Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1874-05-11
UNCLE sAMUEL'S STRONG. BOX.

UNCLE SAMUEL'S STRONG. BOX.
The editor of the Bennington Banner
has lately made visit to the {. S. Sub
Treasury at New York. and saw sights
that made his own possessions look very
Insignificant indeed He gives the fol-
lowing account of what he saw:
sGen. George Ashley, chief of the Coin
Division, accompanied US into the coin
vault, and in amongst the limitless mass
of precious metals under his supervision
and charge. The boarded millions com.
mitted to the special care of Gen. Ash
ley are lodged in sectional compartments
of the large iron vault-sealed easements
loaded to the muzzle with every possible
denomination of bullion also piled up
in tagged bags, within the iron walls
were loaded bags of '.short coin," which
BY the abrasion caused by the material
wear and tear of constant use, had be-
come deprecated below the standard
value and was listed for shipment to the
mint for recoining and restoration to its
original value.
On the offer of Gen. Ashley 70 give us
one of these bags containing 100000,
if We would carry it, We tugged yigor-
ously at it, but was compelled to decide
that We need not ask for his permit to
pass us and the money bag through the
Gordon of detectives employed to keep
watch and ward against any clandestine
removal of the deposits, y We couldn't
lift even this little fraction of the huge
mass of accumulated specie.
Gen. Ashley also took us through the
currency vault, wherein is stored anoth-
er vast quantity of the nations reserved
wealth. Here is bewildering immens-
ity of greenbacks. Legions of carefully
folded packages. each of which is label
led high up on the road to riches. Here
We almost wished the gentlemanly Gus
todian would repeat the generous offer
he had made to us in the coin vault :
but he did not. He kindly suggested,
however, that perhaps We would like to
feel rich for little while and allowed
us to hold a million of dollars In each
hand, long enough to say that we knew
how persons felt when burthened with
two millions of dollars in legal tenders.
Notwithstanding any caprieious ideas we
may have entertained against currency
imitation, We passed back the million.
aire packages with much greater regret
than we had surrendered the paltry
100000 golden bag, of harder and
heavier cash.
The cashier, Mr.. W. 2. White, dip
ping scoop into box of gold. weighed
off the required amount, bagged it, anG
passed 1T to the creditor with an alacrity
that shipwrecked our previous knowl
edge of how gilt-edged checks are cash
ed. Hundreds of thousands of dollar
are thus weighed in the balance for thos,
that are found wanting it and so pre-
else, careful and exact is this disbursin.
officer, that not the least error occurs il
his vast transactions.
Just at the rear of the cashier wer
three clerks, all experts, engaged Il
weighing the gold received by the assis
tant treasurer, at the sub-treasury. Wit
scales adjusted to the incest precision
they try each gold piece received, an
if it varies in the least from the tru
standard, it is cast. into the waste-boz
instead of being dropped in amongst tn
) pure and perfect coin. The light weight
all 90 direct to the mint, where they ar
recast and returned, worth by aetua
weight the value which their familia
signet gives them in the eommercis
| world ae t 8@
In the department for condemned col
We were surprised at the experiences {
the detectives who have charge of tia
t branch of examination. We inspecte
several coins of various denomination
which we uphesitatingiy pronounce
sound" To the average judgment the
had no appearance Of being spuriou
By cutting the condemned pieces with
cold ehisel, We were speedily convince
that '-all is not gold that glitters p the
were filled or stuffed with the cheape
0 and basest of metal, and hardly worth
/ dollar greenback