Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-05-21

rtNlA'A experiment Wnlcn can be
safely tried to-day and abandoned to-
morrow, because the consequences
would be so enduring that that they
would be felt for years after the policy
had been reversed. IL is incumbent.
therefore, to show conclusively that il
would result in no injury, but in posi-
tive benefit. The allegation, even if
III were true. that a crime was COM
mltted IN 1873, does not conduce to
prove, that the free coinage of silver
tJ the ratio Of 16 to 1 would be bene-
nciaL The act of February u, 1873,
which made the gold dollar the unit of
value and dropped the standard sill
yer dollar was pending in Congress for
three years and was considered dur
ing five sessions; it was recommended
IN Two reports of the Secretary of the
treasury, and the Director of the
Mint and it was officially printed and
iaid on the desks of the members thir-
teen different times before the final
vote was taken. The discussion of ie
I'm the House fills siXty-six columns OF
the Congressional Globe, and in the
Senate seyeuty-elght columns. AS
nrst reported to the Senate and passed
by that body in January, 1871, the bill
did not provide for the coinage Of any
silver dollar whatever, but expressly
limited the coinage of that metal Is
subsidiary pieces-half dollars, quar-
ters and dimes. In this form. without
any provision for the coinage Of any
Kind Of silver dollar, the bill was pass
ed m the Senate on the 10th day Of
January, 1871, upon the call of the
yeas and nays, and the record shows
that the two Senators from Kentucky,
Hon. Garrett Davis and Hon Thomas
@. McCreery the distinguished Demo
cratic Senator from Ohio, Hon. Allen
O.. Thurman, the present Senator from
Nevada, Hon William NJ Stewart, to-
gether with all the other Senators from
the Pacific slope voted in the afirma-
tive, while Senator Sherman, Senator
Morrill,, and twelve others voted in
the negative. The reason given by
llr sherman for voting against the
bin was that the Senate had in Obedi-
ence TO the demands of the Senators
from the Pacific Coast, so amended the
bin. after it was reported from the
committee, as to abolish the charge OF
One-dith of one per cent. for coming
gold. thus making the coinage Of thai
metal entirely free. The bin went 10
the House of Representatives, but it
was not disposed Of during that Con-
gress, and at the first session Of the
next Congress Mr.. Kelley, Of Pennsyl-
vania. introduced it in the House and
it was referred to a committee. So
far as the coinage of the silver dollar
was effected, the bill introduced by
him was precisely the same as the one
that had passed the Senate-that is, it
made no provision for such a coin.
However, when the bill was. finally re-
ported back from the committee to the
BOuse it was so amended as to provide
FOR the coinage of a subsidiary piece,
20 De called q dollar, and to contain 3SF
grains of standard silver, the same ar
The French j-franc piece, and it was
10 De legal tender to the extent Of five
dollars. and no more. In this form it
passed the House by q very
large maiOrity-in fact, the Op-
that the yeas and nays were not even
called. The Senare struck out the
5-frank subsidiary dollar and sUbsti-
tuted for it another subsidiary coin,
called the trade dollar, containing 420
grains of standard silver, and prOvid
ed that it should be a legal tender to
the amount Of five dollars, and no
more. A committee OF conference was
appointed, the Senate amendment was
agreed 20. and the bill became a law
bv the approval of President Grant on
the 18th day Of February, 1873. This
brief historical statement of the pro-
ceediugs. which is fully sustained by
the official record, shows that it was
well understood i'm Congress that the
Old stiLderd silver dOlllr of fl22
grains was not TO be thereafter coined
at our mints. and that the only differ
ence Of opinion that ever existed, even
mpOrarily, between the Senate and
House was whether they would sub
sriute I'm it's place a subsidiary coin
containing 3S4 grains. or a subsidiary
coin containing 420 grains of silver
No proposition was made in either
body TO continue the coinage Of the
old dollar. or to- make any silver coin
the unit Of value or a full legal tender
in the payment Of debts.
THE PLAIN TRUTH Is
that this act Of 1873 was simply a legal
recognition of a monetary condition
which had existed for thirty-fve years.
From ISIS until after the passage Of
the Blaud-Allison act in 1878, no silver
dollars were lin circulation in this
country. and our whole currency con-
sisted of gold coins and bank notes,
except from 1862 20 1873, when our
active circulation, outside of CalifOr-
mia and it's ueighbOring territory, was
all paper. Our own experience had
again demonstrated what the history
of the world already shOwed-that
whenever the coinage laws Of any
country permit the free coinage Of
both metals with full legal tender
qualities at q ratio of value which
does not conform substantially TO their
intrinsic or commercial ratio in the
markets Of the world, both kinds OF
coin cannot be kept i'm circulation at /
the same time. The reason is that. |
both being full legal tender the least |
valuable coin will always be used in |
making payments. and will become the |
sole measure of value. and the most |
valuable viii be boarded or sent out /
of the country into markets where its /
real value can be obtained.
Our first coinage law. passed in |
1892. provided for full legal tender !
gold and silver coins at the ratio of 15 !
TO i: this ratio, Mr. Hamilton, who |
it. and the Congress /
which adopted it. utilized the existing !
intrinsic ratio between them. A brief |
experience showed that silver had been /
over-valued in the law. and by 1872 !