The daily gazette., 1878-02-20
Dr, Lenllerman,s BooIx.

under the impression for several years
that o. change might be made In the
directorship Of the Mint with great ad-
vantage 70 the credittof the Government
and the interests Of the people,, The
annual report Of the Director recently
published confirms us In this opinion.
Il 10 labored attempt to glorIfy the
administration Of the present Incumbent,
whose term Of ONCE will expire In a
few weeks but 1t seeks TO cover up the
defects Of his management with 30
many bold and startling errors that we
can hardly belieye It will accomplish Its
object.
The Director, puts forth . series Of
statementi prepared, as he informs us,
under his instructions, and sums up for
his superior, the Secretary of the Trea-
sury, the following assumptions sustain
cd bv this exhibit.
Placing the earnings and seignorage
against the total expenses, the metallic
money system has been nearly self-sus-
tanning. n
The total wastage incurred has been
only 10 per cent. Of the legal allowance.
There has been marked reduction in
the cost Of coinage under the Coinage
act Of 1871 as compared with several
preceding years. e
These assumptions are based upon
the report made 10 the Director by
special clerk, who prepared tables show
ing by fiscal years the earnings. expen,
ditures and operations of the Mint Of
Philadelphia since July 1, 1S49 San
Francisco since 1854 Carson since 1869,
and the United States Assay Office in
this city since 1854. am W
II these reports are carefully examin-
ed, and compared with each other and
with the former official statements OF the
Mint from the same hand, it will be seen
that they do mol sustain the assump-
tions Of the Director, and have been
twisted and cooked in a most remark
able manner. noff.a
| In regard TO the "selfsustaiDing "asser-
tion, We find that the total coinage Of
gold and silver for the period included
In the statement amoupted to $685., 146,
S42, and that the expenditures, conse-
quent upon these operations, exceeded
The earnings $5,579,653. This five and
a hall millions excess of expenses over
earnings is in spite of the fact that the
statement includes the whole business
between 1858 and 1875, during which
the coinage charge In gold (abolished at
the latter date) exceeded two and half
million dollars, which went to increase
the earnings. The system has no help
from this at present. 4tEt
To make out his case the Director has
put into the ''metallic money system y
account the profits, amounting to $5,-
lot, ,e91, derived from coming the minor
coins [base metals1, which are put out
by the Government far above their cost
or intrinsic value. II the ''self-sustain-
ling' system is 10 be continued the Gov
ernment will have not only to put out
another twelve million dollars Of these
base coins with which the county is
already fiooded), but greatly to increase
that Issue or resort to some other expe-
dent, as there Is no coinage charge now
on gold, the Government having on the
Recommendation of the Director since
1875 undertaken to perform this service
gratuitously for all depositcrs, without
q single corresponding benefit to the
Ipeople of this country.
The mixed statement thus ingeniously
presented will not avail, we trust, to
divert attention from the most extrava>
giant, II not corrupt, management of the
Carson and San Francisco mints, which
we have heretofore made the subject OF
special comment in this paper. More
THAN five and quarter million dollars
have been expended in those two mints
within this period in excess of their earn
ings.
The object to these manipulated re-
turns seems to be to hide this extrava-
gance and to shield the Director, whose
term of Office is about to expire, from
the natural effect of such a revelation
that might interfere with his re-appoint-
ment.
He does not call attention TO the fact
that the operations in gold and silver at
the Philadelphia Mint, which are almost
equal in value, during the period cited,
to those at the San Francisco Mint, have
cost the Government less than one-tenth
as much! He omits also from his ac-
count of expenditures $225, ZOO incurred
by the offices at Denver, Charlotte, Boise
New Orleans and Helena, which is in
excess of their earnings, and SIC, 900 ex-
pended by the Mint Bureau.
As bearing upon this question of ex-
lpenditures there is another most impor-
tant error. The Director states that the
gold coinage Of $166, ,253,8l6 during 1874
l-1S77 is greater than in any preced-
ins four years of our mint operations;but
his own tables will show that the gold
coinage during 1Ss0-1S53 amounted to
$190, ,S30, ,327-a much larger sum, and,
what is more TO the point, included two
and four-fifths times as many pieces in
number.
In addition to this there are many
very serious discrepancies between
: the totals brought forward in this re-
port from former years, and now pre-,
sented for the purpose of showing re-
duced expenditure, and the annual re.
ports, formerly published by him, pur.
portlng TO give the same items. These
concealments and misrepresentation
are not creditable to the Director, and
will not AID in establishing his ass ump-
tion or in vindicting the purity Of his
administration.
4 AS to the second item-tbat the total
wastage incurred has been only 16 pei
cent. of the legal allowance--we find
|. that this involves the relations between
a n n