River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1895-05-30
Tie Silver Question Again.

To the Editor of the River rails
JOURNAL. De0r Sir:-In your issue OF
May 23you say the Hudson Star and
Times reprints from the Milwaukee
Sentinel the stale old story that the
characterization act" of 1873 was fully
discussed before its passage" etc.
After saving you are not defending free
coinage but fail TO see where any
thing is gained for an otherwise good
cause by Misrepresentation, you say,
1T is true that the act OF 1873 was
debated for a long time in both
houses of congress, but the demOnattzd-
ton CLAUSE tCdS inserted tritcR that debate ,cGS
about closed and was not the subject OF
long discussion After giving the
title of the act you say, Better tell
the facts, Brethren or you lay your
selves open To the charge you
yourselves make against Coin"
Facts" Mr.. Editor. plain well
authenticated facts, are what is now
wanted in the discussion OF this free
silver question. There has been 50
much lying and Misrepresentation
about the act of Feb. 18th. 1873, so
much fog and dust has been stirred
up about il fear the Editor OF the
JC URNAL has become a little bofoged
with many otherwise well Informed
people. The JOURNAL could not do
its readers IA better service than TO
print full and complete history of
this law from its first inception to its
final passage.
Time will not permit me to tell
what little | know, or think L know,
about the history of this bill. | shall
only attempt to give enough Facts"
to correct the error of the JOURNAL
in its statement that 1.-THE de-
monetization clause was inserted in
the bill when the debate was about
closed
How did the bill get into Congress?
The bin was prepared in the treasury
department after consultation and
correspondence with large number
of experts upon the various subjects
of the bill in all parts OF the country.
The bill with the report of John j.
Knox, deputy controller of the curren-
cy, containing all the correspondence
was sent by Mr.. Boutwell,, secretary
of the treasury, to John Sherman,
chairman Of the committee on finance
in the senate, with a letter dated
Feb. 25th, 1870. Mr. Knox in his re-
port accompanying this bill says:
The coinage of the silver dollar piece,
LIlC ulSlUIl VI WHICH, II lltlG ElNCDs -
discontinued in the proposed bill.
Further on he says, The present
gold dollar piece Is made The dollar unit in
the proposed bill, and Inc Siluer dollar
piece Is discontinued. a"
John Sherman in a speech in the
senate Aug. 80, 1898, says, 1.-THE
Finance Committee carefully eXamin-
ed that bill. We were not in any hurry
about it," Further on he says, THE
dollar was dropped from the coinage
in the bill framed in the treasury de-
partment + No one proposed
TO reinsert it.
This bill was sent to congress
February 18th, 1870, and was finally
passed Feb. II. 1873, and at no time
during its consideration in either
mouse of congress did il contain any
provision for the coinage OF the silver
dollar of 1925 grains of standard
silver. So your statement that the
decentralization of the silver dollar
was stricken out near the close of the
debate must be an error.
Now, Mr.. Editor, / have written
this TO correct your misstatement
which have charity enough TO believe
was not intentional. 1t requires
careful study to get at the facts in
the discussion of this silver question.
If [ have not stated Facts" kindly
point out wherein | have erred and l
will cheerfully acknowledge the corn.
Very Truly Yours,
IACnR STAFF