The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-05-17
MILLIONS OF GOLD GONE
An Immense Sum Which the Treas
ury Authorities Through Their
Special Agents Are Trying to Lo-


cate.
Holland" in Philadelphia Press.
Some months ago Mr.. Muhleman un-
dertook to furnish some information
for this correspondence which would
give fairly good idea of the amount
of gold held in the United states. Mr..
Muhleman is so nigh an authority
upon this subject that he has recently
been entrusted by the Treasury de-
partment with the opportunity and
responsibility of solving the mystery
of the disappearance as alleged OF
$4O0 100000 in gold.
Mr. Muhlemann last summer. when
striving to obtain the information
just alluded to, exhausted every
available record. He took from mys-
terious pigeon-holes documents that
had been carefully filed away and that
seemed when unfolded to give a com
plete revelation of the condition of all
| civilized nations of the world with
| respect to their gold supply This
| data enabled him to assert that we
had passed France and were far ahead
| of Germany, Russia or Great Britain
| in our supply of gold. which he esti-
|
| mark.
He could put his finger upon the
statistics, which showed where about
| $500, 900, 900 of this gold then was. He
could actually have put his hand with
| in five minutes on nearly $20O,0OO,OOO OF
it held by the banks, the sub-treasury
and the clearing house. But he con-
fessed that somewhere, either in jew
| In ctA Iii n
savings banks such as children use,
or in other mysterious places, there
was about $iOO,0OO,O0O that was to be
accounted for. 1t is this $400, 100000
that the treasury department has Off
| cially set Mr.. Muhlemann at work to
| discover.
He may possibly, through his APP
peals to jewelers. and the manufacture
ers of dentists supplies and of gold
leaf, discover where $2O0,0O0,000 of it
has gone. In fact, Mr.. Muhlmann
says that the American people are
carrying permanently in their teeth a
good many millions more in gold than
is commonly presumed to be the case,
and the enlarged use of crown filings
or complete gold teeth that has been
developed in the last ten years has
| TAKEN ITOlll OuE 5Olu supply NNiS
large quantity of the metal. 1t is the
remaining 5000, ,000,0 900, the amount be-
ing approximately estimated, that will
be, in Mr. Muhlemann's view, the most
difficult to discover. He cannot write
to all the misers of the United States,
or, if he could, they would refuse TO
answer questions that would expose
their secret boards.
Id f,, fc
city a man who was prominently asso-
ciated with one of the greater rail-
way systems, and who had high repu-
tation as financier. After his death,
it was discovered that in his private
vault in one of the banks he had, so
to speak, secreted nearly 100000 in
gold and a depositor in another bank
left for safe keeping in the vaults OF
that bank little over $50O,000 in gold
that was undisturbed so long that the
canvas bags in which it was kept
We're rotted.
There are more people who make II
point when they receive a gold piece
to withdraw it from circulation by
hiding 1t in some secret place than
any census statistics could reveal. and
the amount of gold thus boarded is
. | pfODaDly very large, redCnlnS well UT
into the millions. That will never be
discovered until our people have be-
come so accustomed to the use OF
gold and so certain that paper curren.
cy can be instantly converted into
gold that no longer will there be any
temptation to hoard it.
But there is another reason for the
disappearance OF some of this gold
and that is the custom of Italians
, and the Chinese after they have beer
in this country a little while to con
V ert as much as possible of their saw
ings into gold, which they do through
the money changers, and then take 4
out of the country. Nobody can tel
how much gold has gone secretly II
that way, but it is believed to be GER
, tain that enough has been takei
away in pouches and in money belts
, secreted upon the person, to accoun
for a considerable part of this miss
; ing $4OO,00O,OOO.
: Mr.. Muhlemann will have anothe
, problem to solve, since he will b.
compelled to decide whether the treas
, TRY estimates upon which he frs
/, based his billion dollar report wer
, entirely accurate.
r When dizzy or drowsy, take Beech