Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1894-10-05

instead Of being sold as bullion, as had
formerly been the case
Second--The legal tender quality of
these coins was limited to IS $50 that they
would not drive the gold out of circula-
tion).
But the bill was more significant in its
omission than in it's provisions: for ii
omitted all reference to the silver dollar
The mint still remained open to its coin
age, but no silver dollars were coined For
the purpose Of circulation. appeal with
confidence to every man and woman
here old enough to remember the fifties.
know that they will bear me out in the
Statement that they hardly ever saw sill
YER dollar before the war. The silver dol
lar was still legal tender, but no one ever
rendered it: because the bullion in it was
worth about $1.W
: The Act of 1873. z
Probably no act of congress has ever
been more thoroughly misunderstood and
misrepresented than the act of Feb. 70.
1878. Statements have been made about
it which, to those who know the facts in
the case, seem too foolish and trivial to
need an answer. But so many honest.
well intentioned people have heard and
believed them, they have been iterated
and reiterated by so many people who
would not Intentionally make misstate-
ment and so many false notions of finance
have been based upon these misconcep-
tlons that deem it not unworthy or I'M
profitable that we spend short time in
considering the actual facts in the case.
For the purpose of bringing the matter
up to 1873 let us take swift glance over
what I hAVA a1raa1v told v0,,
On the establishment of our mint in 1899
the ratio between gold and silver was
fixed at 1 to Is. This ratio overvalued
silver and undervalued gold. AS conse-
Quence silver was brought to the mint for
coinage and was used as money because
this was the most profitable use to which
it could be put. Gold, being undervalued
at the mint, was not coined for the pur-
poses of circulation, but was sold, whether
coined or uncoined, by weight in the bull
ion market
In 1884 the ratio was changed to 1898.
This was an generalization of gold and an
differentiation of silver. AS conse-
quence gold was taken to the mint for
coinage and use as money, while silver
was sold to the silversmiths and silver
Dealers
In 1853 lack of small change drove con-
gress to adopt new ratio for the coinage
of subsidiary silver.
From 1892 to 1884 we had the free and
unlimited coinage of both gold and silver
free, because the coinage was done at the
expense OF the government; unlimited, be-
cause any person could take any amount
OF bullion of either metal to the mint and
nave 1t coined in money. The law, re-
peat, provided for the free and unlimited
coinage of both metals; but that higher
law to which have referred, that law of
all the ages which prompts human be-
ing to take his wares to the best market,
INTERVIEWED, and as a consequence we had
the actual use, after the first few years, of
silver only
The ratio in 1884 overvalued gold, and
from that time to this, 60 years now-two
generations has been our actual
standard. The ratio was put too high in
1884 on purpose, as avowed by the gentle
man Who, more than any one else, was in
strumental in bringing about that result
Senator Thomas II. Benton of Missouri.
BY 1858, when the third of our great
coinage acts was passed, it had become ap-
parent to practically all students of finance
that no ratio could be fixed by this coun-
try that would permanently keep the two
metals In concurrent circulation, and
therefore, when that act was passed, it
was openly and distinctly avowed that it's
purpose was to retain gold as the stand
ard money and to use silver as subsidi-
airy coin. To the wisdom of this arrange
ment practically no one objected.
On the breaking out OF the war silver
and gold both retired from circulation.
Silver did not return until 1876 nor gold
until 1879
The situation in 1873, then, was this: We
had neither gold nor silver in circulation as
money. They were bought and sold as
commodities The business world was
anxiously looking forward to the time
when they could have stable currency,
one that did not fuctuate in value from
week to week, so that one large element
of chance would be removed from bust
ness enterprises and men could go forward
with more confidence.
The Act of 1879 Was Not a New Act,
it was essentially codification of acts
then in existence. Like the act of 1853, it
omitted all reference to the dollar of 412 10
grains of standard silver. In the first draft
of the bill a silver dollar of 3S4 grains was
provided for; that is. a silver dollar on the
same ratio as the subsidiary coins, and
subject to the same limitations as to legal
tender. In other words, it was proposed
tosubstitute silver dollar that would cir
culate for one that would not and had not
for nearly 40 years. But the argument
was advanced that the subsidiary coinage
would serve every purpose that could be
served even by such dollar. And so in
the revision Of the bill no reference was
made to silver dollar, just as none had
been made in the act of 1853 In the light
of this simple, plain statement, how child
ISL appear certain charges. What need
was there for secrecy? Who needed to be
'bribed to do so simple, plain and natural
thing? 49, Co..
Lest there should be any doubt in the
mind of any good, honest soul as to the
amount of consideration given this bill,
let me cite a few facts. The bill was
framed in the winter Of 1s69-7O. It was
brought before the United States senate
in April, 1870 It was printed and sent
out to large number of persons in this
and other countries who were regarded as
experts in mintage operations. 1t was
printed Is times by order Of congress. It
was considered during five different SEES