legal .900 by more than the permitted tolerance. Investigation found that ingots which had been rejected and were intended for melting had instead been used for coin. In the early 20th century, the San Francisco Mint struck silver coins for the Philippines, then a US possession; those pieces were included in the assay. Proof coins struck by the Mint for collectors were included in the assay; pieces struck under contract with foreign governments were not. The pyx was a rosewood box, square, of European work, and sealed by heavy padlocks. It was not filled by the coins put aside for the 1934 Assay Commission, of which there were 759 with a total face value of $12,050. This had increased by 1940 to 79,847 coins, all silver as gold coins were no longer being struck, and by 1941, many reserved coins could not be kept in the pyx, instead being placed in packing boxes, overflowing with sealed envelopes. By the late 1940s, more than ten million coins were being struck each day at Philadelphia alone; in 1947, Congress reduced the number of silver coins required to be put aside for assay from one in 2,000 to one in 10,000. This was done at the urging of the Department of the Treasury, as having to store so many assay coins was a burden to the Mint, and it felt that the number of coins available to the commission would still be sufficient. Final years and abolition (1950–1980) By the 1950s, there was considerable competition among numismatists to be appointed an assay commissioner. Appointees received no compensation, but the appointment was prestigious and carried with it a prized assay medal. The procedure was changed so that the Mint Director submitted the names of more individuals than would actually be appointed to the White House, where the final choices were made. It remained possible for the director to ask for special consideration for certain individuals. Later nominations were also screened by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and by the IRS. The Mint Director received nominations for assay commissioner from legislators, political organizations, government officials, and from members of the public. In 1971, for the first time, the Assay Commission had no silver coins to test; none were struck by the Mint for circulation in 1970. Although part-silver Kennedy half dollars were struck in 1970, they were only for collectors and were not put aside