concludes his scathing denunciation of the corruption at
the Ottoman mint overseen by Director Hakkı Halid Bey.//
Mint Director Hakkı Halid Bey.
As is well known, even in cases of corrupt bankruptcies, the registers
are kept in good order. Yet, for example, the case involving gold
transactions in the year 1320 (1904) is noteworthy. Leaving aside the
differences in the weights of bags and pouches, it is quite strange to
have mixed decorative gold and coins with one another, despite their
having the same prices but differing weights.
If one did not know much it cost to make these two kinds of coins
with differing weights, how could one discern whether the purity of
each of them was correct? One wonders whether the records in the
register concerning the amounts in decorative and ordinary gold are
correct. Certainly, receipts were taken at the places where these gold
items were sent. The erasures and cross-outs in these registers must
be kept in mind when comparing the entries with the receipts.
Third: The matter of losses. The gold loss was essentially reported as
nil. Yet, when taken together with the dimunition in purity, the gold
losses shown in the four-year period from 1320 (1904) to the end of
1323 (1907) are quite significant. And there is no comparison between
the years. Even if there may have been losses with regard to silver, it
was much less than the amount shown.
Darphane-i amire (Ottoman Mint, Istanbul)
Although the findings of specialists here were not believed, official
information should be obtained from the mints in London and Paris.
The Director (Hakkı Halid Bey) would like to escape blame concerning
this matter of losses by attributing it to the mint's peculiar construction,
but this pretext must not be accepted. The Director spent lavishly on
the painting of, and needless repairs for, the mint building, along with
costly embellishments, whereas by spending just a few hundred liras
these insignificant shortcomings could have been ameliorated.
In any event, the losses shown vis-a-vis repair of these defects of the
mint building were quite negligible and they were taken care of in an
unofficial manner with hardened copper.
Fourth: News has been received that the important member of the
previous investigating committees, who was well-versed and fully
knowledgeable regarding the fine points of this matter, has resigned.
In order for his good name to be preserved, some other way must be
found to shed light on this shameful corruption through investigation.
Chemist Alemdarzade Hakkı
//END of PART VII/FINAL//
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