The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-07-05


debts and receivable for all public dues,
and to be reissued by the government.
The secretary OF the treasury 1t required
to redeem these notes In gold or silver
coin at his discretion. To induce the
national banks to accept them they are
authorized to count them as a part of
their lawful reserves. Coinage OF silver
dollars was to continue as provided by
the Bland act till July l, 1891, and after
that the secretary was required TO coin
any additional bullion that might be nee
essary to redeem the treasury notes is
sued for its purchase.
Under the act of 1873 the government
purchased 291, ,292, ,019 ounces of fine silver
at cost Of S30s, ,199, ,262 and coined II in
10 silver dollars TO the amount Of $31S,-
1s6,793. The profit Of nearly $I0,OOO,0OO
made by stamping a falsehood on the
coins was covered into the treasury as
so much profit. Under the act Of 1890
the government up TO June 1, 1893, had
purchased Sl45,36 ,857, and under the in
junction Of continued coinage for year
under the act of 1890 there were coined
additional dollars TO the amount of $780,
087, ,040. Addnd TO these amounts the re-
coinage of trade dollars into standard
dollars we had, on June 1, 1893, coined
silver dollars amounting to si19, 1902.
IF we take the market price of silver
on June l, 1898 (S3 cents per ounce, the
loss on this bullion so purchased by the
government was on that day SS3,5lS.e2S,
On June 26, 1893, bar silver was worth I3
cents per ounce. entailing upon the GOV
ernment an additional loss OF s44,5s3,4S2
in less than a month.
when we examine the financial his
tory of the country, and more especially
the history Of our coinage laws, the new
born zeal for the silver dollar as deVel-
oped in the act of 1878 is quite remarka-
bic.
AT the time Of its passage the dol
lar provided for was intrinsically worth
only 80 cents as compared with gold
that is, the ratio of value as between
this authorized dollar and the gold dol
lar was 1894 TO l instead Of is TO l, as
fixed by the coinage act of Jan. Is, 1881
Silver had then been constantly deelin-
ing for several years, and all Europe
had closed its mints against it's coinage,
except into subsidiary coins, limited as
to legal tender quality. OF this fact the
congress of 1878 was surely advised, be-
cause the second section Of the act
makes II obligatory on the president to
invite the countries comprising the
Latin Union. which had been the last to
reject the use of silver, and other ma
tions OF Europe to join us in a confer
ence to adopt a common ratio between
gold and silver, and to secure flxity of
value between the metals.
The Decentralization Act.
ITO show beyond all cavil that the act
! tender for debt was advisedly and con-
siderately passed, we need only examine
| the contemporaneou legislation on the
same kindred questions. Tie provisions
Of the act of 1878 itself are too plain to
have been misunderstood. and TO have
| made them different would have been a
marked departure from the policy or
| the government. as fixed by the coinage
| act of Feb. q, 1853. which decreased the
quantity of metal in the subsidiary sill
yer coins, limiting their legal tender char
acter to payments Of s. and less. Hence
| the act of 1873. dropping the further
mention of the silver dollar from the
| coinage of the United States, expressly
| confines the use Of all silver coins or
| the United States to payments not ex-
| ceeding 50 in amount.
The act Of Suns 20, 1874. vas strictly
| in consonance with that of 1873 1t had
| been our previous policy, since the foun-
| dation Of the government, to make for
| eign coins Of both gold and silver re-
| ceivable for public dues and also be-
/ tween individuals The values fixed by
| law for many Of these coins, especially
| those of silver. were already beyond
| their intrinsic worth, and silver gave
| signs of continued decrease. Hence the
| act of 1874 declared % that all foreign
coins should cease to be legal tender,
| (0 that the gold coins of the United
|
| weight Of tolerance should be legal
| tender for all debts, 90 that the silver
| coins of the United States, including, of
| course, the silver dollar. shall be a legal
| tender at their nominal value for any
amount not exceeding 50, and (D that
the minor coins, the nickels and copper
| cents shall be legal tend T for only %
| cents
"It was obvious to the least discern
| ing financiers of the country that the
| act of 1878 would eventually bring about.
| not a double standard as pretended by
| its friends but a single standard OF de-
| preciated silver. Hence from the begin
| ming. these dollars were received with
| great distrust. But congress, having
| entered upon this strange scheme Of
/ expansion, determined to use the power
/ of the government 10 force the circula-
| ton upon an unwilling public. The as
| sociated banks of New York, Boston and
/ Philadelphia adopted rules forbidding
| the use Of these dollars and also the sill
/ yer certificates in clearing balances
among themselves. 1t really seems that
| when both debtor and creditor agree not
| to urge a currency thought to be in
| furious 10 the public welfare. they
/ should be allowed to reject II in their
/ own transactions without the fear of
| punishment. The national banks, how
/ ever. held their charters from the gov
| ernment and the discipline of congress
| was soon brought TO bear. 1t was de-
/ creed that no national bank should be-
| long 10 a clearing house that refused
| silver certificates in payment of ball
| ances. When bank charters had to be
| renewed the renewal was conditioned on
/ the receipts and circulation of a cur
| rency already bad. and getting worse
/ day by day The government now en-
| tered the field as a common carrier and
| transported, without charge, this unac-
| ceptable currency to any part of the
1 country that would deposit gold for IL
| in the sub-treasuries. Thus the govern
| ment sowed the wind and now, by the
| just law of retribution. reaps the whrl-
| wind. The public demands that gold
| back and the government must pay il
/ or embark at once on the treacherous
sea Of deprecated currency.
| When pains and penalties failed 10
| coerce the banks the persuasion of self
| interest was resorted 70 and they were
| offered the bribe that silver certificates
received by them might be counted in
| banks remained obdurate against their
| seduction. IL was thought the general
| public might surrender TO the tempta-
| ton Of small notes, and 10 that end in
| 1885, II was enacted that the secretary
| of the treasury should hereafter issue
silver certificates in denominations Of
| 81 81 and So and that the larger certif-
| Gates already issued under the act of
1873 might be exchanged for the smaller
denominations.
Expanding the Currency.
"If greater expansion Of the currency
were really required by the legitimate
| demands of business IL might have been