Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-11-19
HOW GOLD rs SENT ABROAD.
Some Facts Concerning Its 'Shipmen
from the New York Times.l

HOW GOLD rs SENT ABROAD.
Some Facts Concerning Its Shipment
[From the New York Times.l
An idea current in Wall street is that
the Bank of America has cooper shop
attachment. This is scarcely true, how
ever, though the great array of kegs
which sometimes are rolled out all day
long from the rear Of the institution
would seem to give color to the belief.
The kegs are considerably smaller than
those which usually ornament beer sa-
loon sidewalks, and they are always new.
But, to those conversant with the SUBJ
icct, the interesting feature OF these kegs
is their contents. Each key contains
$500 in clear gold. It is from the
Bank of America that most of the gold
shipped to Europe from this city is sent.
Kegs in which gold is packed" specie
Kegs" as they are called-are made of
extra-hard woods. They must have an
extra iron hoop, and their workmanship
must be above the ordinary.
Specie is not thrown loosely into a
key, nor upon the other hand is it care
fully wrapped in tissue paper and piled
up one coin upon another. The key
serves only as protection for canvas
bags, into which the gold is placed in
the ordinary hit-and-miss fashion of
pennies in Jersey farmers wallet The
canvas Of these bags is especially stout,
AID the ends are sewed particularly
strong. Into each bag goes s., 600, and
ten bags fill a key, so that each key
which rolls out from the rear of the Bank
Of America is worth the round sum OF
$50, 900 plus the cost Of the cask itself
and the value of yard or two of rough
canvas. In the interest Of security
each key is treated to what is technically
known among the shippers as the "red-
TAPPING" process. At each end of the
keg, in the projecting rims Of the slaves
above the head, are bored four holes at
equi-d distant intervals. A piece of red
tape is run through these holes, cross
ing on the head of the key, and the ends
finally met in the center. At the point
OF meeting the tape is sealed to the kegs
head by hard wax bearing the stamp of
the shipper. Any meddiing with the
keg must break the tape or wax, and so
on the trip across the ocean it is an easy
matter to watch the valuable consign-
ment, and detect any attempt to inter-
fere with it.
Gold crosses the ocean very much as
does every other kind of freight. Years
ago there were some shippers VINO de-
tailed an employe with every consiyn--
ment to act as sort of detective and
hold watch as best he could over their
kegs. No such care is ever taken now.
as a rule, the gold shipped is insured.
Safely watched until on shipboard, the
precious freight is then under the con-
troll of the vessel authorities and the
marine insurance companies, and upon
these parties is all responsibility placed.
The average rate of insurance is about
$3.50 something over 81, 700-upon a
shipment of 81, 600, 900. There are slir-
pers who do not insure, or rather they
insure themselves. One prominent
house in Wall street, which sent some
80, 600, 900 abroad last year, paid no
tax to any insurance company. The
saving thus effected amounted to
about $4,000. In maintaining this
policy of no insurance these ship
pers say that their savings on this
account since they have been in
business have been such as would
enable them to lose outright shipment
of 81 600, 900 or more and still have a
balance to their credit in the fund which
they have set aside in their own house
instead of paying it out for insurance.
Carefully choosing the steamer upon
which to place consignments, they
discount all probability of disaster. As
a rule, however, the shipper who does
not insure divides up his consignments.
Having to ship 100000 he will
give it in equal parts to four or five diff
ferent vessels. It is strict rule with
some Wall street firms never to trust
more than $3.50, 900 at time to any one
ship.
One of the singular circumstances
connected with the shipping Of gold is
that for the last twenty years or more
every key which has been taken out of
Wall street has been handed down to
the vessels by one man, "honest old
John Barkley," who is said to have
grown rich in the business. For each
keg he takes on board his truck he is
paid 81, and the big heavy one, which
he has had built for the special purpose,
will carry $1,000, 900, or forty Kegs. A
similar monopoly is held by cooper
Spier, who furnishes all the kegs and
packs them, getting 81 for each one
completed.