The Indianapolis journal., 1896-12-05

BOG, $40, with seigniorage of S13,30i, 034 leav-
ing on hand at the mints balance of 49,
O61 ,262 fine ounces. costing $112, s65.625. The
balance on hand July /, 1896, available for
subsidiary silver coinage was 1.161,70s fine
ounces, costing Sl,5li520.
The total amount of minor coins issued
by the mint at Philadelphia since 1871 to
June 80, 1896, was $27,S1S,107. OF this amount
s., $50, ,461 has been remelted leaving $25, ,435,-
GAG as the total amount outstanding on June
80. 1896. Deducting the balance on hand at
the mints July l. 1878. the net seigniorage,
or profit on the coinage of silver, from that
date to June so, 1885, was SIS 145,603.
Gold and silver bars were manufactured
at the mnts and assay offices during the
fiscal year as follows: Gold, s53 PAS. .523; sill
yer, $,310,45i.
The average London price of silver bullion
during the fiscal year was equivalent to
so.eSGO5; the New York price was $O.675Ss,
and the average price at the par of ex-
change was SO675SS. The highest quotation
during the year was equivalent to So 7O2o4;
the lowest quotation, sO66oS1. The CONNER
cial ratio of gold to silver was to SO5S and
the bullion value of a United States silver
dollar, at the yearly average price, was
50. 52262 The number of grains of pure sill
yer. at the average price. purchasable
with a United States silver dollar was 1905,
equivalent to 1.479 fine ounces.
The net gold exports for the fiscal year
were S7S90l,612, as against $50 111376 for the
previous year. The net silver exports were
$780, 262, ,25S as against $27.6S1, 7S9 for the pre-
ViouS year.
The employment of precious metals in
the industrial arts in the United States
during the calendar ,y year az, 1872 was: Gold
$13 i29, ,0S5; silver, Sl2,21l,O24. The new ma
terial consumed in the manufacture OF
these bars was: Gold, sS.4sl, 7S9; silver, So
S25, ,3S7. The metallic stock of the United
States on July /, 1896, was:
Gold $o99 5yI S6i
TOtal ........................ zzo5zo,o5o
The estimated production of the precious
metals i'm the United States during the cal
endar year 1925 was:
Fine Commercial Coming
Metals. ounces. value. value.
Silver ....... 90, 900 So, $4,000 7205i 200
The estimated production of gold and
silver in the world for the calendar year
1895 as follows:
Fine Commercial Coming
Gold d'a.s sss4 60 $500. .4os 600 $500 aos. 600
Silver .... .16S, ,SOS,S53 1lOO1S,7OO 2l751O.S 500
The total coinage of gold and silver by
the various countries of the world was as
follows:
Gold .s231 0S7. .43S
Silver l2l.6lO,2l9
Total s352, ,697. .s57
The total metallic stock and uncovered
paper in the world was estimated on Jan.
i, 1896, to be as follows:
Colu $ilto tVuVVV
Full legal-tender silver ........ 3,616, 200, 600
Limited-tender silver ............ 20,2oO, 600
Total metalllc .................. SS3S0, ,bUD.OO0
Uncovered paper ................ 2,55S, ,000, ,00J
Grdnu tOtal .olUSoo, ,oVO,uOO
The director in his report states that
there is doubt that the silver coins of
the United States are now being counter
| feited, exactly similar to the genuine in
size, weight and devices. Some of these
coins cannot be distinguished from the gen.
uine even by experts. A very dangerous
counterfeit silver half-dollar has made it's
| appearance in the East and West, the
| weight of which is 192 grains, with fine
ness of S67ia, while the weight of the gen.
| uine is 1879 of the fineness of 900. The
| profit to the counterfeiter is now about 100
! per cent. So far the best known protection
| against the counterfeiting of coins has
/ been found to be the lettering placed on
| the edges, similar to that on the first COIN
/ ages of the United States, or of the 5-franc
| pieces of France. The director recon-
| mends that authority be given the secre-
| tary of the treasury to have experiments
| made 10 determine the best means OF pre-
| venting the counterfeiting, or, at least,
| minimizing the danger.