Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1915-11-11
FLOOD Or FOREIGN
COLD P0URS into
The ASSAY OFFICE
Millions of Dollars of British,
French and Japanese Coins
to Be Minted into Amer.
lean Eagles.
Longacre's New York letter.


war bills OF the allies has created a task
in the United States assay office such as
that institution has never faced before
The piles Of boxes containing the coin of
Europe and the heaps of yellow bars in
the vaults rise higher with each new
shipment and threatens to overflow the
capacity Of the big new building which
forms the official government clearing
house for the precious metal. The aver
age amount of gold which goes through
the assay Office in ordinary times is $780,,
100000 year. From July to October
receipts amounted to 44,351 900, and dur
ing a period of 10 days recently s37, 90, 600
in foreign coin and si9i50O in bullion was
deposited. making a total of $50, 13S, 100 re-
ceived and melted within little over four
months, or only about sis, 900 less than
ordinarily would be received in year
The gold comes chiefly in bullion Eng
fish sovereigns, French Napoleons and
Japanese yen. OF the gold received from
July 1 to October g. sl7.121.30o was in
bullion, s11.623, Ooo in sovereigns. 81 63S. 500
in yen and s21S9,7OO In Napoleons The
work that is required to turn this into
bars for coinage into United States cur
rency can be judged by the fact that it
will take a week to handle a CONSIGNMENT
received within the past few days amount
ing to s24.333.ONO. In the meantime the
other deposits, of which there are from
$500 900 to 100000 day outside of the
big foreign shipments, must be taken care
of. This is because a depositor gets
check for only 80 per cent. of the indi-
Gated value of his gold when received, and
must wait until the gold is smelted as
sayed and valued down to the last ten
thousandth of cent before he can get
a check for the balance due. Despite the
great handicap under which the assay Of
flee has been laboring, it has managed to
get this final check out usually within
four days after the receipt of the gold.
The army Of tramps which makes it's
annual pilgrimage to New York to spend
the winter months is to be met with a
warm reception this year. according to
plans outlined by the police of the city
in cooperation with the charities depart
ment. 1t is estimated that the incoming
host, the advance guard of which has al
ready made its appearance, will number
at least 100000 men. The police have re-
ceived instructions to keep all beggars off
the streets, and when they apply at the
municipal lodging house for assistance,
they will be distributed where they be-
long. Some will be sent to institutions or
get a chance to work. and those who are
non-residents will be shipped back to other
States. 1t is this class, the unemployable,
which constitutes the real problem this
winter in New York as there is prospect
of plenty of employment for those who
are willing to work. A careful study of
over 1900 men who applied during the first
quarter Of 1915 at the lodging house for as
sistance revealed the fact that only six
were working, l02 had been idle more than
a year and 1i7 had been in the city for
less than six months The great majority
of homeless men who apply at the mu-
nicipal lodging house are unemployable,
while a large percentage of the remainder
are too inefficient to hold a job. AS a
result Of its investigation. the city Off
cials have divided the unemployabe in
to six distinct groups, the physically
handicapped. the mentally handicapped.
the inebriates, the habitually idle, the I'M
trained and the aged.
Millions of dollars in negotiable securi-
ties and certified checks are carried daily
through the streets Of the city by small
army Of boys employed by stock brokers
and messenger Offices in the financial dis
trict of New York. They are scarcely
noticed in the crush Of pedestrians, but
they carry paper worth in the aggregate
$50, 900 a day, Since the rush of spec
ulation hit Wall Street, the commission
houses have been hiring new boys every
ha,
in the money district, and they employ
an average of five boys each, who carry
stocks to the banks to cover loans and to
transfer offices. and checks to be certi-
fled at banks. They are picked without
much discrimination by the brokerage
houses and messenger offices. but so far
there has not been a single theft of any
of the valuable papers they carry. This
is not considered roma rkable because of
the system by which a check is kept up
on all securities sent to the banks. II
one of the boys should get into the hands
of crook who appropriated the securities
and checks tho thief would find it extreme.
ly difficult to dispose Of them. A few
hours after they We're missed. which would
be shortly after the time they should
reach their destination, every cashier in
the country would have before him the
numbers of the stocks and checks, on
which transfer and payment had been
stopped. In addition Wall Street is guard
ed by small army of policemen and spe-
ella! officers employed by the bankers,
One Of the smallest boats that has ever
attempted trip around the world left
New York during the past week. The |
Safety First, as 1t is named, in appear
ance resembles an ordinary motor boat |
but it is a non-sinkable lfeboat, capable
Of cruising distance of $500 miles on |
one load OF fuel. In all emergency it can |
carry 100 passengers. although on the pres |
ent trip in addition to the captain. who is /
by his wife, the crew will |
consist of but two men. The boat was
originally known as the s. o. s.. but it's .
name was changed at the direction of
government officials because the ifeboat
carries wireless outfit. and the sigma
ture of s. o. S. to messages might be
TAKEN for the sea call for help. Accord
Ing to the itinerary decided upon before
leaving New York, the boat will proceed
through the Great Lakes. by way of the
Hudson river and the Erie canal. 1t will
hen enter the Mississippi. via the Chicago
drainage channel. going down to New Or
cans II Is then planned to go from there
to San Francisco by way of the Panama
canal. thence to the Hawaiian and South
Sea islands. returning to Hawaii. 1t will
leave the last named islands for Japan,
Australia, Madagascar. and by way Of the