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Trivia by Maynard

The Republicans had launched a long, bloody war. The Democrats advocated a negotiated settlement that would respect the independence of our adversaries. The conflict was going badly, and it looked like the Republicans would lose the next election. There were riots and protests; New York was brought to a standstill. Rebellious opponents of the Administration were jailed, in open defiance of their Constitutional rights. An actor worked to effect regime change in Washington. Morale was low and the economy was shaky. Money was in short supply, so the government printed more.

(This was the Civil War, by the way.)

Coins were hoarded, so Congress authorized various new denominations of fractional currency (that is, paper money worth less than a dollar). The 5-cent note was to display a portrait of William Clark (of the historical Lewis and Clark expedition).

William Clark looked like this:

But the 5-cent bills that went into circulation, as Congress eventually discovered to its surprise and chagrin, looked like this:

Lincoln’s Superintendent of the National Currency Bureau (now the B.E.P.) was a man named Spencer M. Clark. It seems that Superintendent Clark, upon seeing an order to honor the historical Clark, thought it meant he was supposed to put his own picture on the money.

Congress screamed, but it was too late. Millions had been printed. (You can see them on eBay.)

Thus do narcissists pass into history, while the rest of us are forgotten.

There’s a lesson in there somewhere, but I hesitate to dwell on it.