Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1894-02-23
UNCLE SANS GOLD.
WHERE 1T IS. AND WHAT Is
DONE WITH 1T.
Tho Gold Vaults of the Treasury at
Washington-Snclss of Yellow
Coins-Reflning tho
Raw Metal.

Coins-Refning tho
Raw Metal.
II LOOKED into tho gold ynult in
the sub-basement of tho Treasury,
says representative of the
Chicago Times. 1t was n pro-
ceeding involving much formaiity,
tho presence of the cashier and per-
sonal representative of the Treasurer
OF tho United States being required.
Ono of these functionaries held tho
secret combination for opening the
onter door, while tho other had that of
the inner portal. When both huge and
massive gates of steel had been nn-
locked the interior of mn immense safe
MS big as q good-sized drnwing-room
was disclosed That is to say, though
pitch dark, it's internal arrangement
could DO seen when u gns Jet was
lighted.
Running straight through the middle
from tho entrance was sort of hall
way, ON either side of which was n row
OF iron lattice work compartments,
There were i'll all fourteen OF these Int
tice work rooms, somewhat resembling
cells along n prison corridor, and ali
but ono of thom were filed us full MS
they could hold with bugs of coin.
however, this coin was not gold, but
silver. The compartment excepted
was the first one to the left of tho
doorway. 1t alono contained tho en-
tire stock of gold now held in the
Treasury ut Washington total of
$40, 800, 600. The small show made by
1t wns surprising.
Instead of being chokcfull like the
compartment containing silver, this
one seemed almost empty. Even tho
floor was not covered with tho bngs of
yellow coin, which wero stacked in
small heaps around the walls MS if TO
make some sort of show. Yet vnlue in
this form is so highly concentrated ns
to give OCCASION for all the precautions
above described, while II few feet away
from this vault is IN enormous box of
iron lattice work exposed to the view
of tho public all day, though within
it is stored S101 900, 900 in standard
silver dollars. Fortunately. this
quantity of gold il only II fraction of
Uncle Sams stock of that metal. There
is more Of it ill the subtronsurics nj
either New York or San Francisco tbna
is kept here.
The minis also hold gront amount
of gold belonging to the Government
In room adjoining The business Office
of tho big coin factory ON Chestnut
street, Philadelphia, may be seen about
S3o, 600, GOO worth of tho yellow metal
III the shnpc of shining bricks, stacked
upon shelves, just as delivered from
the assay offices. That il wealth in II
form better realized than the spccio
done up i'll bags Mt the Treasury. 1t
does not scem to be so carefully
guarded as it is hero, but tho only
theft ever accomplished from the
Quaker City institution was that of II
silver brick which lnborer slyly
threw into bnrrel of refuse, thus con
voying 1T out of the building. But.
though he was not detected, tho
massive ingot proved itself to him n
veritnblc white elephant, and he was
caught in trying to dispose of it in
Now York.
Though the show of gold TT the
Treasury is not impressive at the first
glance ono hns moro respect for it
when the contents of the bags nro
enumerated. Stacked in heaps around
tho compartment referred to arc
nlnety-eight sacks, each containing
1000 yellow double engles. Poured
out on the floor they would make n
very decent pile of glittcring metal,
representing altogether 81, 900, 900.
Besides these there are four hundred
and sixty nino bags, each holding $500
shining engles, or 80, 345, 600 in NIL.
Then there nro 1913 sacks, each con-
tanning 1000 So pieces, or n total OF
SO, 100000. LASTLY, there nre fifteen
sacks, each filed to bursting with
1000 of those annoying 49, pieces,
which nre 80 easily mistaken for cent.
that no more of them arc to be coined
by the minis
One OF tho most interesting sights
in the world is the refining of tho raw
gold bullion Mt the United States Assay
Office on Wall street, New York. Ar.
irving there from tho mines it is first
melted, to free it from all earthly mat
ter and other foreign substances. Thei
a certain quantity of silver is added to
it and the mixture is immersed in Il
bath of nitric acid. Tho acid has nc
effect on the gold, but it lissolyes thu
silver into liquid which looks JUS
like pure water. This limpid liouid is
drawn off, leaving the gold Mt the bot
tom of the tub. Tho precious meta
thus purified looks like so much fine
red gravel. To get rid of all moistur,
it is subjected to pressure. On com
ing out of the squeezing machine il
appears in the shape of big cakes, re
sembling angel food cakes in form
These cakes are worth about S25, OO(
each, and ono could afford to IN,
$4,000 for slice of very moderat,
size.
This is the material out of which thu
gold coins are made. The gold il
melted into crucible, from which il
is dipped out with ladle and poured
into iron molds. When cooled til,
molds are unlocked and taken apart