The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-04-16
MORE THAN ASKED FOR.

A correspondent, noting some queS-
.tions and answers relating to silver
coinage in Sundays issue. makes the
following request:
VIII you give, first, the date and exact
language of the first law passed by Con-
gress Creating or establishing the dollar or
unit; and, second, the date and that part
Of the law passed by Congress which, it is
claimed, changed the unit and destroyed
the legal-tender character of silver?
The Journal will not only give the pro-
visions OF the laws called for, but that
under which there are now 422,826,749
standard silver dollars, which are full
legal tender, and $77,O71,742 of subsidiary
silver money whose legal tender power
has been extended from S. in 1853 to $40
in 1879.
First-The first coinage act became a
law April 2, 1892 Section 9 of that act,
creating the mint, provides:
That there shall be coined at the said
mint coins of gold, silver and copper of the
following denominations, values and de-
ten do Or ns and Pc to OF contain
grains of pure or go grains of standard
gold CHere follows the weight Of half and
quarter eagles.) Dollars. or units. each
to be of the value of Spanish milled dol
lar as the same is now current and to con-
standard silver. Here follows the weights
of the half, quarter and other smaller sill
yer cOlnS.l
Section II of the same law provides
that 1.-The proportional value of gold
to silver in all coins shall be Is to l. ac-
cording to quantity in weight of pure
gold and pure silver that is to say,
every fifteen pounds weight of pure sill
yer shall he of equal value in all pay
ments with one pound weight OF pure
gold"
Second-The law dropping the silver
dollar from the coinage was passed Feb.
IL, 1873. Section IL, defining the gold
COINS begins as follows:
That the gold coins of the United States
shall be. one-dollar piece, which; at the
unit of value CThe weights OF other gold
coins follow.)
Section Is describes the silver coins of
the United States as follows:
The silver coins of the United States
shall b be trade o d9 3b a aa Etc &C.
40 grains troy and the weight of the half
dollar shall be Ivy grams. The sill
yer coins of the United States shall be a
legal tender at their nominal value for any
amount not exceeding five dollars in any
one payment.
That is, the standard silver dollar Of
1929 grains was dropped from the coin
age by the act of Feb. IL, 1873. If, how
ever, there had been any silver dollars
in circulation at this time in the United
States they would have been legal
tender. AS a matter of fact no coin of
any kind was in circulation at that date.
Lest the above may be used to sustain
Professor Coins falsehood to the effect
that the legal-tender limit of silver is S.,
the Journal deems it prudent to state
that the act of Feb. %, 1878, known as
the Allison-Bland law, followed the act
of Feb. H. 1873. 1t provides for the
coinage each month of not less
than two nor more than four
million dollars worth of silver bull
lion into standard silver dollars of 4121a
grains weight. (which coins shall be
legal tender at their nominal value for all
debts and dues, public and private, ex-
cept where otherwise specially stipulated
in the contract The act of June 9, 1879,
extended the legal tender of subsidiary
silver coins from So to $40.
The Journal assumes that all candid
inquirers desire the whole truth relative
to the legislation of Congress affecting
silver, since only half the truth may be
turned into falsehood after the man.
ner of Professor Coin.