The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-12-24
THE UNITED STATES MINT.
a wnlL rhrouah lhe In.,IrurIon.


Shs city the United states Mint on Chestnut street.
below Broad II is visited by thousands OF strangers
every year and yet there are many people who have
been born within sight Of its tall chimney $50 feet
hgh) who know little nothing about 1t. To en-
lghten this class the following simple statement OF
facts has been written
The hours for visiting the Mint are from TO 70
O'Clock A. NJ. Polite and courteous ushers meet
you at the door, and accompany you through those
departments OF the institution which are open to
visitors.
Standing in the small rotunda at the entrance
and looking into the building, we have the onice Of
the Treasurer OF the Mint on our left; on the right
the Cashiers ollce on the right, proceeding into
the yard Is the Treasurers clerks; the left is the
deposit room, OF which will be said hereafter.
Adams Express occupies aportion Of the Treasurer's
clerks room.
The Copper Melting Room.
The first object OF interest after passing into the
yard is the room wherein all the base metals used in
coinage by the Mint are melted and mixed Up TO
1851 the base coin Of the United States was excu-
sively copper. In the year above mentioned, the
coinage OF what was called the nickel cents was
commenced. These pieces, although called nickel,
were composed of one-eighth nickel the balance
copper.
Since the first coinage OF nickel money the pieces
have changed two or three times both In design and
mixture. The present coinage OF base coins is as
follOws-
Three Cent. 80 gr. $50 pieces to the 10.
Five II iG-10O or about a % q /"
BRONZE.
Weigh.
Sne P%o cent es gr' 1SS 20 pieces to the H. b
The composition of the five and three cent pieces
is one-fourth nickel; the balance is copper
The bronze pieces are mixture OF copper, zinc,
and tin about equal parts Of each, OF the two last,
the former contributing 95 per cent.
There furnaces in this room each cana
ble OF melting Ave hundred pounds OF metal per day.
When the metal is heated and sufficiently mixed, it
is poured into iron mOuds, and when cool and the
rough ends clipped Off, is ready to be conveyed to
the rolling room.
The Silver and Gold Melting Room.
The next place OF interest is the gold aud silver
melting The visitor is not permitted to enter
this room, but takes his view from the doorway.
The room is divided in the centre by partition.
on the right is the silver department Here all the
silver used by the Mint in coming money, as well as
the fine merchant bars, is mixed (aoyed) and
melted On the left is the gold department. Both
gold and silver go through nearly the process
OF refining, so in describing one we describe both
The silver or gold having passed through a sepa-
rating and purifying process, is brought to this
room, where 1t is properly mixed, heated, and then
poured into an iron mould. When cool, it is Knocked
out Of the mould, and although it is rch-lookng
is without that brilliant lustre which see in new
coin. The piece taken from the mould is now called
ingot. 1t is about twelve inches long, and is
wedge-shaped at one end. This end is made
wedge-shaped to facilitate its passage through the
rollers.
A gold ngot is worth about $1,000 in gold. A silver
ingOt zone dollar worth about ESQ in silver Silver
ngots differ in value and size, according to the de-
nomination of the coin to be cut from them.
The false floor in this room eXctes considerable
attention. 1t is laid in sections, and can be taken
up The sweepings are very valuable
The Rolling Room.
On passing from the gold-meltng- room, through
the corridor leading to the rolling room, the first
object OF interest which meets the attention is an
upright engine on the right This engine is eighty
horse power, and supplies the motive power to the
rolling-machines.
On the left are the 'Roers.' About two hun
dred ngots run through per hour on each pair
of Rolls. Gold, silver, and base metal ingots are
all put through the same process OF rolling
They are received from the melting rooms in
the same shape and size, and are passed
through the rollers until they assume the shape OF
long thin strips of the requisite thickness for the
sort OF coin required.
On the right, looking towards the rear of the
room, viii be seen a number of furnaces. These
the annealing furnaces. The metal, after pass
ing through the "Rols,n becomes very brittle and
hard, from being worked and it is necessary to
soften it before putting it through any further pro-
cess. 1t is therefore heated to red heat and when
to COOL The base metal strips are laid loosely in
the furnace, but more care is exercised with the
precious metals they are placed in copper canis-
ters and carefully guarded from any friction that
may cause them to loose the slightest particle
Just back of the "Rolls" are a number OF machines
used for cutting, trimming and fattening the strips.
In the rear OF these machines are ranged in row
in the extreme back part OF the room the cutting
presses. There are nine OF these machines each one
capable of cutting two hundred and twenty-five
pieces (planchets) per minute. II these planchets
are OF the denomination Of cents, but 1925 per
minute is made, but II, ON the contrary, the plan
chetts are OF gold, OF the denomination of double
eagles, we have the sum OF s45OO per minute.
These presses are a comparatively recent inven-
tOn, and each press is capable OF cutting any demo-
mination OF COINS they regulated by the size
OF the punch, which is movable. sample Of plan
chefs from each strip is carefully weighed before
the strip Is permitted to be used
The panchets as cut fall in boxes beneath the
press and taken out in quantities and again an
nealed In the furnaces.
on the extreme left on line with the cutting
presses, are the "draw benches" These machines
are used for regulating accurately the thickness OF
the strips Of gold silver OF any Jumps or other
unevenness. This is done by drawing the strips
between stationary rollers previously set to the
required thickness. The machinery:of this end OF
the room is run by an engine in the cellar beneath.
The Cleaning or Whitening Room.
On the right, between the entrance to the rolling
room and the annealing furnaces is the cleaning OF
whitening-room. Visitors not permitted to ente
this room, unless accompanied by an officer OF the
insttutiOn) In this room the planchets are cleaned
by heat and acids, and when thoroughly dried arr
ready for the coinlng-roOm,
The COininE Room.
This is probably the most interesting department
t.4N