Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1891-10-30
MILLIONS At SEA.
HOW SPECIE IS SHIPPED TO
AND FRO ACROSS THE OCEAN.

Gold is Bagged and legged Like
Ordinary Freight - Wisely Let
Alone by Even the Boldest Thief
Inspector Byrnes's Precautions.
In one little tightly-locked room on
many of the large ocean steamers there
frequently goes over treasure large
enough to buy the entire steamer aud its
fittings several times over The little
chamber is the gold room or treasure
chest. 1t receives it precious freight at
the last moment before the steamers
start, and its contents are the first por-
ton Of the cargo to leave the ship when
she has been securely berthed. During
the recent rush Of gold abroad, the
strong boxes have been kept in very
active use, and the pursers of the several
ships have had corrcspondingly increased
responsibilities placed upon them.
Contrary to the general notion, ship
per of gold does not go to the Sub
Treasury in New York to get consign-
mcnt of gold simply because the Govern
ment keeps its supply there for the
payment of its Legitimate obligations. 1t
is not an exchange Office in the sense of
taking any sort of securities or legal ten
der and giving out gold coin instead.
If gold certificates are protfcred gold
may be had, and it is as member Of the
Associated Banks, doing business through
the Clearing House, that much gold goes
out from the Sub Treasury into the hands
of the several banking institutions.
They do not keep all the coin or bars or
whatever shape the precious metal may
be in their own vaults, but instead en-
ploy the great vaults of the Bank of
North America, which has become by
general arrangement between the several
banks sort OF depot for the deposit of
gold. There is a sort of cooper shop
attachment to the bank as we'll. and a
bag factory, too. The bagsare strongly
sewed snug little affairs Of stout canvas.
Into each one $4,000 in gold coin is
placed, S. pieces if no other sort is to
be had, aud $50 pieces in preference,
because then the surface of abrasion is
less and the loss from this cause is very
much reduced. The specie kegs are
made Of hard wood and have an extra
iron band about them. There is room
in the rear of the bank specially set
apart for the packing of the specie. and
the operation is witnessed by repre-
sentative Of the shipping firm which has
received the coin order from abroad and
upon whose order the shipment is max
ing. Ten bags just fill q key, and when
the head has been put in by an attendant
cooper a tape check is applied, four
holes are bored through the ends of the
slaves above the head and bottom of the
keg, and red tape run through and the
ends brought to q common point at the
centre of the head, where they are sealed
by great batch Of wax, bearing the
seal of the shipper. A stout, low cart
stands outside the door of the bank, and
on this the $50, 900 kegs are placed. A
couple of men jump on with the driver,
another couple perhaps look on and fol-
low along, and the treasure moves off.
A single truck will carry rs much as
forty kegs, OF $2,O0O.OOO and fixed
sum per key is charged. The delivery
TO the steamer is simply as other freight,
so many packages, contents declared,
but not vouched for by the receiving
steamer people. The marine insurance
companies will insure at the rate of
about 1000 on million dollar ship
ment. Each shipper has different no
ton of doing his business and many do
not insure OF all. The steamer is desig-
mated. and as an extra precaution alarge
shipment, say of million and half,
may go on as many as five or six various
boats. 1t is on the simple rule of not
intrusting too many eggs to one basket
If foreign hoarders of gold would
trust Uncle Sam to the extent of be-
lieving that gold certificate really
meant that gold piece would be kept
ready for its redemption then the vault
lug away of these yellow backed bits of
paper would answer every purpose, but
Russian and English bank men do not
take CHI noes in that way, and the con-
sequence is the Juggling back and forth,
! of the gold to meet balances" as is the
current expression, but really to satisfy
the mood of foreign bankers who take
notion now and then to demand some
thing tangible, as gold coin or bars.
With bars duly stamped as to weight
and tineness in the U. S. Assay Office ad-
joining the Sub Treasury the same kegs
are used, but instead of canvas bags
closely packed sawdust is used to keep
the bars apart and the loss from abrasion
is reduced to minimum It is all the
SoAAo AolAAutAiiy W VIC bduh "a IHS5 lulu,
where the English drawn gold goes,
whether it be in coin or bars. since all
goes into the melting pot, to be used if
necessary for English coin, and the de-
positor receives certificate of deposit,
good for so much gold, just as the as
sociated banks here get from the Bank
of North America certificate of dep it
good for each banks proportion of the
twenty to forty millions Of specie kept
in safety there.
What magnificent chance for a grand
bit of highway robbery the shipment of
gold through the streets of great city,
some one may say. Not bit Of it. The
first intimation of anything of the sort
would be met by a fusilade of pistol
balls, for the instructions to these treas
ure- guarders are to shoot to kill at tie
first assurance on their part that plan
of robbery is about to be perpetrated.
When rush is made for that coin it is
practically sort of piracy OH the dry
land, and piracy means death in the
modern code. Besides, a plan to be
carried out would necessitate lot of
preliminary piping off, careful lay
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