Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-08-19
Dollars That Are Stored in the
Treasury Vaults.
A COUNT OF IT Is NOW GOING on
Some Large and Very interesting
Figures Set Forth.
LOSS AND GAIN IN COINAGE.


steady purchase Of silver Is said to have
upon it. the question as to Just how much
silver the United States owns naturally
becomes q very interesting one.
When one begins to consider this mat
ter he at once plunges into the realms of
large figures. Small matters must be for
gotten In the attempt to conceive of mil
lions. The United States is the possessor
Of about 5000 tons OF silver. stored In the
vaults under the control Of the treasurer.
Mr.. Morgan. It IL generally known that
the government has been purchasing sill
yer at the rate of 100000 ounces a month.
and when one stops to think what an i'm
mense mass OF white metal this has COM
PEELED the government to take and care for
he is likely to be more than a little sur
prtsed. This monthly purchase Is said to
be pretty much the entire output of the sill
yer mines of the country.
Trip Through the Vaults.
A Star reporter made a trip through the
day afternoon. 1t Il q tour Of inspection
that many people make every day. and is
one that strangers in the city always look
forward to with especial pleasure. They
have been told Of the novel experiences of
holding In one hand a million dollars worth
OF greenbacks and being ushered into q
room where there are silver dollars. SO
tempt to count them as 1t would be to
carry them away. 1t Is q visit that Is OF
more than usual interest now that the two
Of their time In extra session discussing
the merits and necessities OF silver
Only coin is kept in the treasury vaults
BARS ana bullion are stored in the SUBJ
treasures and the mints. There are eight
vaults In the treasury used for the safe
value Of the contents Of these vaults is
$6SS.lT6. co. Only two Of these vaults are
used Tor the storage Of standard silver dol
the smaller vault. known as vault No. O.
has m It only about $50, 900. 900 In addition
to this there is $4,000 worth Of fractional
silver. The other vaults are used for
h holding S bank notes. bonds. money for daily
Counting the silver.
The money in the two silver vaults is be-
ing shifted about just now owing to the
count that is going on. Men have been at
work ever since the LIST of July counting the
silver and the work now will probably be
finished about the latter part of this week.
1t Is an interesting sight to watch these
busy men at their task Of handling large
bags OF silver. The coin is contained in
These bags are passed across, through a
passageway between the piles Of silver ana
there man sits. who weighs each bag
separately. On one Of the scales is placed
bag that Is known to weigh the proper
amount and to contain the right number
Of the shining dollars. II the bag that is to
be weighed does not pull its side down at
once the bag is at once taken or and its
contents counted. Occasionally there Is a
bag that shows signs of too much handling
or too long life, and this Is turned over and
Its contents poured into a new bag. 1t Is
hot and tiresome work. way down there be-
low the region Of light and fresh air. and
electric lights and fans are kept running
constantly. 1t also takes quite a considera-
bic number Of men u do the work. among
them a number Of big brawny colored men,
for the bags are not light and II takes a
strong man to handle them as rapidly as
must be done.
The Treasurer Responsible.
The treasurer of the United States is
personally responsible for all this wealth.
which must. of course, be counted every
time there is a change in the Office, for the
new man must receipt to his predecessor
for every cent that has been turned over
to him. Treasurer Morgan. the new incum-
bent. may never have seen any OF this inn
mense sum that has been turned over to
him, and he has to take the word Of others
as to the accuracy OF the count In this
he Is quite safe, however. for the work is
done by men who know how to do it, and
there Is as much chance OF the money walk
ing away of its own accord as there is of
anyone's being able to take care of It for
his own use. Uncle Sans treasure is well
guarded. and the place where II is stored
comes pretty near to being a place where
neither moth nor rust can corrupt, and
where thieves cannot break through and
steal.
In the largest vault, a huge ROOM eighty
nine by ffty--seven feet. and twelve feet
high. money is stored up all around. with
only narrow passageways between the piles
Each pile Of dollars is in itself in a separate
work of heavy iron bars The walls of each
pile are built up with boxes Of silver dol
lars, and inside these walls the money is
piled in canvas bags for these take up less
room than the boxes, a very important
reason, as there Is always the question how
to supply enough room for all the money.
wit oil ~.
are Of themselves Interesting
Some Interesting Figures.
The total coinage Of silver dollars under
the Bland act Of 1878 was $3.50 ess. s74.
The total coinage under the act of July
a. 1880. known as the Sherman act, has
amounted to SO. 455.sos
There are 5S.917.0OO silver dollars in cir
culation.
More than half of all the silver owned by
the United States is stored in this city. at
the mints and assay offices there is sl2l on
o geo, wSrth OF bar silver Altogether there IS
is 81. $4,000 in fractional currency Up to
the time Of the stringency in the money
market about fifty millions was redeemed
In gold, and only about a half million in
silver. but since currency has become
scarce there has been large demand for
silver to pay off hands in factories and 9TH
er places where there are large pay rolls
The silver that is stored in the treas
ury was moved here from the subtreasurIes
WHICH were OVerCrOwQeO. Silver is moved
about through the medium OF the express
companies. 1t is handed over to them in
double bags. and as 1t is carried at the risk
or the companies they care for it as they
see fit when 1t is en- route Fractional sill
yer In small amounts Is usually sent in
small kegs. No money is being coined now
except from uncurrent silver, which Is be-
Ing recoined into the present styles Of
coinage.
Been buying Silver since 1878.
The United States has been buying silver
ever since 1873, when the Bland law went
into effect. Until the Sherman law went
into operation, the treasury purchased ST.
100000 worth of bullion every month for
coinage. There was purchased under the
first law 30S 1893. 261.1 ounces Of silver for
which II paid 1923 635, 576.l9-an average cost
OF N.6 per ounce On this silver the gov
eminent made a profit of a great many
millions Of dollars by calling every 3i5
grains Of fine silver a dollar, no matter
what the market value of silver might be
when paid for in gold. On the silver p,ir-
chased under the Sherman law the govern
ment has lost already about $40 600 900 by
the depreciation of value OF its stock Of
bullion on hand. Up to the 1st of Tuiv
about 157,000.0O0 ounces had been purchased
Four million and five hundred thousand
dollars In silver amount to about 40 tons
and II the country still goes on buying at
that rate. the problem Of what to do with
the metal promises to become an even
more serious one than 1t Is now. 1t is said
that even II the Sherman law Is repealed
ana the government undertakes to sell it
the silver market will go even lower than
"a t,nr ~ C@Y1