The advocate and Topeka tribune., 1892-11-23

0ollAr CaRon away or nmlUeu unhlA bnS
adoption Of the revised statutes In June,
1874.
The act Of February II, 1873, above re-
ferred to, is long act Of sixty-seven Sec
tions, regulating all the details Of the
mint. 1t does not demonetize the old
silver dollar, or any Of the silver coins Of
standard weight issued prior to 1853.
The silver dollar is not named in it, and
it would escape casual observation that
that dollar was in any way affected by it.
Precisely what the act did was to author
ize the coinage Of silver half-dollars,
quarter dollars, and dimes, below stand
ard weight, and Of new silver coin for
Asiatic commerce above standard weight,
to be called "the trade dollar" and to
prohibit these particular coins, described
as "sald COINS" from beng legal ten
der for more than $5 in any one pay
ment.
The act contains, in addition, an
enumeration Of the gold coins, and of the
minor coins Of base metal, which are au-
thorized. It contained no prohibition,
60 nOmine, of the continued coinage of
the old silver dollar, and that it did pro-
hibit that coinage escaped the attention
of the people of the country, who were to
be so injuriously affected by it, by the
generality Of the prohibitory words which
are found in the seventeenth section:
No coins, either OF gold, silver, or minor coin
age, shall hereafter be Issued from the mint,
other than those OF the denominations, stand
ards, ana weights herein set forth
The act Of February II, 1873, did not
demonetize or affect in any manner the
legal tender functions Of the full
weighted silver coins that had been
minted prior to its passage, but the
seventeenth section deprived silver bull
lion Of its right Of being coined into full
legal tender money on either govern
ment or private account.
In no section of the act was it speci6-
cally pointed out or referred to that the
effect of the act was to change the stand
ard Of values.from gold and silver to gold
alone The title of the act, instead Of
containing any intimstion OF the change
made in the standard OF values, was An
act revising and amending the laws rela-
tive to the miats, assay offices, and coin
age of the United States" AS compre-
hensive title as this would have been
required for an act making some insig-
nifcant change in the nickel coinage, or
in the mode Of purchasing chemicals
used in assaying.
The act when passed was not read ex-
cept by title, and it is notorious that
this transcendent change in the money
system Of the country, affecting the most
vital interests, was carried through with
out the knowledge or observation Of the
country. It was neither demanded by
the resolutions Of public meetings or po-
litical conventions, nor asked for in petit
tions from the people. AS paper money
was the actual currency Of the country
at the time, coinage act was not likely
to attract general attention. In its rela-
tion to the question of single or double
standard, 1T was discussed but little in
the house, and not at all in the senate.
The press of the country was entirely un-
observant or silent when it was pending
and when it was passed, and for more
than three years afterward. If it had
been generally known that any such
vital question as the demonstration Of