Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-07-07
sILVER FACTs.
The Mints Burdened with standard
Dollars.


The standard silver dollar, says a Wash
ington letter, for which the dear people
are supposed to be crying, keep on piling
up in the hands of the government. Those
hands are now filed TO overfiowing, and
still the dollars come rolling in from the
mlnts at the rate Of 2.300, 600 month. A
year ago the Treasury officials held con-
ference and agreed that since Congress
would not stop the flood they must provide
a new receptacle for it. They talked about
II good deal and finally agreed that they
would spend $4,000 or $40. 000-perhaps
S50,O0o-ln constructing IN the Treasury a
vault for the accommodation Of these
troublesome coins, which would exceed
IN size and security any strong room
IN the world. Ii was to hold when
completed, 50,O00,0 900 Of these shiny, min
iature cart wheels, and to be fire-prOoi
and burglar-proof so far as is possible in
these uncertain days. The contract was
gwen to well-knOwn Boston vault
builder. He has just finished his work,
and IS already receiving the compliments
or the department. The vault upon
which he has expended so much tIme and
labor is a model Of strength and safety.
lt is IN the sub-basement of the Treasury
department, at the northern end, directly
under the cash room, the marble walls
and floors and galleries of which are the
admiration OF every tourist as he looks
down upon the bald heads of the cashiers
and tellers and their piles of gold and sill
yer and greenbaeks. The vault is a
smaller edition of the cash room. 1t is 53
feet inches long, 81 feet inches wide
ana feet l inch high.
Its cubic capacity is lS.S1O feet. so
that the desire of the Treasury officials
that 1t might be the biggest money vault
IN the world has been fulfilled. Thirty
millions of standard silver dollars in
leather pouches can be stored away with
great ease, and it can, with little crowd
ing, be made to hold fifty millions. 1t
VIII, OF course, hold a prOportiOnately
larger amount of ffractiOnalsilver coin. The |
vault is surrounded by walls of solid ma
sonrys bound together in the most skillful
fashion,. The walls are uniformly five
feet thick. Along either of the two Ion |
ger sides runs row Of sever compart- |
nents. Down the middle, between the /
rows, runs an aisle four feet wide. These |
compartments are separated from each /
other by strong partitions of heavy iron 1
lattice work. Each of these fourteen cells |
Will hold comfortably from 1000 600 10 /
100000 standard dollars. The gene /
raj appearance OF the vault |
IS that of very strong dungeon, di- |
Vided into strongly fenced cells. The |
vault has an inner and an outer door, /
both eunningly constructed of thick steel /
OF the finest temper, and provided with |
every modern device for the protection of |
capital from those who would break |
through and steal. These doors are splen-
dld specimens of the best workmanship
Each door has two combination locks of |
the latest pattern. Each is locked on a /
dlnerent combination, the secret of which
Is IN the mind of but one man, so that the |
do0rcan be opened only by the Joint action |
OF the different officials. In addition. the |
outer door has time lock, fortified with
a contrivance for the prevention of at
tempts to blow it off or run its chronome-
ter down, together with an electric at
tachment by which an official possessing
the secret can open it should it run down
ACCIDENTALLY or refuse TO run down |
AT the outer door sits
guard day and night through
out every "a hours. changed |
every eight hours from the sixty always |
on auty at the Treasury DepaI tment. |
Every i've minutes he is visited by the |
patrol, whose beat brings him within a
lew feet of the vault. The Captain of the
guard or one of the two Lieutenants, who
change watches every eight hours, may
also sWoop down upon him any moment.
so you see our standard silver dollars
VIII be we'll watched. The Treasury De-
partment holds now $3.50, 900. 900 silver
coin and bulliOn-$l35, $50, 900 is in stan
lard silver dollars, $4,055, 900 in bullion,
and $29,600,O00 in fractional currency.
This silver weighs 5000 tons. 1t is stored
1t present in the vaults, mints and sub
,reasuries throughout the country, which |
lavo an aggregate capacity of $4,000
'ubic feet. In New York there is stored
,34 ,000,0 in Philadelphia S2I 900. 600. in
San Francisco $59, 900, 900, in New Orleans
,2O OOO. 600. and so on