoria Dei gratia regina." Very valuable. No. 8. Silver coin. Evidently French. Inscription, "Funf Mark. Kaiser Wilhelm." No. 9. Circular silver coin. Very much defaced. Part of inscription, "E Pluribus Unum." Probably a Russian rouble, but quite as likely to be a Japanese yen or a Shanghai rooster. That's as far as that collection got. It lasted through most of the winter and I was getting quite proud of it, but I took the coins down town one evening to show to a friend and we spent No. 3, No. 4, No. 5, No. 6, and No. 7 in buying a little dinner for two. After dinner I bought a yen's worth of cigars and traded the relic of Caligula for as many hot Scotches as they cared to advance on it. After that I felt reckless and put No. 2 and No. 8 into a Children's Hospital poor box.