Letter

Nicholas Fish to Nicholas Fish, October 23, 1876

No. 89. Mr. Nicholas Fish to Mr. Fish.

No. 510.]

Sir: Referring to your circular of September 18, in regard to the information desired by the Commission of Congress, I have the honor, in advance of a reply from the foreign office to my note of the 5th instant, to transmit herewith copies of the coinage-laws of the empire of November 11, 1871, and of July 9, 1873, together with translations of the same. Copies of these laws were sent by Mr. Bancroft to the Director of the Mint in October, 1873, in compliance with your circular No. 38, of April 16 of that year.

Under the provisions of these laws there have been coined up to October 7, 1876, a coinage amounting to 1,790,471,158 73/100 marks in value. The division among the respective metals is as follows:

Marks.
Gold 1,425,193,360
Silver 322,544,977 30/100
Nickel 33,556,523 80/100
Copper 9,176,297 63/100

I annex an extract from the National Zeitung showing the division of these amounts among the respective coins.

I have, &c., &c.,

NICHOLAS FISH.
[Inclosure 3 in No. 510.—Translation.]

Extract from National Zeitung, showing amount of imperial coinage to October 7, 1876:

In the German mints up to October 7, 1876, there were coined—

Of gold coins: 1,092,367,980 marks, double crowns (20m); 332,825,380 marks, crowns, (10m.)

Of these, 171,345,164 marks were on private account.

Of silver coins: 67,237,590 marks, 5-mark pieces; 39,022,844 marks, 2-mark pieces; 143,512,165 marks, 1-mark piece; 39,643,058 marks, 50 pfennige, 50-pfennige pieces; 33,129,319 marks, 80 pfennige, 20–pfennige pieces.

Of nickel coins: 22,320,799 marks, 50 pfennige, 10–pfennige pieces; 11,235,724 marks, 30pfennige, 5-pfennige pieces.

Of copper coins: 5,831,665 marks, 46 pfennige, 2-pfennige pieces; 3,344,632 marks, 17 pfennige, 1-pfennige pieces.

Total coinage.

Of gold coins, 1,425,193,360 marks.

Of silver coins, 322,544,977 marks 30 pfennige.

Of nickel coins, 33,556,523 marks 80 pfennige.

Of copper coins, 9,176,297 marks 63 pfennige.

Sources
FRUS u2014 Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the P View original source ↗
U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian. Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the P.