France has her Lilly,
England has her rose;
Ireland has her shamrock
As everybody knows.
Scotland has her thistle
On every downy hill.
But the emblem of America
Is the one-dollar bill.
Currency is seldom deemed a suitable subject for poetry, so we salute this rhyme-meister of old for venturing forth into the murky waters. This verse was no doubt penned at a time when the dollar commanded great heights – unlike the 1930s. In an effort to increase American exports, President Roosevelt took the nation off of the gold standard and devalued the dollar. Much to his credit, exports did indeed increase – but the decreased purchasing power of the dollar domestically contributed to the misery of the American consumer, and the article posted on the right reflects this misery.
KEY WORDS: THE FORGOTTEN DOLLAR BY journalist Ed Myers New Outlook Magazine May 1935
