126 APRIL 2016 http://www.stampandcoin.co.ukCoin update
A Salvation Army halfpenny
TALKING TOKENS
A few weeks ago a young cousin of mine visited Essex and,
knowing of my interest in oddities, brought back a small brass
token he’d spotted on a bric-a-brac stall, writes Ed Fletcher.
He paid £2 for it, so I gave him £3 by way of encouragement
to keep on the look-out for other oddities. He went off satisfied
and I spent an hour looking into the history of my purchase.
It’s a Salvation Army brass halfpenny token issued by the
Salvation Army Farm Colony at Hadleigh, a village not too
far from Southend-on-Sea. Opened in the late-Victorian era
by General Booth, the Army’s founder, it was seen at the time
as a means of rehabilitating men who had slipped down the
social ladder to the pit of habitual unemployment, begging
and alcoholism. They were put to healthy outdoor agricultural
labour for which they received accommodation and a small
remuneration. Let me quote a contemporary newspaper
(Evening News, August 1899) for a succinct account of their
pay and conditions:
‘The colonists are paid, depending on skills and aptitude, at the
rate of 8s to 11s per week, in brass tokens, which can only be used
on the colony. At the dining rooms they pay 4d in tokens for a large
plate of beef and vegetables. Clothing is slightly dearer at 13s 6d
for a full suit, shirt, underwear and a pair of strong boots. Themen can make extra tokens for overtime work, and by selling the
produce of their free allotments to the colony’s kitchens. A small cash
allowance of 6d to 5s, depending on length of service, is paid for use
at weekends when they are allowed several hours off the colony. They
may buy cigarettes and confectionery; but all alcohol is banned.
‘Some men (as high as 25%) choose not to return from their free
time, making their way back to London and their old haunts as soon
as they have fattened a little on the healthy food and paid for a good
pair of boots. But more than half are said to make a resounding
success of rehabilitation by saving most of their brass tokens for a
year, then finding an agricultural labourer’s job on an Essex farm.’Quick links
Page 129 Battle of Atlantic coins
Page 130 Incredible coin hoards
Page 134 Shakespeare’s coinsA rare set of Edward VIII fantasy crowns presented to a key confidant
of the King who guided him through the abdication crisis of 1936 is
to be auctioned by Dix Noonan Webb later
this month.
Set to be sold during the 21 March auction,
the six crowns were produced by Geoffrey
Hearn in 1954 to commemorate Edward’s
brief reign and are contained in a magnificent
presentation case given to the former King’s
private solicitor, Sir George Allen.
The set of Crowns – three in gold and three in
silver – passed from Sir George to his long-time
secretary and personal assistant, Fairlie Hopkin,
and are being auctioned following her death, aged
99, in April 2015. Housed in a contemporary
maroon fitted leather case, gilt blocked ‘Edward
VIII King and Emperor 1936’, they have never
been on the market before and are expected to
fetch £3,000 to £5,000.
Approval was given and Hearn had the
presentation cases specially made for a handful
of people. It is believed that only two or three
were produced to be given to the former
monarch’s closest advisers. Sir George, whoEdward once described as having ‘stood like a stone wall during our
worst hours’ was an obvious candidate to receive this extremely rare gift.
It is possible that the set was given by Hearn to
Edward who then passed it on to Sir George.
Although the Hearn coins designed by George
Alfred Holman were later minted in greater
numbers, the ones to be auctioned this month are
rare, not only because of the presentation case,
but also because they are of the original type with
thick flans struck by the medallists John Pinches.
No more than 100 of each of the three gold coins
in the set were produced in this first striking.
Peter Preston-Morley, coins expert at Dix
Noonan Webb, said: ‘The provenance of this
set is impeccable, leading directly back to Sir
George who was at the heart of the abdication
crisis. It was Sir George who persuaded Edward
to address the nation directly, helped with the
drafting of the abdication speech and advised
on the terms of Parliamentary legislation. He
and his loyal secretary Miss Hopkin found
themselves playing a discreet but crucial role in
a drama that gripped the world.’ Find out more
at: http://www.dnw.co.ukRare Edward VIII coins to be sold
Sign up for the free Stamp & Coin Mart e-newsletter and receive news direct to your inbox every month. Sign up at: http://stamp.cm/esign-upp126 Coin Update.indd 126 01/03/2016 11:51