, 1877-11-20
THE SILVER DOLLAR,

make peace on the best terms 1t con secure.
H. THE SILVER DOLLAR.
I'm letter published in The TRIBUNE, Mr..
Pn1t1r STEIN asks for various Information
concerning tie decentralization Of silver.
Tie net Of 1879, under which tha coinage
of the silver dollar was prohibited, was not,
whom before Congress In tho form Of a Liil,
s,,ch n measure Of legislation On 10 invite OF
attrnct goneral md much loss tho special attou~
tion of members OF Congress. There WAS
nothing in ita title. nor In its general c1ar.
actor, to suggest TINT there WINS any change
in tho coinage, silver Or gold, or in tho weight
OF any Of the coins, much less the abolition
Of tho further coinage of the then existing
coins. The bill WIS Of enormous length,
containing about sixty sections, aud corering
nuny printed pages Of tho statutes Mt large.
Tho title had no reference to any change OF
the COINS or to the characterization Of silver.
It WINS prepared outside Of Congress, by the
Director Of tho Mint md others. Tho
laws md regulations OF tho Mint were scat-
tered through long seEiea OF acts. This
bill was to reduce all these acts to one, and
to modernizo the regulations Of tho practi-
cal opo rations of the Mint as had been Rug-
gcatod by experience both in thia and in
other countries. Nothing Of oil this had any
relation whatever to my change or reform Of
coinage. It related wholly to the mechanical
operations OF the Mint. Tho bill VIVA 70.
gardcd as special measure, prepared by ex-
perta, to place tho mechanical operations OF
tho Mint urdor ,ror,ar roorto+;ona II v..
not a bill to de1nonetize silyer or gold, or to
ness Of any coli, Of either metal. Nomiuallv
tho l,ill was rcferred to committees in both
Houses. but II Ia doubtful wbether INV Of
the members ever rcad, or. road;no. untlor.
stood my Of its details. It was taken In
good faith by members as pronared by tho
Mint officers and other exports. ns containing
nothing but what It profcesed to contain.
aul which such olIlcers were specially CON-
petont to recommend. Tho bill was .epor,cd
in tho House aud waa yassed. never having
been .ead except by It's title, Il was passed
in tho Senate without being read in full. We
admit, however. that, ind the bill been read
It IL not possible that tho fraud would hare
been detected in tho mattor Of tho abolition
of the silver dollar. The forty-seyonth sec.
lion Of tia act nroy,fled.
Tie .,lycr co,us of tho limited s,atss sh.,, bo
tsado dollar, = half dollar, \ quartcr dollar, q
dine.
The fiftieth section read:
No coins either of gold, silver, Or minor coinage
shall hereafter 10 issnea from Tho Mint other than
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