The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1891-02-12
THE BULK OF CON.
Weights Il Specie IN Tarisus Denominations
and The lads Millions lake

GLOW many wagon-loads Of silver would
those New York bankers get II they sell
the treasury 10000, 900 worth Of bonds
and take their pay la subsidiary silver
coin, as they are reported likely to dor'
said Washington correspondent to the
Florida Tmes- Onion to an official Of the
mint bureau.
"Wagon-loads, young man? You don't
propose to measure tlO, 200, 900 worth Of
silver by wagon-loads, do your"
"Why notT
Because there IL too much Of IT, A
wagon-load would not figure in calculating
the weight Of O,OOO, 900 in silver"
"How much would $l,0OO,OOO Of it
weigh?"
"Only twenty-seven TONS" was the
smiling reply. "If il was in silver dol
lars it would weigh thirty tons, but in
subsidiary silver coin 1t would weigh
twenty-seven tons and 4 little over
twenty-seven and q half tons In ronnd
numbers"
Then, according to your figures, it
would require something more than q
horse and cart to transport the SO, 0OO, 900
Of hali-dollars, quarters and dimes to
New York in cass the New York bankers
come down with their $40, OOO, 900 Of bonds
and take small change in pay for them,
as they are likely to do"
"How dues Il come that subsidiary coin
weighs less to the dollar than the silver
dollars?"
"The subsidiary silver coin used to be
exactly equal to the dollar. That is to
say, two 5O-cent pieces or four quarters
originally weighed the same as one silver
dollar, but away back in the SOS slight
change was made in the weight Of the
dollar, and Of the subsidiary coin also,
and when the dollar was changed back
It's present standard the subsidiary coin
was not changed"
"well, slightly. The $4,000, 900 Of sil.
yer would weigh 275 tons, which means,
Of course, twenty-seven carloads. A
pretty good freight train that would be,
with twenty-seven cars loaded with
silver"
"And suppose Il were in dollars?"
Then the $4,000, 900 would weigh 800
tons instead Of go, and would add two or
three more cars to the train"
Suppose the go, OOO, 900 were in gold
instead Of silver, what would Il weigh
them"
about 81 900 pounds, or, In . general
way, It would make two carloads. One
million dollars in gold coin weighs 1886
pounds, while in silver dollars Il weighs
thirty tons."
Suppose they were to take their ten
millions in nickels. how much would ii
weigh them"
"Well, $1,000 in nickels weighs go
pounds. At that rate q ,0OO, 900 would
weigh 10000 pounds, 90 that by q brief
calculation you will end that to trans
port 80, 000, 900 in nickels Il would take
train Of cars numbering considerable
over 100, or, in other words, train about
half q mile long"
"And to follow this interesting question
to its last step, what is the weight Of
$1,000 or u, O0O, 900 in pennies2"
The weight Of $1,000 in pennies Is 6s5
pounds, and q 100000 Of course would
be $4,000 pounds. To transport slO,-
100000 in pennies would require about
$50 cars, or make train couple Of miles
long"
Just below the windows Of the mint
bureau Ia large asphalt surface looking
like q section Of Pennsylvania avenue,
which has bodied M In the area inside
Of the treasury building. It is the upper
surface Of the covering Of the huge vault
built few years ago for the deposit Of
silver dollars and other coin held by the
treasury department. This vault, with
the others belonging to the Treasures
Office, has in Il about sl75, 900 900 in sill
yer and gold coin, the total weight o.
which is calculated 70 be about 400 tons
or sufficient TO load train Of cafs abou
two and half miles in length. To carr
out this interesting calculation one steI
further IL might be added that the direc
tor Of the mint in his recent report calcu
. lates the amount Of metallic money in IN,
!, United States at the close Of the last fsca
year to have been t096, OO0, 900 in gold an,
t46S, oOo, 900 In silver. which, upon tn
basis Of weight indicated In the above con
, versation, would be 1880 tons Of gold IN,
Is, 500 tons Of silver.
: The only man who can get mon e.
for You on farm and city property is J
) B. Pugsley.