stock of silver as a whole, otherwise available for subsidiary coinage, at all times being more than ample to meet the current needs for subsidiary coinage. In this connection the submission forming the basis of the decision of November 29, 1922, read, in part: (* * * It further appears that the allocations of silver for subsidiary coinage under the act were made in part, to make up shortages at the individual coinage mints, rather than for the mint service as a whole, and in part to supply refined silver immediately available for coinage where the silver already on hand was unrefined. To this extent, therefore, it may be said that the allocations under the act were made in order to adjust the subsidiary coinage accounts of the several mints, rather than to meet a deficiency in the mint service as a whole." Much of what is urged as mandatory as to purchases of silver upon allocation of silver dollars for subsidiary coinage is in connection with the provision in the act of 1918 that such allocation shall be regarded as a sale or resale for the purposes of the act, it being also provided in the act that upon every sale of bullion the Secretary of the Treasury shall immediately direct the Director of the Mint to purchase silver equal to a certain number of grains pure silver in respect of every stamped silver dollar melted or broken up and sold as bullion. It is a reasonable interpretation of the provision that an allocation of dollars for subsidiary coinage should be regarded as a sale was to give an authority for purchase, as to which authority there might otherwise be doubt, it being a transaction within the department and not clearly within the sales provision of the act, and thus the authority be permissive rather than madatory to make purchases on account of such transactions. At least, taking it in connection with the showing that there was at all times and exclusive of the allocations a sufficiency of silver in the subsidiary coin stock, the revoking of the allocations so as to permit restoration to the standard silver dollar stock the silver no longer needed in the subsidiary coin stock, to my mind, does not necessarily suggest conflict with that provision in section 3 which is clearly mandatory as to a true sale, such as a sale of bullion for commerical use. Upon the submission of the matter by the Secretary of the Treasury I was, and now am, unable to bring myself to believe this provision mandatory so as to require that all allocations, however and for whatever purposes made, be treated as irrevocable sales. Sincerely yours, J. R. MCCARL, Comptroller General. COMMISSION OF GOLD AND SILVER INQUIRY. TASKER L. ODDIE, Nevada, Chairman. THOMAS STERLING, South Dakota. THOMAS J. WALSH, Montana. H. N. LAWRIE, Assistant to Commission. 1. World's gold and silver production.. Curves showing production and value of gold and silver in the world. 2. Production of gold and silver in the United States... Curve showing production and value of gold and silver and price per fine 3. Number of deep mines, placers, and dredges producing gold and silver and the principal producers of gold and silver in the United States. 5. Gold and silver produced at mills in the United States and percentage of gold and silver recovered by different methods of treatment and from 1. Gold and silver imports and exports into and from the United States...... 61-114 2. Silver exports to Asia from the United States and London, and gold and silver imported into and exported from British India and China.... Curves showing price of silver, net imports of silver, exports and imports of 2. Wholesale price index-Purchasing power of gold in terms of wholesale com- 168 Curves showing the wholesale commodity price index in the United States based on 1913-100, and the purchasing power of the 1913 dollar.. 3. Purchasing power of silver in terms of wholesale commodities... Curves showing the price of silver per fine ounce at New York and the whole- sale commodity purchasing power of an ounce of silver in terms of the pur- Curves showing the general foreign exchange index and the exchange indices for England, France, Italy, Netherlands, Argentina, and Japan. 1. World's gold and silver production.... Production of gold and silver in the world, 1493-1922. Gold production of the world by countries, 1912–1921. Silver production of the world by countries, 1912-1921. Gold production of the world by continents, compared, 1915, 1921, 1922.. Silver production of the world by continents, compared, 1912, 1921, 1922.. Production and value of gold and silver in the world, 1860-1922.. Curves showing production and value of gold and silver in the world, 2. Production of gold and silver in the United States.. Production of gold and silver in the United States, 1792-1922. Refinery production of gold in the United States by States, 1913-1922.. Refinery production of gold in the United States for 1915, 1921, 1922, 3. Number of deep mines, placers, and dredges producing gold and sil- ver and the principal producers of gold and silver in the United |