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Prior
to banknotes being withdrawn from circulation (for damage
or other reasons) using today's process, the currency hammer
was used. (Interestingly, a five-dollar banknote is circulated
in Canada for approximately one year; in the United States,
the same denomination lasts about 16 months.) The striking
action of the tool severed the fibers and security threads
in the notes, preventing any possibility of reconstituting
the fibers to create another sheet of paper to use for counterfeiting
money. The cut or shredded material was then incinerated.
This two-part system eliminated any chance of these specialized
fibers being reintroduced into circulation in any manner.
It should be noted that today a portion of the mechanically
shredded material is recycled and reused in a carefully regulated
manner.
D.S.
Orr
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