Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1888-03-23

D fHhfflNflN
page 3OjD. twas reported with amend
ments December 10, 1870, and discussed
i'm the Senate January 9th and 10th, 1871
and passed.
have examined this discussion ant
there was no debate i'm regard to the Dis
continuance Of the coinage Of the silver
dollar. The bill was an elaborate on,
to codify the mint laws. There was M
discussion whatever in regard to coins o
any kind. The discussion was as TO 9th
er matters, the salaries OF officers, etc.
Whether the bill as reported and dis
cussed on that occasion contained pro
vision similar to section II OF the act Of
February -, 1873, lam unable to say.
am unable to find that bill. | presume
it did, however, because it was prepared
by Mr.. Knox. and, OF course, cOnfOrmea
to his report. Many Senators advocated
free coinage, while the chairman OF the
committee objected to that. | made
some remarks on that bill, advocating
free coinage. | did not observe the 9th
or provisions, and do not know whether
the provision as to the silver dollar was
i'm the bill or not. II came here and pass
ed like other elaborate bills, where none
but the committee know OF every detail
contained i'm them. The whole discus
sion will be found in the same volume Of
the GIobc, from pages 3GS to 37S and from
pages 30G 10 397.
The bill was received in the House OF
Representatives January 10, 1871. refer
red to the Committee on Coinage Janu-
airy II, 1871, reported with a substitute
February -, 1871, and rccommttcd.-
Nothing more was done with the bill in
the Forty-first Congress. Nothing was
SAID i'm either House OF that Congress
about stopping the coinage OF the silver
dollar. The bill might or might not
have contained this provision. As
said before, presume it did, as it was
prepared by Mr.. Knox.
On January 9, 1872, Mr.. Kelley, OF
Pennsylvania, introduced a bill in the
House blouse bill - "to revise and
amend the laws relative TO the minis,
assay offices. and coinage Of the United
States" Ii was discussed at some length
and recommtted. Congressional Globe,
1S7l-'72, part !, pages 322 to 32S and
1886 to 340)
The principal topic discussed was the
question Of salaries OF the officers pro-
vided for i'm the bill. On February Q,
1872, Mr.. Hooper. Of Massachusetts,, re-
ported from the Committee on Coinage
a bill revising and amending the laws
relative to the minis, assay offices. and
coinage Of the United States - which
was numbered ii. X. 1927. This bill
was recOmmttcd TO the Committee on
Coinage and ordered printed, and was
probably a revised edition Of the bill in
troduced by Mr.. Kelley. II cannot now
be found Mr.. IIooper's bill was dis
cusscd in the House April Q, 1872. (Con-
qrcssionai Globe, lS7l-'72, part 3, pages
1904 to 23l7.) Mr. Hooper, who had
charge of the bill, said with reference to
section 1G, which was the section relat-
ing to the silver dollar, and afterwards
numbered section Is:
1t re-enacts the provisions Of existing
/ laws defining the silver coins and their
weights respectively, except in relation TO
the silver dollar, which is reduced in
weight from 4l2i to 3si grains
How they hit upon 3sl grains am at
| a loss TO know. think that was new
ratio. Three hundred and eighty-iive
and cight-tenths grains to the dollar is
the ratio Of ~ to J.
| thus making it subsidiary coin in har.
mouy with the silver coins of less denom-
/ ination to secure its concurrent clrcula-
] tion with them. The silver dollar Of il2;
/ grains. by reason of its bnlliOn or intrinsic
value being greater than its nominal value,
| long since ceased 10 be coin Of circula-
/ ton, and is melted by manufacturers Of
/ silverware II does not circulate now in
commercial transactions with any cOun-
| try, and the convenience Of those manu-
| facturers in this respect can better be met
| by supplying small stamped bars Of the
same standard, avoiding the useless ex-
pense of coming the dollar for that pur-
pose.
Remarks were made by Mr.. Potter, OF
New York, with regard to the proposed
change in the coinage. This was the
only time that the subject Of silver coin
age was mentioned in an Ineligible
manner. Mr.. Potter knew what the bill
contained, and expressed his meaning.
lie said:
Then, in the next place this bill pro-
vides for the making Of changes in the
legal-tender coin of the country, and for
substituting as legal-tender coin Of only
one metal instead, as heretofore. Of two
think myself this wonld be n wise pro-
vision, and that legal-tcnder coins, ex
cept subsidiary CON, should BE- Of gold
alone but why should we legislate on
this now, when we are not using either Of
those metals as circulating Medium
The bill provides also for change in re-
spcct of the weight and value of the silver
dollar, which is n subject which, when we
come to require legislation about it at all,
will demand at our hands very serious
consideration, and which, as we are not
using such coins for circulation now,
seems at this time to be an unnecessary
subject about which to egislato.-Con-
gressioaai Globe, ls7l-'72, part 3, page 23lO.
Mr.. Brooks, Of New York, said:
1t seems to me that this is the most far
cical spectacle that Congress can present
at this time when no member
Of this House has seen silver dollar or
golden eagle, except as curiosity in
museum, for some four or five or six or
seven years, and when there is no prOba
bility of seeing another golden eagle Tor
six or seven years 10 come. II seems to
me to be the greatest of farces for this
House to present such spectacle rs this
one fit for the pencil of Morgan or Mast in
the caricatures Of the day.-CO Congressional
Globe, lS7l-'72, part 3, page 23l6.
He continued in similar language at
some length ridiculng the idea OF con-
,idcring the question. At that time tie
bill was discussed at some length and
some sections stricken out. when the
House adjourned. On May ~, 1872, Mr..
Hooper again called up the bill and Of
fcrcd a substitute, and proposed to sus-
pend the rules and pass the substitute,
without reading, but failed to get the
necessary twO-thirds vote. No exami-
nation was made OF the changes effected
by the substitute. The whole debate
consisted of fewquestions and answers,
which indicated that the substitute was
different from the original bill. Mr.
Brooks, Of new York, in behalf OF his
colleague, who was then absent, made
the following suggestion, to-wit;
Nv colleague from Westminster district
[ Mr. Potterl stated the other day that this
bill provided for the recoinage of more or
less Of the small currency Of the country
and the creation of new currency.
Mr.. Hooper Of Massachusetts,. That is
not the cdse ,cih the bill az il n0w stands
Congressional Globe, l57l-'72, part 3, page
1913.
The substitute was passed after a very
brief consideration on the 9th OF May,
1872. On the 2sth Of May the bill was
reported to the Senate Congressional
Gio6e, page 1861; referred to the COM
mttee on Finance page 1856; reported
from committee December 10, 1872 (Co'-
qressionqi Globe, lS72-'73, part |, page
2O3); reported to the Senate with amend
ments and reprinted January Z, 1873
lpagc GGD; discussed January II pages
GGS G7I), and passed.
now call particular attention to the
discussion which took place in the
Senate.
1t has been said that It was passed in