Feliciana sentinel. [volume] (St. Francisville, La.) 1877-1892, 1891-08-08
UNITED STATES CURRENCY.
Who Originated the Decimal systsaa 4
This Country.

Who Originated the Decimal 0ysfsaa -
This Country.
Thomas Jefferson is generally credit
ed with being the author Of our decimal
system of currency, but Benson J. Los
sing, one Of the most prominent and
Trustworthy of American historians that
the honor of suggesting it belongs par
tally to Gouyeneur Morris. In 1882, when
the subject was first broached. Robert
Morris and Gouveneur Morris held re-
spectively the offices Of superintendent
of finance and assistant financier. On
| February 81 Of that year the former
was authorized by congress to prepare
"a plan for establishing and conducting
a national mint, and the latter gentle
man was intrnsted with the task. He
! abored earnestly in an attempt to har-
monize the mixed currency of the vari-
| ous states, and found that the fourteen
hundred and foftieth. part ofsa Spanish
dollar WAS a common .rdivisor of these
various curreucies. Taking this as d
! basis, he proposed the following table
OF United States. money: 81 F.''
Ten units to equal one penny; ten
pennies &c equal one bill; ten. bills to
equal one dollar cabout seventy-dve
cents at the present ssime), and ten dol
lars TO cQuat O0C cfVSsL
Recognizing the fact the word Crown
would prove distasteful to Americans
he explained in his report that the coin
would bear the figure of an Indian,
with a bow in his left hand, thirteen ar.
rows in his right, and crown resting
under his right foot. Congress debated
never took any definite action upon
them. ~" .-'
Two years later Thomas jefferson,
who was chairman of a committee ap-
pointed to take charge of the formula
ton OF a money standard, did not agree
with Gouveneur MorKisbptan.. exceptsin
cerned. He contended that tKe nnit
(see beceesl bythat gantlcs, an w'oufdicaus
a good deal of confusion' and trouble ih
Soihp shonfa se W stsSsf s 81 tha sssis j
the Spanish dollar. These wsfe: .A3Sen
t,doI1ar, gold .piece,.'s silver dollar, q
silver dime and a copper piece worth
the one-hundredth' part Of q dollar, OF
! one cent. riis i'.i- ;1r:t",rt 80 :.
Congress adopted this report and
passed "a resolution on July 8 of that
year to thes effect that the money unit
%. this 'corintry sho,lld be one dollar
shat, the smallest coin should be: di
copper, of which two hundred SHOULD
pass for dollar" the' half cent?; and
':that the several pieces shall increase
in decimal ratio" In 1855 provision
was made for u coinage on Jeffcrson's s
! basis, but no specific action was taken
! until 100, when that gentleman-then
| occupying the position of secretary oi
| state-urged the necessity Of nations,
! coinage n was not until 1892, how
ever, that laws were enacted establish
ing the mint at Philadelphia, which
was not put Sato full operation until
January, 1795. :,
During this interval many silver and
copper coins were tried, and it is for
that reason that quite a number oi
them issued at thattime are now quoted
by collectors and dealers at fancy
figures. ,,...,. t.....
IT. can be seen b. the foregoing that
the distinction of founding the decimal
currency system. belongs, to both
Gouyencur Morris and Thomas. Jeffer'
FsonE the former suggesting It and the
latter regulating tt-Detroit Free
prpSS-