THE COINAGE OF GOLD.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 359, 28 December 1878, Page 15

THE COINAGE OF GOLD.

(From the Insurance Record.) An article in the Economist discusses the 1877 report of the Deputy-Master of the (British) Royal Mint. That gentleman attributes the smallness of the demand for gold coin from the establishment tinder his direct control to the importation of sovereigns from Australia. The net additions to the gold circulation of the United Kingdom from its home and colonial mints were in 1875, £854,239; in 1876, £6,147,884 ; in 1877, £3,289,241 ; total, three years, £10,291,364. Having regard to the growing magnitude of the coinage at the Sydney and Melbourne branches of the Royal Mint, it becomes an inquiry whether we (Economist) may not 'now expect to fiud, in a short period ot' years, that the Australian element, so far as regards the place where the coin was minted, will come to be the greatly preponderating one in the gold circulation of the United Kingdom. The gold coin which has been issued iu Australia since the date when the Victoria (Sydney—Ed. Record) Branch Mint was opened in 1855, and the Melbourne Branch Mint in 1872, has amounted to no les3 than £49,706,000, divided as follows :

Disregarding fractions, it may be said that from 1855 down to May, 1878, the coinage of sovereigns in Australia has been about fortyeight millions sterling, against ninety-eight millions sterling issued from the London mint; that is to say, of the whole coinage, English and Australian together, 146 millions of sovereigns, one-third is of Australian, and twothirds are of English mintage. As regard.s half-sovereigns, the coin -ge of Australia has been about millions sterling in value, against about 3 7 millions sterling of the same denomination of coin issued from the London mint ;so that out of ] millions value of halfsovereigns, about one-eighth ia of Australian, and seven-eighths are of English mintage. During the lasi three years the relative proportions of the Australian and English coinage of sovereigns have been almost reversed. The increase of Australian coins among the money passing from hand go hand 'onong the mass of the people may nop be without important results. We have loug thoughfc the Australian sovereign the most powerful emigration agent that a group of colonies can possess iu the way of attracting fresh inhabitants to their shores.

Sovereigns in value. & Halfsovereigns Total, in value. £ £ Svclney (1855-77) .. 39,243,500 Melbourne (1872-77) 8,372,000 1,963,500 41,212,000 122,500 8,494,500 47,620,500 2,086,000 49,706,500