Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1883-07-18
A TRAMP,
Whom Nobody will Take La Out of the
Wet, Extensively Discussed
Yesterday.
A Representative Meeting Decides 10
ask Congress to Withdraw the
Trade Dollar.

The Cotton Exchange mel yettSrday morn
Ing p1rsusnl to call Of the president, TO con-
slider the propriety Of memorializirg Con-
gress on the question of Withdrawing the
trade dollar from circulation.
The meeting was called 10 order by Vice
President j. Jacots, who caused the follow
NJ letter 10 be read from the American
Chamber OF 10 rec, Of New YORK, and
addressed to the presideEt OF The Memphis
Cotton Exchange:
NEW YORK, July 10, 1885.
DEAR IR-Tne B.rkiog COMMITTEES Of this
Chamber have been r. qTes'ed TO take some
sc.ion in relation to The circulation OF the
trade dollar, which i. condemned as an az
noyance 10 commercial men, bankers and the
public generally. An eior. will be made 10
iuduce Congress Immediately upon its
next assembling to p5as a bill to Withdrew
this coiu from circulation, and in The meau-
while ,uuiil such withdrawal, for The adoption
OF sut h measu:es rs 10 sbate lie annoy aDce
complsinsd Of. Yyu will favor the commit
tee by informing Ihem whether they NAV ex-
pect 10 have the benefit oil your il tiueuce anu
sssistauce 10 Tbs Effort for the public good.
Will you JOIN in a memorial to CJugrsss TO
pass ouch a measure for the withdrawal Of
the coin? What ether steps wou d you pro-
pose TO the Commute? Your early reply
will greatly obiise. Yours, rssDscifnlly,
OhAthEo a. TEAhoONt ctCTcIdry.
An extract was also read from the New
Yark Journal # Commerce, OF July 10Th, as
iollows:
To the Editor OF the Journal OF Commerce:
"Suppose an individual couBierfsitei the
| dollar cf the Ucited States, marked 1t 20
finer lhan the United Sat s dollar, exported
il to coufederates abroad, and they re-
turned it. Have the United States a right
to trih4 with the imag- and sup.rscriplion OF
the current colo and Ghsn refuse tbeir own
| coinage, stamped United States of America,
trade ollar, one dollar, and the figure Of
Liberty on the reverse? They elevate tbe
dollar and then Congress tramplss on il, and
by SO doirg robs the community and sets the
conntry a very questionable example of hon
/ esly. I hope it will be l'gsl lender after
| next session. You taGe a different view
from yours truly, C. H. T.
"REPLY.-We ave seen 10 other quarters
a still stronger statement settirg forth that
The trade dollar was never in any proper
| sense a coin of the Uniied S lales.' All this
| is a mistake. What we said wss hat the
| trade dollar was not designed for circulation
in this country. II is ss much a coin of the
United States as the half dollar, but as no
| silver dollar was then struck at our mintP,
was designed solely for use in China, sni was
| coined TO accommodate The merchanls IN that
/ lTaut. II Nhb CldS5eu L tue IsSNl-tu S'EIu+SS
with subsidiary silver coin, and coming uu-
| der the same provision was thereby made q
| lagal-tender oniy TO the extent OF IS. Itwas
made purpos.ly heavy that it might not CT
iato circulation here, and WAS worth iolrin.
| sically about 1921 IN gold. When silver de-
| clined, and there was Danger thai the coin
might be sent back here IRON the L ,si, g
special act was passed July %, 1876, making
it DO longer a legal tender, but allow
irg the Secretary of the Treasury 10 Con;
tinuc the coinage 80 far as there might b. a
demand for export. II this had ben liter.
ally followed no harm would have come cf
it, as there we're not trade dollsrs enough in
the country to have given any. trouble. But
The mint went or coming, 100000 having
been struck in the year ioilo wing ,he repeal
of It's legal.tender character, and ii ,37S 900 in
the y6ar succeeding. IL is believe thai a
portion OF the last item were coined for sp c
Ulatois who get them float in this clunirs,
as only about 100000 of the 20,0 0 600
appear 10 have been exported. Their is no
reputation and NJ hardship in the present
attitude Of the government. There is prob
ably o: . holder Of a trade dollar in Ihis
country who received it when it wss a par
tial legal-tendsr Ito the extent Of IS 10 one
sum) and is thereby snff: ring by ihs law al
it stands. The people WHO have taken them
have done il with their eyes opsn, aud at
their W risk, and the government - not in
any sense bound to redeem them"
Also the following from Ffahk Leslie's T.
tustrdted Newspaper, OF July IA h:
"The war on The iraie dollsr promises tc
be as successful as hat wagsd against mo,
tilat-d coins some time ago. Yef, as a ma
ter of fact, the made dollar is u far more
houest coin than The Iegsl-tender silver dol.
lar. Tue former has APO grains of silver
the latter only 4124. Tee trade dollar only
q short time ago was worth ninety mine cents
at the same tims the legal tender dollar wal
worth not more than eighty-i sc GEMS; snC
even after The marked depreciation of tht
heavier dollar, resuiting from the war upo,
il, the quotation for il is an important item
higher than The value Of The standard dollsl
Of 4l24 grains.
The trade dollars wtrs fret coin.d aboui
August, 1873, under The provisions Of thl
coinsge act OF February y h of thai year
This act was made 10 include among the sii
yer coins a trade dollsr,' which was TO weigI
'420 grains troy and il and the other silve,
coins provided for were declared "a legal ten
der at their nominal value for any amoun
rot excetding IS in any one payment Tn
same act provided that any owoer of silve
bullion might deposit 1t at any mint, TO b
formsd into trade dollars, and the charge 70
the coinage was to be the average COST to h
mint.
"While The coinage was plainly authoriz
in the interest OF the producers OF silver, We
the government, by stamping its tile upoI
he coin aad declaring ii a legal tender
N lde itself resIo lsible for it The same rs 10
sny other coin. A, the lime i, was issued
however, il was worth in tae market II 0
1900, and, OF eourse, it did not circul At
here, being used in the China trade. By TIA
year 1876, however, silver had depre ciated i
vaue (the average pric, decreasing irol
so SIG pence i 1876 ~, 30 that, as Ser
tsIy Sherman says, in his report for 1871
the trade dollar 10 market value bad ia IL
greatly below 81 in goid.' L seems that hi
was The reason why section 2 of; the act {
July 22i, 1876, was made 10 provide that b
trade dollar should not thereafter be a l-gi
tender, and 10 authorize The Secretary /,
limit the issue 10 the * port demand for th
cello. 10 October, 1877, Secretary Sherma,
fading that silver owners were Offering bu.
lion 10 be coined into trade dollars for use j
this country 10y with trey could esrn
Deat pref J. stopped the further coiuag
The total amount of the coins Issued up I
April, 1878, was So 1858, $3.50.
while the trade dollar was coined for u;
in the Incia trade, it has, III China at Ieas
failed 10 make is way, the Chints Sc nreferriu
the Mexican trade dollar, which they hav
been accustomed to use for mApy yesrs. The
reduce as much as possible ct the silver d,
rived from outside sources to steee; tn
sycee-bar silver-circulaies rs currencl
though in some parts of China the natiy
merchants will take The American dolla
The dolItr itself is nat row shipped Irol
this country TO Chins. Ali, or nearly al
i the silver sent there goes from San Fral
cisco in the shape If bare. Thus, neilh.
the merchants in the China trade nor II
mass of the people care 10 u.s. the trad
coins, OF which, it may be added, there al
now about So, 000,0J0 il this city. Son
were sent back here a humber of years SO
> by Cniness merchants, owing TO a false n
por, circn iated in China that this goveri
q ment Intended TO make them = lseal tends
e A considerable sum was also brought back
b satisfy the popular dem ind for silver none,
g How soon tue people tired Of it Is We
known.
r ."That the action of Congress, ia sttmpir
the dollar Of 4123 grains as legal Was
grave mistake is upquestionsble. The bill
as passed in 1878. provided for the coinir
Of from 81 1000, 900 to $4,000, 600 Of Al;
i; grains each monthly, ths production Of Il
u smaller amount being compulsory in az
event. Pcesid mi Hayes vetoed the mea=ur
but it was passed over his veto, uotwiihstan.
ing the fact that the silver dollsr OF q
!, weight men Toned was at a discoun. Of fro
= eight 10 ten per cent. The experience
" five years hiss fully justified the original o
position to the bill. Down 10 November