The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1899-09-27
THE MINT EARNINGS
UNCLE SAM MAKES A TIDY PROFIT BY
COMING MONEY.
The Gross Earnings Of the Mints and
Assay Offices Of the Country Last
Year Were s4,495,ooo of Which
S173, GA Was for Refining Bullion.


Year Were 1896, 900 of Which
S173,614 Was for Refining Bullion.
1t is supposed generally that the
United States Mint and the Government
assay Offices and refneries are main
tained for the public convenience and
that the Mint, like other branches or
departments of the extensive TreasuI
service, is run pro bono pu5Eco, the
Government making up by appropria-
tions the shortage of each year. The
recent public report Of the Director OF
the Mint shows that Uncle Sam has
thrifty interest in the operations of the
Mint and its branches and makes
tidy profit from their operation each
year. Last year the gross earnings OF
the mints and assay Offices Of the coun-
try-there are minis in Philadelphia,
San Francisco, Carson City and New
Orleans, assay Offices at Denver, Boise,
Helena, Charlotte, St. Louis, DeadWood
and New York-were S4,495, 900, Of
which S173,614 was for parting and re-
6ning bullion, ,046 for copper alloy,
and S15,321 for melting, assaying and
stamping charges. The seigniorage on
the coinage Of silver was S3,0l3,9oS, on
subsidiary silver coinage S2S6,311, on
minor coinage S1,031,000 and on the re-
coinage Of minor coins SlS,3S3. The
value of the deposit in melting room
grains and sweeps" removed was SS,-
726; the value of the surplus bullion
returned was s53,O24, and the gain on
bullion shipped by the minor assay Of
4~ >
s6,675.
The expenditures of the Mint service,
including wastage, loss on sale OF
sweeps, and expense Of distributing
minor coins, was S1,263,133. The net
earnings for the year were S3,432, ,664.
Some Of the items of-eXpense (the chief
of which is, Of course, salaries and
wages) illustrate the curiously compll-
Gated work Of minting, which requires
not only knowledge Of chemistry and
netallurgy, but considerable exactness
n the use Of materials and in the adap-
.ation Of dies and designs. For acids
used in the mints and assay Offices
S27,40O was expended by the Govern
ment last year; for chemicals, s., ZOO;
for wood, S6,675; for copper, S9,6GO; for
6rebrick, $1,000, and for zinc, S2,766.
For gloves and gauntlets required by
the mint workers $500 was needed;
for gas, an aid to metallurgy, S14, ZOO;
for charcoal, s3,740; for oil, 81, 100; for
hardware, S1,400, and for crucibles and
mechanical appliances, S5,4O0.
Varied as these items are, they do
not exhaust the number Of things re-
CURED in the Mint, for $4,000 was ex-
pended in lumber, 400 in ice, $500 for
salt used in the refneries, and a small
charge for flags needed as designs.
Apart from gas, the fuel needed for
mint and assay Offices was Of three
kind-charcoal at an expense Of 3d.
700, coke at an expense Of $500, and
coal at an expense Of $4,000. One
Item, which to the uninitiated seems
large, is the item of sewing, S3,425. This
sewing is required for the bags con-
tanning the metal or coins, in addition
20 $3.50 for bari els and $3.50 for bullion
boxes.
Uncle Sam in his liberality made no
appropriation for soap, it would appear,
but the expense Of laundering the tow
els presumably "it was given Out")
was $4,000, and $4,000 additional was
paid for water. The item Of wastage,
so-called, arising from work at the
Mint, and which is not a large one
when compared with the enormous op-
srations Of the Mint, was $4,000, and
some other minor items brought up the
Governments whole expense in the
year to $780, 900, or about 25 per cent.
Of the total receipts, the profit being
represented by the other IS per cent.