Birmingham state herald., 1895-10-24
WILL CLOSE THE M|NTS No More Silver to Be Coined
 After November 1 EXCEPT fEBSI0IARY SILVER The New Sans Mint Will Be Practically
 Closed. ONLY 70 MINTS WILL BE OPERATED. Jai The 1c! ctical Effect of the Order Is to Con- vert All tie Silver Bullion Held by
 the Government Into Gold
 Obligations.
EXCEPT ftBSIDIARY SILVER
Y 70 MINTS WILL BE OPERATED.

Wa ihineton, Oct. 23.--All silver coin age except that of subsidiary silver, has been ordered suspended after November l next by Secretary Carlisle. In carry ing out this policy the New Orleans mint will be practically closed and dismantled after that date, and its seventy employees furloughed without pay. A letter con- taining these instructions as to discon- tinuing operations at New Orleans was mailed to Superintendent Overton Cabe on Monday night.
 The practical effect of the action taken by Secretary Carlisle is to convert all the silver bullion held by the government into gold obligations. Under the parity clause of the Sherman act Secretary Windom in October, 1891, construed the law to mean that all Sherman notes is- sued against bullion were redeemable in gold. This construction of the law was concurred in by his successors-Secreta- rieS Foster and CarliSle--and has been in practical operation during the past six years. Under it $76, 193, ,522 have been re- deemed.
 The coinage of silver bullion into. stand ard silver dollars operates to prevent Sherman notes being issued upon them. Silver certificates, however, are issued against standard silver dollars and are redeemable only 1n silver Thus from the same base, the silver bullion. the Sher- man notes became gold obligations, and the silver coined into standard silver dol lars and silver certificates issued upon them became silver obligations. The sus- pension of the coinage of standard silver dollars, therefore, leaves the bullion sl- yer free from any further liability of conversion into silver obligations.
 The closing of the New Orleans hints leaves only the United States hints at Philadelphia and San Francisco in oper- ation. At these hints only gold and sub- sidiary silver will hereafter be coined, unless congress should direct to the con trary, and it's action should be approved by the president.
 Of the employees in the New Orleans mint, thirty are women and forty are men. Secretary Carlisle for some time past has been considering the advisabili- ty of stopping all silver coinage except that of subsidiary coins, and since he has been the head of the treasury de- partment only 4,3S2,324 standard silver dollars have been minted. Since July l. last, only ninety standard silver dol- lars have been coined The coinage of standard silver dollars during the past few years has been as follows:
 1895, 3,956, OH 1894, ,$75S; 1S93 5,343, 900; 1892, $S,329, GOO; 1891, $27 900 000
 The total coinage of silver under all acts amounts to s423, ,2s9, 3O9. The treas ury now holds of silver bullion purchased under the Sherman act 137, ,644, 900 fine ounces, the cost of which was STA, ,020. .323. The coinage value of this bullion in silver dollars is SIT 964 000 If this bullion were coined into silver dollars the profit of the government on it's coinage would be near ly $54,000,0 900, which sum could be paid for the ordinary expenses of the govern ment or against which silver certificates could be issued. Under the act of 1873 the treasury holds of bullion purchased $665 459 in value