| Show COIN TOOK FANCY OF ARABS Austrian Maria Marla Theresa Dollar Dolar Has Long Been the Principal Money of That Region The only coin Iq II general generl circulation In ln Ab Abyssinia Is the Austrian Maria Marld Theresa dollar of ot sliver silver siver It I Is also the principal money in Arabia and the story of ot its Is Introduction In those regions and all ni the neighborhood of or the thc Red sea Is quite quie Interesting More than a century ago trading Arabs got got hold of ot some of of these dollars dol dol- lars mrs and found the effigy of ot the queen which the they bore on one ono side the reverse re reo re- re verse terse showing the Austrian double eagle so so attractive that they sought to obtain more of them for sale as Jewelry Later on they became highly popular as ns a medium of ot exchange In mercantile transactions In Arabia and when nt at Intervals tile tle Turkish government prohibited their Importation Importation tion ton a n large and profitable business was done lone In smuggling them through Aden and other seaports They are all al dated latel 1780 being even now minted from replicas of ot the origInal original inal die which Is of ot rather crude workmanship Any change would not be understood by the Arabs and Abyssinians and would render them less Jess acceptable Bankers and merchants In the Red fled led sea sen region Import the Maria Marin Th Theresa dollars In bulk from Trieste selling them at nt n a good profit or exchanging them for native merchandise They are somewhat larger than our siver silver dollars but weigh veigh less than an ounce and are only a little over four fifths tour silver sl |
