The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-04-04


among themselves, and seems TO vanish
from circulation almost as quickly as 1t
touches their fingers. 1t is customary for
their Sheiks to bury their gains in the sand,
where the hoard can only be recovered by
the most scrupuous attention to bearings
and distances, all other indications being
speedily oblitcratcd.
In southern Europe, every year Is marked
by cases Of treasure trove, where accumu-
lations OF plate or coined money are turned
up by the plough, or brought to light upon
the demolition Of old buildings. The place
most frequently chosen for such deposits
seems to have been under heavy stones in
the rccesscs Of temples, churches, and other
structures protected by religious sentiment,
whore no prcconcortcd attempts at discov
cry would be permitted. Thus. in the re-
pairing of an antiquatcd church Mt st.
Gervas in France, not long ago, an urn was
incidentally exposed. which on being broken
open revealed seven thousand silver coins.
We hardly nced refer to the extent to which
the burial OF gold under the form OF orna-
ments or money In the tombs OF conspicuous
persons was carried in former times, or TO
the remarkable finds Of this nature lately
made by Gen. D1 CEsNoLA in Cyprus. But
we may mention less known but analogous
instance. namely. that the excavation OF a
graveyard at Sidon, some years ago, led to
the discovery OF three carthen pots full Of
gold pieces bearing the head OF PHILIP,
father OF ALEXANDER the Great. And we
may here call TO mind that the treasures
known TO exist in the jewish Temple at the
time Of the siege Of Jerusalem by TITUS,
but none of which were found by the Ro-
mans, are believed to have been sccreted in
some Of the limestone vaults which honey
comb the base of Mt Moriah.
To conceal treasure under water has been
q frequent expcdent in all ages. Silver, as
We know, is slowly soluble in the ocean, but
it is not improbable that considerable accu-
mutations OF gold wouldbc found in tho beds
OF certain historic rivers and harbors There
Is ground for instance. to believe that the
silt OF the Tibcr must have become rich in
gold coin and precious specimens Of the
goldsmith's art during twenty-five centuries
Of commotiou and assault, since the cxpul-
sion OF TARQUIN to the flight Of Pho NoNo
There Is also some historical evidence for
the belief that not little submerged treas
urc might be found in the chokod-up artiii-
cial harbor OF Tyre Indeed, repeated appli-
cations have been made to the Porte for n
frmnn permitting examinations to be made,
hut permission has invariably been denied.
1t is thought, too. that dredging operations
in the sluggish waters Of the canals OF Venice
would yield considerable results. and SINH
lar undertakings have been mooted with re-
gard to the beds Of the Seine and Of the
/ 10, oil faR ,l,v
cers report as an unqucstionable fact that
vast quantities OF treasure were thrown by
the Inca priests into Lake Tticaca at the time
Of PIzARRo's invasion. There is no doubt
that proposals for the recovery OF wealth
thus submerged have more than once been
submitted TO the Peruvian Government.
Besides the great amount OF bullion which
Is removed from circulation through hoard
ing and burial, and the large proportion
continually exacted by the industrial arts,
there is an outlet for gold in particular
which is peculiar TO modern times. and
whose importance is seldom recognized.
We refer TO the quantity Of this metal con-
sumed in dentistry, some idea Of which ma
| be dcduced from the fact that In the United
States alone there are probably ten thou
sand practising dentists. According to n
member OF the profession who has made n
study Of such statistics, many hundreds OF
pounds Of gold are annually required for
! filling decayed teeth, while the plates on
which artificial teeth are set use up nearly
a ton Of the same metal In every year. This
sounds like an exaggerated estimate, but II
we add TO the home demand the require
ments Of the dental craft in Europe, we can
certainly account for the consumption Of n
| large fraction from the supplies Of the Cali
| forna mines. Another source Of waste
whose gravity is seldom appreciated IS the
| loss in weight by attrition in the passing Of
7 coins from hand to hand. A calculation,
made by Mr. JAcoB some years ago. Of the
ratio Of waste in Great Britain from this
cause alone, produced the greatest astonish-
mcnt, and led the Government 10 insist on
frequent recoinagc. What becomes of the
gold and silver thus escaping through mere
attrltion is a very curious problem. Mr.
JACOB suggested the possibility OF n subtle
law by which it reaccumulatcs and by
which the invisible atoms may be brought
together into masses or nuggets, or simply
strewn in sand, or driven ultimately by rills
into the beds OF rivers.