Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 4, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 October 1874 — Interesting Mint Statistics. [ARTICLE]

Interesting Mint Statistics.

Dr. Linderman, Director of the Mint, has submitted to the Secretary of the Treasury his reports of the operations of the mints and assay offices for the fiscal year ending June 30 of the present year, from which it appears that the gold deposits were $68,861,565; silver deposits and purchases, $15,125,151. Deducting the re-deposits of bars made and issued by one institution and deposited at another, the deposits were: Gold, $49,142,511; silver, $11,485,678. The amount in bars transmitted from the New York assay office to the mint at Philadelphia for coinage during the fiscal year was: Gold, $18,704,101; silver, $2,613,636; total, $21,317,737. Compared-with the previous year there was an increase of $8,924,165 in the amount of gold operated upon; $2,880,761 in silver were received and operated upon; $15,193,352 in gold coinage; $3,037,085 in silver coinage, and $10,815,086 in bars prepared at the mints and assay offices. The distribution of bullion deposited and purchased, including receipts, was as follows: Philadelphia mint, $22,947,282; San Francisco, $24,934,789; Carsop, $5,088,159; Denver," $989,773; assay office, New York, $24,900,721; assay office, Charlotte, N. C., $8,763; assay office, Boise City, $114,258. • The increase over the operations of 1872 is as follows: In gold bars operated upon, about 115 per cent.; silver operated upon, 397; in gold coinage, 121; silver coinage, 369; tine gold, 369; fine gold bars, 226; imported gold bars, 340; fine silver bars, 619, and imported silver bars, 60 • The loss by abrasion was but little over one half of 1 per cent. The renovation of gold coins js now about complete except as to those in circulation on the Pa cific coast. The Director recommends the withdrawal and renovating of these before the resumption of specie payment? During the past year the reduction in the weight of coin for fraudulent purposes has not been carried on to any extent. . ! Applications have been made- for the

execution of certain coinage by two foreign Governments, and are now under consideration by the proper authority. A portion of the funds of the Treasury Department has been kept in'the form of stamped mint-bars which can at anytime be converted into half and quarter eagles should the exigencies of the people require inem. The most of the goid coinage in circulation at present consists of double eagles, but should specie payment bp resumed coins of a smaller denoniination would be required. The Director" says that the denominations of gold coin are too numerous and recommends the discontinuance of the three-dollar piece and the gold dollar, the former because it so nearly approximates the quarter eagle in value and the latter because it suffers more from abrasion than the larger pieces. The coinage of trade dollars during the fiscal year amounted to $3,588,900, the greater portion of which were exported to China, where they found a ready market and grow in favor for trade and exchange purposes. The mint had not been afcte to meet the demand for these coins, but the increased capacity of the new mint at San Francisco he thought would soon enable the department to meet all requirements.

To remove the difficulty of making change in Texas and on the Pacific coast, where the five-cent nickel-copper coins do not circulate, the Director recommends the issue of a twenty-cent coin. The Director refers at length to the subject of the course of silver bullion, and states that the Government can at any time, unless there should be a material advance in the value of silver, or depreciation in the gold value of the paper dollar, supply itself with such an amount of subsidiary silver coin as it may require to pay out at its nominal value at about the same terms as a corresponding sum in paper currency could be obtained by the sale of gold coins. The demand for the coins appears to come from Texas and the Pacific coast, where they circulate as money. The first effect of any considerable issue of subsidiary silver coin would.be the disappearance in the New York market of the difference between the bullion and., market value of these coins. They would next be sent to the Pacific coast and Texas in such amounts as to compel merchants and others to avail themselves of the provisions of law limiting the legal tenderofsuch coins tofivedollars. After a time they would begin to enter more or less into general circulation in other sections of the Union, and, as the paper money approached parity with gold, gradually expel the fractional notes. The amount of specie in this country is stated to be on the 30th of June last $167,000,000. The estimate shows a gain in specie and bullion in the last two fiscal years of $38,500,000, The amount of gold and silver coin and bullion in the world is estimated at from ten to twelve thousand millions. The present rate of production is—silver $80,000,000, and gold $100,000,000; the two together being an annual addition of about per cent, to the existing stock of specie.