It is not a little instructive to learn to what degree the foreboding as to the national treasury being swamped by the number of yen silver coins that would come back for exchange, in which some critics indulged, proved to lack solid foundation. The total number of one-yen pieces coined at Osaka from the date of the opening of the Mint was 165,000,000. Of these the number actually exchanged during the ten months specified for gold coin was 45,500,000, including 10,750,000 sent back from abroad for that purpose: the rest were in circulation in Japan. It is estimated that 99,500,000 of yen coins were exported to foreign lands and never returned. 11,000,000 of these coins were taken abroad at the time of the China-Japan war,—5,750,000 were taken to Formosa after the cession of that island to Japan by China and were never brought in for exchange,—about 500,000 were recoined at Osaka into subsidiary coins,—and about 2,750,000 could not be traced, and must have been lost or worn out, or taken away by visitors to Japan, when leaving the country. Count Matsukata was not moved by sinister prophecies, for one thing because he had had the most careful inquiries made as to the numbers of these coins circulating in Shanghai, Hong Kong, the Straits Settlements, etc.; and it was found that no inconsiderable proportion of them either bore the marks of some private stamp or “chop” which unfitted them for circulation in the land of their origin, or had been turned into Chinese _taels_. Then it was known that a fairly large quantity was in use as a medium of exchange in the Straits Settlements and neighbouring islands, and that there was but little prospect of any of these coming back to Japan. Altogether Count Matsukata’s estimate of the number that would have to be provided for was 10,000,000, and this was within a trifle of the true number presented for exchange. The people were invited to pay taxes and make other public settlements in Yen coins, a vast number of Government treasuries and sub-offices were opened all over the country to facilitate the work of exchanging the silver, and that no report was ever received that any failed to get exchanged went to show that the process was effectually completed.