Q.David Bowers
It will undoubtedly interest you to learn that I have sold all of the United States gold and nearly all of the United States silver of the Newcomer Collection. I only have a number of the other great rarities of the pioneer and colonial pieces left. I'm planning to be East shortly.
A day later, October 18, 1932, B. Max Mehl wrote enclosing a copy of a letter he received from the former owner of the Moffat bar. This letter, unsigned, was dated October 15, 1932, from Pacific Grove, California:
Regarding the history of the Moffat ingot I sold you, I regret to say that I can give you very little information concerning it, except that it was purchased by myself from one of the oldest members of a very prominent family dating back to 1849. This party mentioned was a trader conducting a general merchandising establishment in the Sutter Creek district, 60 miles northeast of Sacramento, California, and as far as he could remember, the bar in question was the only one of the $14.25 denomination that he had ever seen and had been kept in his possession as a relic until one year ago when I purchased it from him. As to the name, I am unable to give it, as I kept no record of same. I may say, however, that I never could have bought it from him had it not been for the old story we hear every day (depression).
This piece was not to be included in the Garrett Collection, for on October 26, 1932, Garrett responded:
Of course I am very much interested in the discovery which you have made of a Moffat bar, but I am sorry to say that at the present time I cannot consider its purchase. Perhaps later on I should be able to take up with you some of the Newcomer pieces, but for those also, as far as I am concerned, the present moment is not propitious. Besides all this, I am going back to Rome in a few weeks, and I am so busy that I have not yet even had time to even look at my coins. I congratulate you on having sold the Newcomer gold and silver. If you are in the East before I sail about the end of November I should be very glad to see you.
Mehl sent additional correspondence from time to time concerning the Newcomer Collection, but for the next several years nothing substantial was purchased from that source.
Mehl sent on February 20, 1937: Under separate cover by insured mail I am sending you an especially bound advance copy of a booklet that I have just issued on United States commemorative coins, and which I trust will prove of interest to you. Please accept it with my compliments.
John Garrett thanked him and added a sentiment concerning the commemorative situation, which had developed into a numismatic scandal by that time.
Thank you very much for your booklet on commemorative coins, which I have looked through with much interest. I started adding these coins to my collection years ago and kept it up for a long time, but when it became a racket I gave it up. I think it is a pity that it should have been so unworthily overdone.
During the 1935-1936 years United States mints at Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco struck many different designs of commemorative half dollars, sold them at face value to various local, regional and state organizations, which in many instances, added substantial markups and sold them to collectors. Often distribution was spotty, with insiders obtaining pieces which were in short supply and which soon thereafter could be resold at a substantial profit. The situation caused much adverse commentary in the numismatic press at the time. However, Mehl was a businessman, as his response clearly shows:
I appreciate your kind note of the 22nd. I agree with your remarks relative to the commemorative coins. In fact until about two years ago I made no effort to handle any quantity of them, but naturally being in the numismatic business it is necessary for me to handle the class of coins that a goodly proportion of the new collectors are interested in, therefore I went into it in a big scale and now own probably the largest stock of commemoratives in the country. Should you be interested to fill out the balance of your set, I shall be glad to send them to you at very special prices. I also have a few of the rare patterns of the pioneer gold pieces. These, of course, are struck in copper. They are from the Newcomer Collection, and if you care to see them, I shall be glad to send them to you without any obligation on your part.
Mehl's letter of April 1, 1937 deals further with the commemorative scandal: While I am an extensive dealer in the commemorative coins of the United States I have only been interested in them for the past two or three years as I never approved of the manner in which they were offered to the public by the Commissions.
As you probably know, at this moment there are at least 30 or 40 bills before Congress on the coining of more commemorative issues, some for the most insignificant and ridiculous motives. I am endeavoring to use what influence I have in stopping this practice. I wonder if you would object to my using an excerpt of your letter of the 22nd where you mention that you gave up the collecting of commemoratives on account of the promiscuous issues. I will appreciate this courtesy on your part. I felt sure that you would not object, but I did not want to do so without your kind consent.
On March 30, 1937, B. Max Mehl sent John Work Garrett a listing of 15 different pioneer gold patterns for consideration and on April 3, 1937, Garrett requested that Mehl send a number of the pioneer patterns on approval. This was subsequently done on April 6th. In his request Garrett noted that: "I have an original of the Cincinnati $5." Sent on approval to Garrett and subsequently paid for (on April 20, 1937) were a $20 Kellogg & Co. pattern without date, Uncirculated, at $125, and four varieties of Clark, Gruber & Co. patterns. Mehl's cover letter for the April 6th shipment included his congratulations:
Thanks a lot for your kind note of the third just received. First, I want to congratulate you on your possession of an original Cincinnati $5. I was under the impression that the Mint specimen was the only one known. Enclosed are the coins you asked for and trust they will meet with your entire approval. Also want to thank you for your kindness in permitting me to use quotations from your letter relative to the commemorative coins. I am endeavoring to put a stop to the present practices of their issue.
In lieu of sending the coins, Garrett on November 5, 1937, suggested:
Before sending them on approval I should prefer to have you send me details about the assay bars mentioned in your letter of November 4, as well as prices. I have not been buying much lately, but I might possibly be interested at this time. I see that the Brand Collection has finally been divided, and I should be glad to hear what it really contains, especially in the American colonial series.
Mehl responded with the following information on November 9th:
Pleased to send you herewith descriptions of the most unusual assay bars mentioned in my letter of the 14th. I trust you will find them to be of interest to you and I shall be glad to send them to you on approval without the slightest obligation on your part.
With regard to the Brand Collection, this collection has been divided some four or five years ago. The news items regarding it referred only to a difference between two of the heirs, but this was only a small portion of the collection, the greater portion of which, especially the United States part, has been disposed of. I have handled a great quantity of coins from this collection. As you probably know, it originally contained practically everything in numismatics. There are still many rarities to be disposed of, among which are a large portion of the coins from the Dr. Hall Collection.