The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-08-24
INC Cold NYax.mens

Thc Gold Movement.
The receipts OF gold fir m Califor ia durine
tie last Twelve mont have amounted in rouof
numbfrs to hi'y-three MI ions ofdollars. The ey
port from he port of New Yer during the Same
peiloo has been about tn rty six mill ons an a
! han thus leaving balance the country o.
sixteen millions and balf Subtract NJ from
| the specie III tie New York banks he amo,n,
held in the NAM OF Senior Araoiuez and which
ought LOT 10 enter into cllcu'ation If hi.
nature, Is vii, le found that the banks hold
ever million less sp Gle now han they aid this
time last year. The SIG 500, 900 ret incl IN
the country hes not therefore gone into their
hands. 1t has passed into the Treasury and
been scattered throughout the country large
portion IL held in private hands, or boarded ar
ny wealthy men, or used for the purposes O.
'faoe. This amount is considerably less than
the usual annual absorption of god. From ia,
Isl OF January, lS49, to the lst Of January
1904 'he excess ofour imports of gold over GU,
exports was Sl0s,0nS, 600, being at the rate O
s-l,ooo'ooo pr ausnum. The progress of the
gradual absorption Of gold is shown in the fol
rowing figures. In 1920, it is estimated that oil
The specie in the country only amounted to
'hIrty.seven millions of dollars. From thai
date to the discovery Of California the rines
yielded aSont as much again: we i~por'ed
S252 ,O00,0OO, and exported $lSO"o0,0O0, leav-
ng some S72,OoO,000 gaip,. and thus on lst
Janusry, ls49 there was IN the country about
Sl22, 900 900 of specj~ Out Of this amount the
banks held soms fifty millions. From 1919
to the beginning Of the present year, the mines
yielded 1874 ,363, III, and we imported $2650s,-
774/ We exported during the same period
s112,695,574; thus leaving in the country on
the LIST January, 1854, $2so5s9,5O2 in specie,
which has since been increased to something
like S2390OO,OoO. OF these two hundred and
thirty-nine millions of dollars, the banks hold
about one.fourth. Allowing twelve for the
share Of New York. three for Boston, and eight
for New Orleans the other banks in the United
States are supposed to contain about thirty
seven millions Of specie giving total Of bank
specie Of sixty millions of dollars. The nation
al treasury holds some twenty seven millions;
and the balance is in private hands, part In
money and part in jewels, plate, &c.
1t is rather singular that the increase Of pro-
duction Of specie should have been accompanied
by a reduction in the amounts held by the prn-
cipal banks Of the world. 1t is estimated that
since the gold discoveries in Australia the
specie held in the United States, British and
French banks has diminished fully one-thitd
The following are the approximate figures =
1851. 1854
Specie in the Iank Of England sos 600 s77oooooo
BanG Of France. 10 ooc'SSS S s,SSo'SSo
Totals. $3.50 Ooo, 600 sles 600, 900
Thus since 1851, the banks have lost some
thing like one hundred and thirty-five millions
Of dollars, while, in addition to the old supplies
Of gold, California and Australia have added
during the same period, some three hundred
millions Of dollars worth of the worlds trea-
sure. In three years, at least four hundred and
thirty. FIVE millions of dollars have been abs
tracted from the banks and applied in such n
way as to escape the notice of the statistican
or economist.
Where has this money gomez Have the
symptoms Of rcy olutions and commercial crises
been SO vivid az to induce merchants and men
of property to lock up their gold ia chestss Hs
luxury been so prevalent as to absorb four hun
dred and thirty-lve millions of dollars in three
years for spoons, forks trinkets and gliding?
If not, where is the money? Gold is scarce
among the commercial classes in the United
States and in France: and despite the assertion
Of the London press, we cannot bring ourselves
to believe that any considerable aggregate
amount is boarded up by private individuals in
Great Britsin. The Scotch and Irish banks
only have about S14,00O,000 among them all.
1t is curious to trace the travels of this pre-
cious dross from the mine until We lose sight Of
it, and only know that 1t exists by having
before III the authentic record Of its production.
According to the Secretary of the Treasury.
We have received S194,363,lF from California
since 1919. Of this we have kept about one
hundred millions for our own use; and this is
already lost to the eye of the economist, for the
banks have received none of it, having lost
specie instead Of gaining it in the interval We
have sent to England in the same period, Sll2,-
COS. ga in gold. They have received there
likewise from another source Australia about
$1i0,000.0o0 during the same period: thus in
crcesing their stock Of gold by some two hun
bred and fifty millions from these two sources
alone. But during tho five years ending in
1854, Great Britain exported to the continent
Of Europe, India, China, Africa, and the West
Indies, full this amount Of gold. For the first
six months Of the present year the exports Of
gold to foreign countries from England amount
cd to ell $4,000, which would give nearly
924,oOo,o0o or slls.ooo,oOo for thu year. OF
this large amount more than three fourths went
to France. England retained none Of 1t, as her
exports absorbed the whole France can have
absorbed but little, as the specie in her bank
has fallen from sl25,0oo,O0o to s5s,0Oo,Ooo
since 1851 and gold is still at high premium
in the a MR. mente What has hccnme of the