The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1894-09-22
SILVER COINAGE.

The Secretary of the Treasury Gives Out
Some information a. to the Coinage Of
Silver Dollars.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 10. Secretary
Carlisle yesterday made q statement
concerning the coinage of silver dol
lars under this administration, the
coinage being under the unrepealed
portion Of the Sherman act. 1t shows
that since the administration came
into power 1907, 233 standard silver dol
lars have been coined, Of which SEQ. O69
have been seigniorage. The secretary
says:
While the law provides that redeemed treas
ury notes may DO reissued. IL also imposes an
express limitation upon the power TO reissue
by declaring that mo greater or less amount OF
such notes shall be outstanding ct any time
than the cost OF the silver bullion and tho
standard silver dollars coined thereform then
held In the treasury purchased by such notes"
When such notes arc redeemed in gold there II
no obstacle in the way Of their reissue, because
such redemption does not Affect the stock Of
silver held In the treasury under the act OF July
l4.1000: but. when they are redeemed with silver
coined from the bullion purchased under that
aot, they must be retired and Cancelled, for
otherwise there would be, after the redemp-
tlon and reissue, q greater amount Of notes
outstandingt than the cost OF the silver origt-
nally purchased and then held In the treasury,
and this is expressly prohibited by the statute.
The purpose Of congress was to prevent the
duplication OF the currency, which would be
the case II the notes and the silver purchased
with the notes could be outstanding Ut the
same time,
Treasury notes received In the ordinary
course OF business, or redeemed In gold or ex-
changed for silver dollars not coined from
bullion, purchased under the act OF July II,
1900. are not retired and cancelled. All such
notes are reissued. Prior to the lst day OF
July, 1891, silver dollars to the amount of $685.
26l were coined from the bullion purchased
under that act. The so-called gain or seignAor-
age arising from this coinage was e.S67 .SO3,
which was paid into the treasury rs miscel-
laneous receipts, leaving 81, $50, 46i to be held
as u fund to provide for the redemption OF tho
treasury notes. as provided by law.
At the beginning OF the present administra-
ton this sum Of eS.4s0.t8 was still In tho
treasury and standard silver dollars to the
amount Of 81 ,597. e23 have been coined since that
time. OF this last sum-, however. t20.09 was
seigniorage, leaving 81 .O7, IA to be held In the
treasury. II appears, therefore,. that the whole
coinage under the act has been G7,0Ja,4s7 and
that the amount to be held In tho treasury for
redemption purposes was 8 ,b57. 605; OF this
sum q, l2i 600 has been used In the redemption
Of the notes and that amount has been retired
and cancelled.
No treasury note has been redeemed In sill
YER unless silver was demanded. the policy and
practice OF the department having always been
to redeem In the kind Of money demanded by
the holder Of the note. Tho presentation OF
treasury notes for redemption In silver began
In August. 1873. when there was a great
scarcity OF currency Of small denominations.
and there was redeemed during that month
o. ga. 267. which is the largest amount that has
been presented during any one month
As shown above, there were held In the
treasury Mt the beginning Of this administra-
tion 81, $50. i6l In silver coined from the bullion
purchased under the act Of July II. 1890. Not
withstanding the fact that o. .i57. e23 have been
coined since that time, there are now on hand
only ga, ls9, ia.