Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-06-06

1oOf, bnen rSNISSu
ued large till 1878, when the yield was
s51, 900, 600, after which it fell rapidly to
$50, 900, 900 or thereabouts and has SO con-
tinued. Nevertheless it will be seen, as
Mr.. Preston says, that the total product of
gold from our mines since 1860 has been
much more than twice that in $4,000.
Increase In Production.
The second fact of interest is that the
worlds product of gold has been slowly
increasing for over 90 years until by a lib
eral estimate it amounted to $13S, S61, 900
in 1898, and Mr.. Preston thinks it may
reach $3.50, 900, 600 within year or two.
In many countries the officials are so slow
p that estimates only can be made for recent
years, and it is three years after the close
of their so called fiscal year before the de-
tails can be verified. In exactness and
promptness Observation-Disclosures and
its related islands-leads all other nations
and now produces almost exactly one
fourth of the gold of the world. The Unit
ed States comes next and has sometimes
equaled Australasia. Russia has stood
third for some time, having produced in
1899, according to Minister White, $24,-
SOC, 200 in gold These three have pro-
duced for many years considerably moro
than two-thirds of the worlds gold, but
all the experts look to Africa to exceed
all other countries in 1895. And now the
important question arises, How much of
this gold goes into money and how much
into the arts and ornaments? And here
must say that the old tables look to me q
little mixed, perhaps because 1 am not
quick in figures. The latest arc for the
year 1899 and state that the government
offices furnished bars to manufacturers to
the value of $4,000, 1876, that private 70
&c 400 \.
makes tho total. Another table, however,
gives various figures on the amount of old
gold coins melted down for manufacture
and says that in the year 1892 the total of
United States gold used i'll the arts and Or
namentS was SD, 329, 900. So, if this be
correct, 81 per cent of all our gold yield
goes into the arts and ornaments, and
there arc reasons for thinking that the per-
centage is increasing.
Losses In Gold.
The amount of gold in the country is
estimated ON this plan: All that in the
bank vaults and in tho treasury in 1879
was added to tho SEQ, OO0,0o supposed to
be circulating on the Pacific coast, and this
mado the initial sum. To it has been add
ed the imports and coinage for each year,
and from it has been subtracted the exports
and the amount of old coin supposed to be
withdrawn for the arts and known to be
brought in for reCoinage. 1t is manifest
that in % years this table would become
very defective, for it takes no note of the
amount lost by fire, shipwreck, abrasion
or otherwise. Who knows how much gold
went in tho great fires ut Chicago, Boston,
Portland, etc, or in the numerous vessels
which have sunk, or how much has been
lost by individuals or hidden? l think it
extremely doubtful if there arc $500, 000,-
900 in gold in the United States today.
Nor does tho tabulated coinage of tho world
give us any true guide, for no distinction
is made between the old gold recoincd and
the product of the current year. Mr.. Pres
ton estimates the worlds coinage of gold
for 1889 at $3.50, 900, 900, for 1890 at $149,-
600, 900 and for 1891 at $119, 900, 900, but
adds that these figures are of little value,
because every country not only recoins its
old coius, but even tho new coins of other
countries imported into it. After figuring
on six or seven tables my own guess is
that something like one-half Of the years
product is added to the worlds coinage
and that would to this year almost exactly
AZ cents per capita, or about cents for
each person in the civilized and CONNER
cial world.
The Conclusion.
The great question remains, allowing
for loss. abrasion, the arts and ornaments,
how much of the worlds annual gold yield
Is added to its money supply? Tho answer
is easy-nobody knows. Neither is it pos
siale for anybody to determine it with any
approach to exattncSs. Some of the gold
bugs figure it ,,s high as $50, 600, 600 per |
year and some OF tho silver bugs figure it |
down to nothing or u minus quantity. 1
do not presume that my opinion is of con-
sequence but such as it is l give it. Two
points are to my mind clearly proved:
First, that the annual addition to the
worlds gold money bears no satisfactory
relation to the increase of business, and,
second, that unless there is n very great
increase in the worlds gold yield, and that
right speedily, the gold basis cannot be
maintained three years longer in this
country. 1t is simple mathematical inn
possibility. j. b. PARKE.