The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-11-27
COINAGE MINTS
 WERE KEPT BUSY
George E. Roberts Makes Re- port on Various Institutions.
GOLD COINAGE DROPPED
He Recommends That New Orleans Mint Be Discontinued and Used In the Future as an
 Assay Office.

Washington November 26.-George D.. Roberts, the director of the mint in his annual report says that the coinage hints of Philadelphia. New Orleans and San Francisco were in operation through out the fiscal year. In number of pieces the coinage of the year has never been exceeded, aggregating 191, 419,506, but in value it has fallen in 1902 from $196,S4O ,7S1 to S94,5166 CTS, this being due to the greater demand for the small denominations Gold coinage dropped from s99,065, 715 to $61,- 9SO, 572, but the stock of gold bullion on hand increased from $10o,219.4ss to SPA 0Ss. TIP. The coinage of silver dollars amounted to s1s. 4o2. .SOO subsidiary silver coins to s10,713,569, and minor coins to s. 429, 736.
 The original gold deposits of the year amounted to $132.5s0,sS9 Gold bars taken for export amounted to s3s 3S2, CTS and for domestic consumption s14 4524 AIS. The gross expenditures on account of the mint service, including loss by wastage in op- erating upon the metals was s1, ,910,5O3.
 Earnings Aggregate $357, ,568.
 The earnings from all charges and in- cidental gains, exclusive of seignorage. aggregated sS57, ,56S. The seignorage real- ized in the manufacture of 1 and 5-cent pieces amounted to $1,919,370. and the total seignorage accruing on the silver nickel and bronze coins made in the year S11,- 01S,s56, which was turned into the general fund of the treasury.
 The feature of the report is a descrip- tion of the new mint of Philadelphia, which is pronounced the finest building ever constructed for coinage purposes
 The director says the increased capac- ity of the hints at Philadelphia and San Francisco and the prospective open ing of the new mint at Denver will give the country a much greater coinage ca- pacity than 1t has heretofore had, while on the other hand the pressure on the mint is about to relax instead of in- crease. The coinage of 100000 silver dol- lars per month now required by law, will come to an end soon by the exhaustion of the stock bullion. This requirement now calls for the entire capacity of the New Orleans mint.
 To Stop at New Orleans. When the dollar coinage ceases that mint will be idle, unless work is dimin-
 
 to give it employment. It is recom- mended that coinage operations be dis continued at the New Orleans institu- | tion at the close of the current fiscal year, and that it be conducted hereafter as an assay office.
 If coinage operations are discontinued at New Orleans so much of the machin- | cry there as Is In good condition and of approved design can be transferred tc the new Denver mint and the estimates for equipment there correspondly re- | duced.
 Attention is called to the fact that the gold coinage of the country Is now enter ing almost entirely into storage and that the coinage of the entire annual deposits is unnecessary The treasury holds about $500, 100000 of coined gold, which the re- port says is doubtless more than will be called for in a generation to come Practically the best of methods have been carefully observed. When gold is required for export it is wanted in bars while for domestic circulation the pub | lie prefers the treasury certificate which with some modification of the statutes might as we'll be issued against bars.