The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-05-23
TEN BIG FIRMS.
Dexter Says the Silver Stamping Act
Has Been Violated.

New YORK, May 23.-The grand
jury yesterday began an invss-
tigation into a matter presented for
their consideration by assistant dis
trict attorney Battle on evidence furnished
by Newton Dexter. 1t is in regard to the al
legged violation OF the silver stamping law,
and the following firms were named in
the investigation: III. 9. +. Koch Co.,
Bloomingdale Bros, Enrich Bros, simp-
son, Crawford & Simpson, Adams d Co.,
II. O'Neill & Co., Stern Bros, r. II. Macy
& Co., James A. Hearn e. Sons, Hilton,
Hughes & Co. and A. f. Jammes.
The matter Is one In which unusual
care is being taken to ascertain upon
whom the liability falls, and as far as the
firms mentioned are concerned it Is pre-
sumed that their responsibility is tech
nicsl, il they are liable at all. Mr.. Dexter
has been occupied for several months in
collecting evidence in the case. The evil
cence includes articles and their dupli-
Gates, purchased of the firms mentioned,
W hica articles are marked sterling" and
"coin silver" and were sold as such.
The articles have been asssyed at the
United States Mint, and the result shows
that only one article out OF 80 submitted
asssyed up to the legal standard of .0925,
only five oct OF the whole number reached
90, and a majority dropped to .0OOi, while
several were returned as "pure brass"
This is the first time that any serious
effort has been made to enforce the law
against the sale OF spurious for precious
metals in this country, and TO many the
existence of such law Is unknown. The
law fixes the silver standard at .0925, the
O075 of copper allowed being necessary to
give requisite hardness. To offer for sale
as "sterling" articles below this
standard is a misdemeanor punishable
by fine and Imprisonment. In Eng
land similar law has been in operation
~since 1850, and so severe and prompt is the
punish ment for the slIgh htest violatioycf
it that it is ten years since single case
has been presented. The purchaser OF
silver in Great Britain has an absolute
guarantee of the genuineness of the article
IL 1t bears the government stamp.
The same regulation Of values protects
the buyer on the Continent, where all
Limitation" must be frankly sold as such,
or the alternatives of oonfscation, fine,
and Imprisonment confront the vender
"My only motive in bringing this mat
ter to the attention of the Grand Jury, y
said Mr.. Dexter yesterday, sis to institute
a reform for the protection of the pub
lie. AS matters now stand the gifts
and keepsakes we buy for our friends,
the articles we purchase for ourselves
and for our families, perhaps with the
idea of handing them down to our de-
scendsnts, may be base metal instead OF
the gold or silver we demand and pay for.
Until the law is enforced we have abso-
lutely no guarantee OF values"
Mr.. Dexter added that two sets OF sleeve
links, which he bought in different
shops, were marked sterling" and cost
AZ cents and 75 cents. They were alike in
size and design, and appeared to be of
similar weight. OF these the cheaper
pair assayed six points nearer the stand :
ard, but both were far enough below to
have made the vender liable, in England,
to Imprisonment for from i've TO fifteen
uaars