The New York herald., 1876-07-31
THE SILVER QUESTION.
LETTER FRoa EX-SENATOR sTEwART-A RE-
VIEW OF THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES

scnt lew plain acts In regard to what is commonly
called the silver questions
1t important that the people should know that the
national debt contracted payable in gold or
silver coin, ut the option OF the United States TINS
proposition is shown by examination of the acts Of
Congress. and cannot be rcuted by violent and ntem
perate language April 1892 Congress enacted that
dolars or units each to be OF the value OF Spanish
milled dollar as the is current, and to con-
tain 81 graas and four sxtesnths parts OF grain OF
purc or 4l6 grains Of standard silver should be loyal
tender TO any amount" The smaller silver coins by
said act contained the proportion of standard sill
YER as was contained in the dollar. January 1887 the
amount Of alloy In silver coin reduced but the
amount OF pure SILVER remained the II twas then
enacted
Ofthe silver coins the dollar shall be OF tho weight
or 4l2s grams, the half dollar OF the weight OF 2O6i4
grains the quarter dollar of the weight OF 1885 grains,
the dime tenth part OF IL dollar of tho weight OF
4lt4 grains, and the halfdme twentieth part of a
dollar OF the weight OF 20 grams; and that dollars,
half dollars and quarter dollars dimes and half dimes,
shall pc legal tenders OF payment. according TO their
nominal vaIue, Tor any sums Whatever.
In 1858 tho weight OF all sIvcr coins mailer than ono
dollar was reduced aud they declared to be legal
tender for only S. but tho dollar was unchanged
The act Is as ollows:-
The weight of tho half dollar piece Of nfty cents
shall be 1872 grains and the quarter dollar, dino and
half dime shall be respectively one-haif onc-1lth and
one tenth OF the we'ght OF said half dollar
section shall be legal tenders in payment debts
all sums not exceeding $5.
1t will DO observed that the silver dollar containing
4l2s grams of standard silver, still remained legal
tender to any amount Tho next change effected
by two surrcptous sections In long act to reorganzo
the mints OF the United States approved February H.
1879 quote these sections
SECTION 15.-That tho silver coins of the United
States shall bc trade dollar half dollar nfty cent
piece, quarter dollar or twenty Ave cent piece, a
ae OF zen % cen; d piece anu the wegh, OF tne 'Iaae
dollar shall be twelve grams (grammes and one half
OF gram tgrammc) the quarter dollar and the dime
shall be, respectively, onehaif and oneh nth OF the
weight OF said half dollar and said coins shall be legal
tender AZ thor nominal value for any amount not
ceedng - IN any ono payment
SEC 17-That no coins either OF gold, silver minor
coinage shall hereafter be issued from the mint other
than those OF the denominations standards aud weights
herein set forth
1t will bs observed that tho standard dollar omit
ted No provision made for Its further coinage
But 1t still remained a legal tender for any amount
But It It thought necessary to destroy the
legal tender character Of the silver dollar Conse-
quently section 1885, Revised Laws approved Juno %
1874, made to read follows:-
SRcTIox g. The silver OF the United States
shall be legal tender at their nominal value for any
amount not exceeding 50 In any one payment
This section considered by Congress, but
smuggcd into the revision Of the laws. II declares
that silver coin whatever should be legal tender
for than S.. The law before 1t codiAed only
declared that the trade dollar and the smaller currency
should DO legal tender for no more than IS.
1t did attempt to declare that the old dollar
tabshed by Hamilton washinstons administration.
should not be legal tender TO any amount II went
no further than to omit all provision for Its coinage
Tho gold coins of the United States consisted of eagles
half eagles, &C., until 1sa9 when the coinage Of the
god dollar was first authorized; but the gold dollar
was never declared the unit Of value until 1S73 On
the contrary. the silver dollar was tho sole unit up to
that time. The debt OF the United States mostly
contracted under laws silent to the kind Of currency
in which the to be paid. II maintained
by many influential persons that It payable In any
legal tender This controversy finally settled in
1869 BY declaration the part Of Congress that such
debts should be paid in coin or its equivalent Follow
ing the language Of this act, which ap-
proved March 49, 1862 and may be found on page o
'sUnited States Statutes at Large" vol To-
Is hereby provided and declared that the faith o
the United States Is soemny pledged TO tho payment
IL coin or Its equivalent OF all the obligations OF the
United States not bearing interest," known United
States, and OF all the interest bearing obligations OF
the United States, except cases wherc tho law
thorzing the issue OF any such obligation has ex-
pressy provided that tho may be paid In lawful
money or other currency than gold and silver
Tho discussions which took place this controversy
called particular attention to the kind OF money in
which the debt payable, and included both gold md
silver Tho act to refund the debt, approved July H.
1870 framed in the light Of that discussion pro-
vidod that the bonds issued under said should be
"redeemabe in coin OF the Chem present standard
value" No law has been passed authorizing bond to
bc issued payable any coin of standard value esab
lished subsequent July H. 1870 The debt, and the
whole dcbt was therefore, contracted payable in
which by law coin prior 10 tho surreptious
1873 the revision of 1s74-hat Is say either ia
gold silver The coin referred to In the several
under which tho debts contracted either
gold dollar of IS $40 grains Of standard goId Az
grains standard silver Neither the United States nor
tho bondhoder has right to change the standard OF
either silver or gold coin.
Tho United States cannot reduce that standa rd for
that would be injustice TO the creditor; the
United that standard that would be
injustice to tho taxpayer the United States be
deprived Of the option in the contract to pay in either
gold silver. No deny that the option is in
contract Whom that option reserved the silver
dollar worth two per cent than the gold
dollar and we have scen, legal tender to uny
amount. The United States could have obtained about
two per II they had been willing contract
pay in silver coin instead OF optionaly In gold or
silver But it unsaio 70 bind the United Staos to
pay in either gold or svcr. for no one could then
say that would DO possible to obtain tho maturity
OF the bonds tho particular kind Of coin which
would have been dcnomlnatcd the
bond. 1t was, tbcreforo both wise and prudent to
the right to pay either In gold slvor Both
parties then understood that tho right pay
gold or for tho bcnenr OF the Tn ted States
and that the United States would pay In that kind Of
coin which could be casiest obtained, and which could
oc secured with tho least labor.
If silver mad remained was at tho timc Of making
The contract, at two per cent above par, every
knows that tho United States would have paid in gold.
1t also understood that II silver should TALL
gold that tho United States would pay in silver But
we are told that silver is twenty per cent below
gold. Does that change the contracty II the debt
is based upon The contract tho taxpayer is entitled
stand the terms OF tho contract. Ii silver
IS cheaper than wncn the contract made
is not the United States entitled the benefit arising
from cheaper silver? But II the creditor is pre-