UNITED STATES, FINANCES OF THE. 



UNITED STATES NAVY. 787 



including re-deposits, was 3,882,120 497 stand- 

 ard ounces, of the value of $72,225,497.56 in 

 the preceding year, an excess of $4,003,424.69 

 over the tiscjil year 1887. In addition there 

 were re-deposits of the value of $8,668,959.11. 

 Of the re-deposits of gold. $4,896,815.84 repre- 

 sents the value of imported bars, and $4,273,- 

 643.27 of tine bars bearing the stamp of the 

 assay-office at New York, sent in for coinage. 

 The total deposits of gold during the fiscal year 

 1888, including re-deposits as above cited, were 

 4,348,077-049 standard ounces, of the value of 

 $80,894,456.67. The deposits and purchases of 

 silver, not including re-deposits, were 35,518,- 

 839'97 standard ounces, of the coining value of 

 $41,331,014.66, against $47,756,918.75 in the 

 preceding year. In addition there were re- 

 deposits of silver of the coining value of $491,- 

 831.79, of which $275,189.75 consisted of 

 imported bars, principally of the minor assay- 

 offices, and $216,642.04 of fine bars. The total 

 deposits and purchases of silver were 35.941,- 

 507*92 standard ounces, of the value (calculated 

 at coining rate in standard silver dollars) of 

 $41.822,846.45. The value of both the gold 

 and silver deposited and purchased at the mints 

 and assay-offices during the fiscal year, not 

 including re-deposits, was $113.556.512.22, and 

 including re-deposits, $122,717,303.12. Of the 

 gold received at the mints and assay-offices 

 during the year, $32,406,306.59 was classified 

 as of domestic production, against $32,973,- 

 0-27.41 in the preceding year. A reduction of 

 a little over $500,000 in the production of the 

 United States is thus indicated. The foreign 

 gold bullion deposited aggregated $21,741,- 

 042.44, and the foreign gold coin $14,596,- 

 8*5.03 ; a total of $36,337,927.47, against 

 $32.467.840.98 in the year preceding. The 

 value of the United States light-weight gold 

 coin deposited for re-coinage, was $492,512.60. 

 Old material was deposited in the form of 

 jewelry, bars, plate, etc., containing gold of 

 the value of $2,988,750.90. 



Of the silver bullion deposited and purchased, 

 32.135.165-79 standard ounces, valued at $37,- 

 393.tUS.34, was classified as of domestic pro- 

 duction ; and 29,671.470-54 standard ounces of 

 the coining value of $34,526,803.02, consisted 

 of fine bars bearing the stamp of well known 

 private refineries in the United States, but the 

 classification at the mints of silver bullion is 

 inexact, for the reason that fine silver bars 

 purchased from private refineries are all neces- 

 sarily classified as of domestic production, while 

 as a matter of fact they are to a large extent 

 composed, as for several years they have been, 

 of silver obtained from ore and bullion im- 

 ported from Mexico. The silver bullion classi- 

 fied as foreign bullion received at the mints 

 during the year was $1.668.384.25. Foreign 

 silver coins of the value of $87,336 were melted 

 during the year. United States silver coins, 

 consisting almost entirely of worn and uncur- 

 rent subsidiary coins and old silver dollars, 

 were melted, of the value, at coining rate in 



standard silver dollars, of $494,155.64. In ad- 

 dition, trade-dollars were received and melted 

 of the coining value in silver dollars of $1,060,- 

 174.11 (911,087-18 standard ounces). Old ma- 

 terial, consisting of plate, jewelry, etc., was 

 deposited, containing silver of the value of 

 $627,316.32. 



The coinage during the fiscal year 1888 con- 

 sisted of 109,030,547 pieces, of the value of 

 $63,719,242.32. The gold consisted of 2,350,- 

 534 pieces, of the value of $28,364,170.50, of 

 which $16,301,740 was in double-eagles; $8,- 

 998,260 in eagles; $2,995,510 in half-eagles; 

 $34,098 in three-dollar pieces; $15,682.5" in 

 quarter-eagles; and 18,880 gold dollars. The 

 silver coinage consisted of $32.717.673 : $2,- 

 836.50 in half-dollars; $194.668.25 in quarter- 

 dollars; and $1,219,917.5,0 in dimes. The 

 subsidiary coinage amounted to 12,983.521 

 pieces, of the value of $1,417,422.25. The 

 minor coinage consisted of 15,207,173 five-cent 

 nickel pieces, of the nominal value of $760,- 

 358.65 ; 45,573 three-cent nickel pieces, of the 

 nominal value of $1,367.19; and 45,725.073 

 one-cent bronze pieces, of the nominal value of 

 s457.250.73; the total minor coinage amount- 

 ing to 60,977,819 pieces, of the nominal value 

 of $1,218,976.57. The coinage of the fiscal 

 year exceeded in number of pieces even the 

 large coinage executed the preceding year, 

 being 109,030,547 pieces in 1888 against 98,- 

 122,517m 1887. 



rXITED STATES NAVY. Since 1881, when the 

 United States Navy had fallen into a condition 

 of material decay, a great and successful effort 

 has been made to restore the fleet to the posi- 

 tion it occupied prior to 1861, when its ships 

 were in general the best of their classes in the 

 world. The movement began with the ap- 

 pointment, by Secretary William H. Hunt, of 

 the first advisory board, in 1881, to determine 

 the composition of the fleet required by the 

 necessities of national policy. This board was 

 composed of able officers, presided over by 

 Rear-Admiral John Eodgers. Its report com- 

 manded general attention, and is still quoted in 

 debates relating to naval construction. It re- 

 ported that the fleet should be composed of 

 twenty - one armored vessels, seventy unar- 

 mored cruisers of different types, five rams, five 

 torpedo-gunboats, and twenty torpedo-boats, 

 and that steel should be the material of which 

 they should be built. The adoption by Con- 

 gress, at the instance of Secretary William E. 

 Chandler, of the principle that obsolete ships 

 should not be rebuilt or repaired when the ex- 

 penditure exceeded 20 per cent, of the original 

 cost, was an important step in preparing the 

 way for reconstruction. During Secretary 

 Chandler's administration the " Chicago." 

 "Boston," "Atlanta," and "Dolphin" were 

 built by John Roach, on designs furnished by 

 the second advisory board. In 1885, at a crit- 

 ical time in our naval reconstruction, the Navy 

 Department came under the administration of 

 William C. Whitnev. During his administra- 



