Rev. Watkinson's second letter to the Mint
RogerB
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Many are familiar with a letter written by Rev. Mark Watkinson to Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase in 1861. (See the post: https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1018506/in-1864-congress-authorized-the-use-of-the-phrase-in-god-we-trust-on-u-s-coins#latest) His letter is credited with leading to adoption of the religious motto "In God We Trust" on certain U.S. coins. But few are aware that Watkinson sent a second letter directly to director Pollock. (Signature page, below.)
Here's the body of Wilkinson's 2nd priggish letter (Jan 6, 1862), followed by Pollock's reply.
"Dear Sir:
Will you allow a few suggestions respecting the devices upon our American coins? Is it not a burning shame that this far in our national history our coins have been so thoroughly heathenish?
Suppose our governmental fabric were now dissolved; suppose in a future era some antiquary searching among the ruins of our public edifices, even of our churches, would alight upon the corner stone memorials of them; would he not justly pronounce us an idolatrous people, worshipping [sic] the “goddess of liberty;” and perchance pantheistic also, so far as to worship eagles?
Can God, the eternal arbiter of national destiny, have been pleased with this displacement and superseding of Himself?
Would it not be more in accordance with out actual Christian character, as England and other Christian nations have done, in some form to recognize God on our coin. This is would not do in Latin; but in good plain English – let our watchwords be “God, Liberty, Law,” either enstamped on the national flag, the folds of the stars and stripes, or in some other form. Let also the all-seeing “eye” with its surrounding “halo” be there somewhere. Let the present wreath be chased with the words “perpetual Union,” and closed into a ring.
Let some new Christian device, or one in which God, shall be clearly acknowledged, be prepared.
I have written to the Secretary of the Treasury, Hon. Salmon P. Chase, respecting the change, who informs me the general principle meets his approval.
I know of no single thing more pleasing to God than would be this, in our present civil strife.
Pollock's Reply:
"I cordially approve the object you have in view, and will most cheerfully cooperate with the authorities in Washington in the adoption of such an laws and mottoes as will distinctly recognize God as the Sovereign Ruler of Nations and as our God. The subject is now under consideration."
Comments
O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov’d homes and the war’s desolation;
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserv’d us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust.”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
—————
A star-spangled tribute to ‘In God we trust’
JULY 2, 2015
By Mike Fuljenz, Special to the Message
Exactly half a century before the motto “In God We Trust” first appeared on circulating U.S. coinage, a close approximation of this now-famous phrase turned up in a poem that went on to attain equally iconic status when it was set to music and became “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
http://baptistmessage.com/a-star-spangled-tribute-to-in-god-we-trust/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_God_We_Trust
"Theodore Roosevelt disapproved of the motto. In The New York Times on Nov. 14, 1907, he wrote, “My own feeling in the matter is due to my very firm conviction that to put such a motto on coins not only does no good but does positive harm, and is in effect irreverence, which comes dangerously close to sacrilege.”
"Whether the argument is sacrilege or an outdated remnant of the “red scare,” religious belief has no place on secular currency. Let the many unite in a cause worthy of us all."
'A far more inclusive motto, “E pluribus unum,” proposed for the first Great Seal of the United States by John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson in 1776, also appears on all of our coins and some of our bills."
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/04/04/bringing-dollars-and-cents-into-this-century/the-founders-preferred-e-pluribus-unum-as-a-motto
In the 1870s, Mint Director Linderman wanted to eliminate both mottoes. EPU being, in his mind, duplicative of USA. If one had to be kept he preferred IGWT as much because it was different, than because of any religious expression.
The motto on the Fugio cents never caught on - "Mind Your Business"
Pacific Northwest Numismatic Association
Render unto Caesar. Edit to say this one could involve religion and politics, I'm out.
Wilkinson's second letter follows the basic form of the first. In this one he seems to confuse the conceptual "goddess Liberty" (small 'g') with an actual Diety (large 'D'). Notice also that, as in the first letter, he accepts the all-seeing eye even though it had/has a strong connection with Free Masonry. Lastly, he again proposes a specific motto, “God, Liberty, Law,” which is completely unlike the one Pollock assumed was intended. Presumably, this last had no influence on Pollock, since there are no pattern pieces with that motto.
It is interesting to speculate that Pollock (and Chase) might have misunderstood Wilkinson's plea to recognize God on our coins, thus producing a strictly religious motto where none was intended.
Some brief excerpts from my booklet about the motto:
"Rev. Watkinson...applied to Court Street Baptist for the pastor’s position. With help from church member and distinguished former pastor, Rev. Thomas Hume, Sr., the congregation
examined Watkinson’s credentials and unanimously elected him pastor on July 22, 1856.8 They also agreed to a salary of $1,000 for his first year – a generous sum for the time. Watkinson used his eloquence and personal charm to bring together and enlarge the congregation. New members joined nearly every Sunday and his church prospered over the next five years."
"On November 25, 1860, in a sermon from his pulpit, Rev. Watkinson let his people know where he stood. He declared himself forthrightly in favor of the course of the South, and in opposition to the views of abolitionists. The sermon created a sensation; many people
were overjoyed and called for a church conference that evening to request a copy of the sermon...."
"When the Virginia Legislature passed a secession bill in April 1861, rioting and violence
threatened Portsmouth. The United States flag was torn down on April 20, 1861. Ships were burnt in the Gosport Navy Yard in nearby Norfolk – the region seemed in open rebellion. Apparently, some of the violence was directed at Rev. Watkinson and his family due to his position in the community. His family was in danger and he quickly sent his wife and children northward by steamer."
"As the last boat was about to leave for the North on April 23, 1861, he stepped aboard leaving behind his church and congregation. There were many harsh words about his disloyalty to Virginia, and the inconsistency of his sermon versus his act of abandoning Portsmouth."
"The next Sunday afternoon 19-year Annie M. Cox wrote in her diary:
1861 - APRIL 28TH Sabbath afternoon. I did not go to church this morning as it commenced raining just about church time. Pa went down but there was no preaching. Alas! We are now left without a pastor. Mr. Watkinson has taken his departure, gone north & sent a letter of resignation to the church. I think it would have been much more manly & better for him if he had resigned before he left. I am very sorry that he has acted thus & that is after preaching and talking so much against abolitionists to go right among them. But we cannot judge him. God alone knoweth the heart.
My commentary on the subject goes far beyond numismatics and would not be appropriate for this forum. Cheers, RickO