The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1878-01-03
For the EAGLE.
Facts About unltei States Coin.

uUEdHi Oh Wudt III illeauS arc IudkinS
speeches, writing newspaper articles
and raising the wind generally about
the necessity of some legislation con-
corning silver, thought 1t would not
be amiss 10 ask for further informa-
ton to ascertain from some of your
eloquent correspondents what good is
to be accomplished, and what are the
means to be used in accomplishing the
results.
will here state that | do not pro-
TESS 10 understand the iinancial wants
| of our country, nor the relative in
much less do pretend to know just
what action the Congress of the Unit
ed States should take upon the sub
ect. And while | confess my igno-
rance concerning the matter, must
say that have but little confidence in
tie theories of ninety-nine bundredths
of the people wno assume 10 under
stand the whole affair, and are ready
to teach the people the way TO go.
You remember the old adase, "If the
blind lead the blind" etc.
'Our daddles had dollar" a silver
dollar with which they paid their
debts and bought their coffee, etc, etc.
Their dollar weighed 4l2 ID grains,
troy, apd was nine parts silver and
one part copper.
April I'd, 1892, The silver dollar
weighed 4l6 grains, aud the half dol
lar, quarter dollar, and dime in pro-
portion, and was 1924 fine. In June,
1884, the relative value of gold and ST.
yer was re-adJusted, there being an in
crease of 6S-l00 per cent. in favor of
gold as compared with silver. "The
disadvantage of complex standards Of
both gold and silver, determined Mr..
r. NJ. Patterson the director of the
mint, to attempt an improvement. lie
accordingly drew up well-considered
code of mint laws which was enacted
by Congress January IS, 1887"
This act adopted the French stand
ard OF fineness, being 900-1000ths for
both gold and silver, and reduced the
weight of daddies' dollar from 4l6
grams TO 4i2 -, leaving its intrinsic
value the same. Soon, the relative
quantities of silver and gold became
such that silver was under valued in the
United States, and daddies' dollar was
largely exported to foreign countries
to prevent which the Democratic Con
gress of 1858, virtually demonetized
silver and made gold the only legal
tender. That Congress reduced the
half dollars from 206 IA grains TO 1872
grains, and the smaller coins in pro
portion, making them legal tender for
only $500 The mint ceased the coin
age of silver for individuals. Dad
dies dollar, however, remained in stdtu
quo, ALP 1-2 grains, and WAS legal
tender for any amount, but two half
| Ntlt VI liiC SAINT iiU lCdi
value of one dollar and contained only
3S4 grains The effect of this Demo-
cratic decentralization act of 1858, was
to drive daddies dollar out of exist
ence, and from that time it gradually
disappeared, for our daddies put it in
to their pockets, traded on it, and ex-
ported it. No one would pay one OF
daddies dollars for a bushel of wheat
when be could take two half dollars
of less weight and pay the same nu-
merical sum and save IS 1-2 grains OF
silver thereby. In very few years
daddies' dollar went entirely out OF
circulation, and no more was coined.
Yet we heard no howl for legislation
to compel men to take it cut of their
pockets and place it in circhlatiau, nor
to compel minis to coin it. Remem-
Der, this was tWeaty years before 1873.
The fact is, in 1873, when it is alleged
that daddies' dollar was demonetized,
there were very few people who had
ever seen one. SO long had il been out
of use that the children Of our daddies
did not know what it was, and if they
had found one in the streets | doubt if
half OF them could have told whether
it was daddies' dollar or some other
American coin. Indeed, have con-
versed with men in the past few DAYS
who pretended TO be posted, who ar
gued strenuously that it was of the
same value OF the trade dollar-42O
grains. Hence, infer that no one can
justly say that the demonstration of
daddies' dollar has had an injurious
effect upon anybody in the United
States, for there was none of it in cir
culation TO demonetize none of it
had been coined for many years before
the characterization took place, and
vouchsafe the assertion that there are
not five persons in the city of Wichita
who knew of the demonetization act
of 1873 for two years afterwards.
have no doubt that some of those
capitalists who own the large bonanzas
in the way of silver mines recently
discovered, would like some sort Of
legislation 10 make their silver net
them ten per cent. more than its value.
For fifty years, gold has been gradu-
ally becoming the standard by which
all values are determined, and silver,
as circulating medium, has lost its
proves in France, Germany and Eng
land. And if we, as nation, wish to
keep pace with the civilization Of the
world, we mast not forget that no
power of Congress can alter the rela-
tive value of gold and silver, nor make
the one or the other worth more or
les. than what it actually is, as COM
pared with the coins of foreign coun-
tries. | do not know that have any
objection to the reconciliation of sill
yer, but let us go slow, and when we
do remonetize, let us do SO upon the
basis of wisdom and prudence, re-
membering that if we say by our Con-
gress that ninety cents of silver is
dollar, that it does not make it true.
We have had sufficient experience in
the past sixteen years to demonstrate
the fact that permanent prosperity de-
ponds more upon the number Of acres