OCR Text |
Show COINAGE AT PHILADELPHIA. The silver bullion which is now being received at tho Philadelphia mint for parting, ia mainly Irom the Consolidated Virginia mine, in Nevada, Neva-da, and contains forty per cent, of gold, fifty per cent, of Btlver, and ten per cent, of base metal. The bullion is known as the dore, or silver containing con-taining gold. The mint ia supplied with bullion as rapidly as is requirod for coinage purposes. In addition, the assay office in New York supplies the mint with fine silver sufficient to insure a coinage of 1,000,000 per month in subsidiary silver coin. The standard fineness of the coin is made of 900 parte of pure silver and 100 parts ot pure copper alloy. The law of 1873 has somewhat increased the weight of the subsidiary coin, so that tho coins at present issued are a trifle heavier than tho coin issued prior to tho 1st of April, 1873, and are made to correspond in weight with the French coin. At present the subsidiary coins now issued are tho half dollar, quarter dollar, twenty-cent twenty-cent piece, and dime. The dollar weighs 102.9 grains. This piece formerly for-merly weighed l'J2 grains. The quarter dollar now Weighs 9G.-15 grains; it formerly weighed 90 grains. The new twenty cent piece weighs 77.16 grains, and the dimo weighs 38.58 grains; the latter formerly weighed 38.04 grains. These are the only silver coins authorized excepting the trade dollar, which is a commercial commer-cial piece, and weighs 4i0 grains. Since the first of January there has been issued from the mint in Philadelphia Phila-delphia between $-1,000,000 and $5,-OUU,000 $5,-OUU,000 in subsidary silver coin. Tim coin has been transferred to the assistant as-sistant treasury at Boston, where it will remain until auch time as the secretary of the treasury sees fit to commence the work of redemption. It is stated by tho chief coiner, Colonel Col-onel Snowdcn, that if the mint was worked to its tulleit capacity it would turn out $50,000 in small coin per diem. During last month tho mints at San Francisco and Carson coined over l,0u0, 000 pieces ol the twenty-cent twenty-cent coin. |