Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-06-10
OLD GOLD CARGOES.
Shipment of Three Million Dollars
Worth of Bullion Was Big Cargo.


We all have way of looking back
on the days of the celebrated Spanish
galleons as the era when the trans
portatiens of treasure reached its most
magnificent proportions. The very
words treasure galleons" bring before
our minds more wildly than anything
else the picture of heaps of mintedl
gold and silver. bars and ingots of the
precious metals, piled in fabulous guam
titles for transportation between the
ensaved dominions of Spain and the
gold hungry court of the Spanish mon
archs of yesteryear.
But the fact is that the biggest ship
ments from the gold fields of South and
Central America. from the mountains
of solid silver at Potosi and Guanaiua
to, never compared for moment with
many of those which daily leave New
York city without exciting even pass
ing comment
one pound of unlimited gold is
equivalent TO the sum of 1920 One
ton 2t gold is equivalent to 100000.
Tie old Spanish galleons We're no
more than small boats, to our modern
way of thinking, At the utmost they
were 500 tons burdenE The major por-
ton of the cargoes in such vessels
would necessarily consist of supplies
for their extremely long voyages-ten
tons would be the maximum cargo of
gold. In all probability their load of
the precious metal rarely exceeded
three tons. Yet a cargo of s5,000,000 ia
gold-equivaent to nearly eight tons
what is it today? ~.
Only short time ago a trans-Atlan-
tic steamer left New York with s15-
0o0,0 in gold on board. Net long be-
fore there was a shipment of $1,000, 600.
\ few years ago the colossal sum of
S4o.000.000 in bullion was sent from here
to Europe within a space of less than
two months. Total shipments of gold
into or out of the United States have
passed the s100 000, 900 mark in one year
A total of $40, 900 for that length of
time is looked upon as nothing worthy
of exciting comment
Cargoes of gold that cross the ocean
go in one of two forms-bars Or coins
--or in combination of both. When
sent to a country that has up-to- date
facilities for mining, shippers prefer To
send in bars, snce they are the exact
equivalent in weight of the money sum
represented by the shipment. This is
not always the case with coins Which
must necessarily lost part of their
weight from the wear and tear of con-
slant usage.
Formerly all the gold received in this
country from abroad by the govern
ment was at once melted into bars and
held until needed. But recently a Law,
was passed which allowed the govern
ment to use its discretion as to what
1t should melt and what it should hold
in the form received. Owing to this
law the United States is now enabled
to keep on hand a supply of foreign
gold coins for shipment abroad
Probably the biggest single shipment
from the port of New York occurred
in May. 1904. when trans Atlantic
steamer teek to Europe the equivalent
of $4,000, 900 in gold April 81. 1910, the
kronprlnzessin Ceeile of the Nord-
deutschcr Llyod carried a gold ship
ment Of s10,000,000. Such extraordinary
skill is devoted nowadays To making
ocean greyhounds thoroughly safe in
every particular. and the percentage of
total loss by shipwreek is so small
that such enormous shipments. if made
on the best of modern vessels. are will
insly insured by the leading marine
agencies at extremely low rates.
The above mentioned shipment of
SIS, 100000 Was part of the biggest single
transfer of gold ever reeorded-the first
installment of the $4,000 900 paid by
the United States in 1904 to the French
interests controlling the Panama canal.
The United States issued warrant
to ]. r. Morgan x Co. for $40. 900 900
which the latter deposited in bank,
drawing gold against it from the sub
treasury They forthwith proceeded to
ship the gold TO France After making
the initial shipment OF SIS 900 they
continued to send the balance over the
ocean with such CELEBRITY that the ship
pent of the entire $4,000, coo was COM
pleted during tie next month
OF course, there have beea bigger
shipments of gold within the same or a
shorter space of time. but they have
not been due to any one transaction.
Some idea of The constant stream of
gold that poufs to and from this conn
Try may be gained by considering the
figures for the past two or three years
During the fiscal year ended June 80
1911 the imports of gold aggregated
sf5,6o0'00o. the exports s22. 500, 000
But the most sensational returns
We're those of the fiscal year ended June
80, 1908, which embraced the panic of
1907 During that fateful twelvemonth
we imported $14S, 600 in gold and
exported sI2.000, 000.-N.-Y Times.
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