Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1916-12-20
GorQed With Gold


| Midas had his share Of the troubles of the
rich--but consider Uncle Sam, his family and their
servitors. Gold comes fast from abroad that
in the United States assay office in New York
there is no more room for storing it. not enough
men or smeters there to smelt it (although en-
ployes have been increased), and the building OF
the subtreasury has had to be Communicated for
storage space, while the mints at Philadelphia,
overworked assay Office to catch up with its job
which still it cannot do, for in the FIRST place
Immigrant gold" all gold arriving from foreign
| lands, must be weighed.
1t has been possible to weigh only from two
and one-half to three million dollars worth a
here last week the overwhelmed assay office, even
with the help OF the Philadelphia mint could pass
upon and try, by scales and chemicals. only SIS,-
100000 worth. Not till the metal has been
weighed and perhaps melted can the assay Office
tell the value to the smallest of fractions, and
not till then can the governor pay to importers
or consignees its checks representing 90 per cent
Of the demonstrated value for bars and 80 per
cent for the demonstrated value for coins. Mean
time the appropriation set aside for assayng by
running at deficit. Secretary McAdoo has had
to ask congress for $l07 500 to make good the
operating losses at the assay Office and in Denver,
Philadelphia and San Francisco mints.
If you are truckman with load of gold you
can easily find this treasure house. Driving into
the midst OF many sumptuous money changers
temples you merely search out the dingiest, most
temporary and casual looking entrance in the
neghborhood, back up and trundle your iron
uoI"u ooHe1 w Nm III ~ val ar. Inv
ceasclessly skurries through the canyons. The
door mat has no welcome" on it. The shift Of
WI. re- IN YOU precious app ca,so
o oly plihs up ol nioIe anu NOR laool. ENeep'
mat mere arc armed GUARDS slanoing at inc en-
llnee anu az oau eoihers oi INC sIeat toois, you
wnl see ltlIe ina. ~ oiIereht ron .he inferior
VI any o.ueIy de'oy. @uie' anu eys'e,,' wy ~
eIe-oupern.ehaeII DOVE attSnus 70 .hat. y nc
steat inportani macnines are the giant scales'
wnch nave delcacy OF balance Gown 10 the last
hotsn, ana lne cauIo,on, OF meNlhs pot
ror an so'o Is melted ana mueh o. II rehnea
ano tesIea as soon as may DC sI!er denvery; ~
,ho utsn' p,ouu soseieshe Vi i-hsiar.u a'i '' "
mss ppnhis. So,n. i;r,s Lr,ps r,.-ts on Which
n;f..d d.s;aun.. ho,,a 49, ;r,arnr 80 s,,n,ho
smN.i ~ th.s. tha, epne ike ,ay are c,st INTO
H. ,asi.;,a 49, H. ard;,arn nugoats It,ito
a..;,,as ss,pIo IL n,,;.n naIj ,Ls.iss &, .nns
arriving PEOPLE arriving golG, Tnesnet IN CONS
Tbew must 90 into IN. enn,rnnn netting not and
.h.n .hra"as ~ tost;n snn.,a.na rnSrin, nrn-
except except the gold coins of France and Britain,
which have the same quality as our own.
United States gold CONS, I3.o grams to the
dollar, o00-l000 fine no limit on the issue, cor
respond in amount of pure gold and amount Of
| alloy to the gold coins of France and Britain, so
sovereigns and napoleons are not subjected to
the disntergrating processes of other coinage.
The iron-bound boxes in which they arrive are
opened, The bags of sovcreigns and napoleons
are lifted out and weighed and dumped at once
together into the melting pot. For other coins
analyses tests ana eiectroiysis operations because
tneV contain dinerent alloy. me aitef, IKE bul-
hon. are put through courses which dissolve them
| INTO their component parts. FIRST the SILVER is
drawn from the goid, ana run INTO speeiai mods
Next from the residue is separated tne eoid plat
mum, iridium, etc. Inc goid procured IN TINS way
u aosoiutey pure and is moideo INTO pars. lhese
are testcu ana stamped then put away until
needed ether Tor coinage or Tor use IN nianufac-
lures
Uncle Sans family has a wealth of $320000,-
100000 this wcek-three times the comptroller of
the currency says, the wealth of Germany in 1911
twice the wealth of the British empire before it
gathered in German colonies by force Of arms.
In the year Of the outbreak Of the war gold
production was speeded up. 1t has been for all
| countries:
| 1911 S46l $4,000 1915. .S45o GAL 100