San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1882-01-12
THE GOLD IN BOSTON.
YEARLY Sixteen Tons Stored In a Single Rank.
From the Boston Herald

.u,otaIs is taken into consideration, the
nalue. or the convenience, of paper
money becomes apparent. In gold
aven. large sums of money become very
cumbersome and difficult to manage
The average balances between the Bos.
ton banks each day, at the clearing.
house, amount to 81 100000. This sum
81 money, now almost wholly handled
IN cold. weighs about 3 $40 tons. 1t is
chiefly handled in little cloth bags,
holding, perhaps, three pints each, and
each bag carrying $4,000, weighing
about 20 pounds. These bags of gold
are daily brought to the clearinghouse
in the hands of bank messengers and
in carts and wagons, and daily taken
away in the same manner. Very fire.
nuently quite little knot or crowd of
bystanders may be noticed watching a
covered wagon backed up to the side
walk in State street. Into this wagon
men are throwing little white bags,
which strike with metallic crush
against each other and upon the floor
of the wagon. These bags each contain
$4,000 in gold coin, and the whole of
them represent the daily balances be-
tween the Boston banks. 1t is not in
frequently the case that single wagon
moves off to distribute among the va
rious banks 100000. The bystanders
look on with covetous eyes, while the
driver, bank messenger and policemen
keep guard. 1t is said that these bear
ers of so much gold all 60 prepared
with pocket arms for any emergency.
In contemplating upon such vast
amounts of wealth in 80 small COM
pass, one cannot but attempt to philoso-
phize. A single bag of this gold con-
tains as much as the life earnings of
many poor man. The other day at
the clearing house there lay upon the
floor ten bags of gold waiting to be
carried away by the banks to whom
they belonged. Just by the gold, down
on hands and knees, was q poor scrub
woman, hopping as near to the bags as
possible without soiling them. Here
was $4,000. If that woman were to
scrub every working day of her life.
time, from the day she grew strong
enough to handle the mop till decrepit
old age, say for 70 years, or 81 900 days,
at the very liberal estimate of So per
day, she would be able to earn but
$4,000.
1t is not long that the gold of Boston
banks has been carried about the streets,
or been suffered to accumulate upon
the floor of the clearing house, and
it will not continue to be so treated
only temporarily. To fully understand
the present state of affairs, little his
tory of Boston's gold is necessary. For
many years before the war, when gold
was in use, as it is to -day, one of the
Oldest banks in Boston was, by mutual
consent, the custodian of the gold, on
account of the peculiar safety of it's
vaults, it's reliability as bank, and be-
cause it was one of the oldest and best
known banking institutions. This bank
stored the gold; counted and weighed
it, and it's certificate stating that another
bank held certain amount of gold in
its vaults was always sufficient in bank
settlements, without the actual gold
being removed. When the civil war
broke out and gold went out of circu-
lation, this bank was no longer the GUS
todian, for the good reason that there
was no gold to keep. When specie
payments came to be resumed, Janu-
airy l, 1879, the premium on gold had
disappeared, and that metal began to
come into use again, after an absence
of some sixteen years. Within short
time gold began to be common again,
and, from the Boston banks, it very
naturally drifted into the custody of its
old keeper.
Within year gold began to be very
plenty, and, by vote of the other banks,
it's former keeper was chosen custodian
at a moderate compensation. 1t was
suggested from the clearinghouse and
from the other banks that the amount
of gold on deposit would probably
never exceed $3.000,C00. Accordingly
the bank in question enlarged its vaults,
double its watch, connected its deposi.
tory with the police station by electric
wires, fitted its safes with all the mod
ern appliances against fire and burglary,
and in every way fortified itself for the
safe-keeping of 100000. At the
same time this bank was the depository
also for the city of Boston, in both it's
daily depository and disbursements and
its sinking fund. But gold went on
increasing, both in circulation and in
the hands of the banks-generally in
the latter, since, for circulation, paper
money is generally preferred, after all.
In the spring of this year (1SSD, when
it will be remembered money in the
hands of the banks was very plenty,
awaiting investment, the custodian OF
the gold found itself frequently In pos
session of 100000 or 100000 in
gold, all Of which it was taking care OF,
weighing, paying out, taking in and
issuing certificates for, for the modest
sum of only $4,000 per year. These
certificates uara mead in the settlement