INTRODUCTION.
I. Money. Expenses. Passports. Custom House. Time.
Money. In Great Britain alone of the more important states
of Europe the currency is arranged without much reference to the
decimal system. The English Qold coins are the sovereign or
pound (I. = livre) equal to 20 shillings, and the half-sovereign.
The Silver coins are the crown f6 shillings), the half-crown , the
double florin (4 shillings), the florin f2 shillings), the shilling fs.),
and the sixpenny and threepenny pieces. The Bronze coinage
consists of the penny (d., Lat. denarius), of which 12 make a
shilling, the halfpenny, and the farthing C/4 d.~). The Guinea, a
sum of 21«., though still used in popular reckoning, is no longer
in circulation as a coin. A sovereign is approximately equal to 5
American dollars, 25 francs, 20 German marks, or 10 Austrian
florins fgold). The Bank of England issues notes for 5, 10, 20,
50, and 100 pounds, and upwards. These are useful in paying
large sums; but for ordinary use, as change is not always readily
procured, gold is preferable. The number of each note should be
taken down in a pocket-book, for the purpose, in the event of its
being lost or stolen, of stopping payment of it at the Bank, and
thus possibly recovering it. The notes of certain provincial banks
circulate locally, and in Scotland the place of the sovereign is very
generally taken by the one-pound notes of several privileged banks,
which circulate freely throughout the country. Foreign Money does
not circulate in England, and it should always be exchanged on
arrival. A convenient and safe mode of carrying money from Amer¬
ica or the Continent is in the shape of letters of credit, or circular
notes, which are readily procurable at the principal banks. A larger
sum than will suffice for the day's expenses should never be carried
on the person, and gold and silver coins of a similar size (e.g.
sovereigns and shillings) should not be kept in the same pocket.
Expenses. The cost of a visit to Great Britain depends of course
on the habits and tastes of the traveller. If he frequents first-class
hotels, travels first-class on the railways, and systematically prefers
driving to walking, he must be prepared to spend 30-40s. a day or
upwards. Persons of moderate requirements, however, will have
little difficulty, with the aid of the information in the Handbook,
in travelling comfortably with a daily expenditure of 20-25«., while
the pedestrian of moderate requirements may reduce his expenses
to 10-15*. per diem, or even less in some of the remoter districts.
Baedek r's Great Britain. 2nd Edit. h
Permalink: http://pid.emory.edu/ark:/25593/h8n4k
