The San Francisco call., 1899-12-11

they require for the treatment of gold
deposits. The total amount Of silver bull
lion refined In the United States last year
was I'm round numbers 81 900 900 ounces.
The superintendent of the New York
assay office, the report says has called
attention Sga oo5 to ooo n the fact that although
exported last year, no bars were taken
for export, and suggests that the export
charge of one-tenth of per cent, which
is eXacted. is operating TO our disadvan-
tage. There is no object, says Director
Roberts in forcing the public to take our
coin out of the country by making IL
more expensive to take bars We had
better furnish the raw material than the
manufactured article. These bars have
to be shipped from New York to Phia-
delphia' and worked into coin at some
waste and considerable expense TO replace
the coin exported. while the bars would
have served every purpose for export.
The export charge was put on bars sew
eral years age. when gold exports were
heavy. and some means TO discourage
them was sought. When the current coin
is abraded exporters will pay slight pre-
mium TO get bars which are full weight
but our current gold is now largely new
and on the average close to standard and
exporters are preferring TO ship II rather
than TO pay the bar charge. The follow
ing data is given:
The total gold imports OF the year amounted
TO SIS 97s $50. and exports 10 S37 17s The to-
tai silver imports were 3l.l205ls, commercial
July ]. 1S99 was ms follows:
Gold slls Ss2 772: silver (cost). SIS, ,575, ,s9s.
During the year 81. les, ,95l in worn and un-
current gold coins were received. with a loss of
$40 54s. and Ss.5Ss.076 OF worn and uncurrent
subsidiary silver was recolned. with loss Of
s4S5. 1871 The seignoraRe on the coinage OF sii-
yer dollars during the year amounted to $500,
ll5: on subsidiary silver. SS6.s3S; on nickels and
pennies s6gs 72s The coinage OF all nations,
Including recoinages. in 1898 was:
Gold 1896. 47I,9O5: silver. $l4s. 2S2. 935.
The Government has now practically no bull
lion available for the coinage Of subsidiary cur
rency. II has bullion purchased for the coinage
OF silver dollars. but this cannot be used with
out authority from Congress. The needs of the
country for fractional currency are increasing,
and legislative authority for new coinage Is
imperatively demanded.
In the report of this bureau a year ago an ef-
fort was made TO tabulate the principal stocks
OF gold held for monetary use In the world at
the close of the years 1892 and 1897. This table
corrected by returns from additional banks
and the elimination of some errors. shows the
creased by about 50 per cent from December
81 1898. The stocks instead OF continuing TO
increase. showed diminution. At first
thought the reduction is likely to cause sur
prise. for with the enormous gold production
OF the year. amounting to s2S7 600 000 the stocks
OF that metal might be expected to everywhere
augment When IL is considered. however that
the United States took above 300 600 900 OF gold
in 1898, that India's net imports were over $50
600 O00 and that the Industrial consumption Of
the world s65. 000.0 900. II will be understood
that general Increase In European stocks
could occur last year But IL still remains TO
be explained where the disappearing gold Of
Europe went to.
The total reduction shown by the foregoing
table is $3.50 O00 600. and the Russian stock
shows a reduction OF s16s 600 0o0 But NJ de
White, the Russian Minister OF Finance states
in his annual report that during the year 1898