The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1878-01-24
ELMpALE. January 70. 1873.

Gu as sGttiSu. NOW, hot lOE lne DpHc-
cit of your readers, desire to repeat:
We, Chat is, the iaw-making pow
er) say that the trade dollar shall con-
tain 400 grains of standard silver, but
we do not make it money, ii as not a
legal tender. But we say that II IL
grams of silver shall be half dollar,
and legal tender in sums of $500, and
under. A dollar of il contains |
thirty-siS grains of standard silver
less than The trade dollar. Yet it is
worth more all over the country and |
is quoted higher, compared to gold or
greenbacks, than the trade dollar
said this hurriedly before, bat |
repeat it deliberately now, and am
not mistaken as TO the facts, and |
know whereof write. | repeat this
after reading sections 3,513 and 1888
of revised statutes quoted with such
gusto by "Quicunque SIM" This
writer must post himself up and bring
his reading up to TIE present day. He
quotes the law of 1873 correctly
enough, but in 1876 Congress passed
another law, in the nature of joint
resolution. 1t reads:
'Sec. 2. That the trade dollar shall
not hereafter be legal tender; and
the Secretary of the Treasury is here
| by authorized to limit, from time to
s,,n.. Jn .1f- q g -. Oh
amount as he may deem sufficient 10
meet the export demand for the same"
Sec session laws 1875 and 1876. 1t
passed and became law July %, 1876.
Now "Quicunque Sim." i'll his eff
forts to show that 'Mr. Wood is not
posted-does not know whereof he
writes" should not quote statute
that has been changed or repealed, as
still the law of the question.
Now, to be particular, the present
half dollar contains y l-2 grams of
standard silver. This is 1872 9-10
grains. One dollar of it the reader
will see contains $50 $40 grains Of
standard silver, the trade dollar APO.
SO that a dollar of the small coins con
tain 81 2-l0 grains less silver than the
trade dollar, yet is at premium over
the trade dollar. "Quicunque Sim"
may think this is "preposterous," bnt
it is true, as money. OF course, if we
| wanted to melt it for ornaments, the
trade dollar would be worth the most.
Its 'intrinsic' value is greater, but
its money value is less. In fact, since
the act of July %, l876,it is not money
at all and the small coins with less silver
are money, and are worth more day,
in the money world, and why? Be-
cause the sovereign power makes 1t
money. The nickel is also money, and
is worth five cents as money, but has
not in it one cents worth of metal for
any other purpose.
Aristotle said "money exists not by
nature, but by law
Sir Thomas Barring says that Sin
London, during the crisis of iS47 it
was impossible to raise any money
whatever on a sum of 100000 in sill
yer." The reason was silver was le
gal tender only for forty shillings.
The same writer says that "in Cal
cutta in 1864 it was impossible toraise
single rupee (forty eight cents) with
SIC, 600 in gold" The reason was gold
at Calcutta was not legal tender-it
was not money, but an article Of COM
merce like the trade dollar.
In 1855 Holland adopted the silver
as the only legal tender, at fixed
value, but attempted to coin gold,
which was not legal tender. Two
hundred thousand forms, $50, 000,..wa
coined, when the demand ceased. 1t
was not money. This is the reason
why legal tender dollar of only 3S5
2-10 grains of silver is worth more as
money than a silver dollar of APO
grains which is not legal tender.
Now see how we have changed the
value of metals as money, The law
of April 2, 1882, made the eagle $40
contain 270 grains of standard gold, |
S92 40 thousandths fine. In 1884 we
reduced the eagle TO 25S grains and in
creased its fineness 10 S99 223-100 thou
sandths ine, a difference of s 66-100 |
on each dollar. In January, 1887, we
made both gold and silver 900 fine and
reduced the silver dollar to 412 IL
grains, standard silver, but retaining
the same amount of pure silver.
In February, 1858. the weight OF the
half dollar was reduced from 206 IA
TO 1872 grains. Two half dollars con-
taincd 3S4 grains only. This is 100
more money than in one dollar Of 9TH
er coins. In 1873 we required II 12
grams of standard silver in half dol
lar. "Gram" is 4 French term, aud
u IL grams is equal to 1872 $40 grains
of standard silver. That is $40 of
grain more than the doslar of 1888.
"Quicunque Sim" wants. money
"that will pass in other countries"
Very well II IL gram, our 50-cent
piece, is one-half that of the five franc
piece of France, Belgium and 5 witzer-
land, of the five lire coins of Italy,
give pasta of Spain, GIVE drachma"
of Greece, and is the same as the new
ilorin of Austria. So that it will be {
seen that our debased silver coins. in
tended only as token money is of the
same weight aud iineness of the money t
Of France, Belgium, Switzerland, Ita-
", Spain. Greece and Austria, Yet :
'Quicunque Sim," wants money like
hey have in other countries, and yet
objects to dollar containing q $40 ;,
more silver and calls il worth ninety
.wo cents.
Excuse the length of this. Yours
ruly. 5. N. WooD. {
For the Eagle.
Few Thoughts on Railroads. p
JAMEsBURG. January Is, 1878. -