The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1895-05-30


In 1879, Prof Simon Newcomb, an au-
thority in financial matters, wrote:
=" 1t would probably be safe to assert that
one-half of the citizens of our country, born
since 1910, had never seen United States
silver dollar"
Early in 1870 Hon. John Jay Knox, Dep
uty Comptroller of the Currency, wrote a
communication to Hon. George S. Bout
well, Secretary of the Treasury, urging
revision of the coinage laws. which had re-
manned unamended since 1S37-with the
exception of the subsidiary coinage amend
ment of 1s54-and submitting draft of
proposed bill, which contained number of
new features which he considered advisable.
These related mostly to details of admins
tration of the MINIS, regulation of alloys,
reduction in the amount of wastage and the
tolerance in the manufacture of coin, etc.
The discontinuance of the coinage of the
silver dollar was recommended, for good
reasons, because it was then worth 81 .O3l2
in bullion. If Congress desired to continue
its coinage he recommended that il be re-
duced in weight until ii was of the same
value as the Mexican dollar, and then be is
sued only as commercial dollar" and
not be made a unit of value, and legal ten
der only to a small amount.
Secretary Boutwell, sent the communica-
ton, with his own recommendation. to SEN
ator John Sherman, who, April 20, 1870,
introduced bill embodying substantially
that drafted by Mr.. Knox, which made the
sole unit of value a one dollar piece of nine
tenths fine gold weighing 25S grains. The
silver dollar was dropped by not being in
cluded in the list OF coins specified. This
bill was read, referred to the Committee on
Finance, and ordered to be printed
In the meanwhile the House had been
paving some attention to the matter. Opin-
isns had been solicited from experts all over
the country, and communications had been
received from them. which were printed ut
length in June, 1870, in Executive Docu-
ment No. 307. The opinion Of these experts
was decidedly against going on coming a sill
yer dollar which only survived in cabinets
of coin collectors, the Others being melted
up as fast as they were gotten hold OF. There
was difference of opinion among them,
however, as to whether it were better to re-
duce the weight of the coin to 384 grains.
Most of them were against this. as introduce
ing an unnecessary complication into our
coinage.
Dec 10, 1870, Senator Sherman reported
the bill back to the Senate, with few
amendments, the most important being q
reduction of the charge for coinage.
Jan. 10, 1871, the bill was taken up in
the Senate, and considered at length, but the
only debate was upon the charge for COIN
age. The reduction was sustained by n vote
of 26 to %. The next day the considera-
tion was resumed, and the Senate reversed
its action on the coinage charge. The bill
was then passed by vote of SO to IA.
The Republicans who voted for it were:
Senators A. /. Foreman, VIM G.. Brownlow,
c. Cole, Roscoe Conkling, III. w. Corbett, A.
Gilbert, Hannibal Hamlin, James Harlan,
ID. T. Jewett, W. p. kellogg, o. p Morton,
James w. Nye, j. w. Patterson, S. C.. Pome-
Geo. Z. Spencer, w. NJ. Stewart, Chas. Sum-
lard Warner, w. T.Willey, Geo. II. Williams,
Henry Wilson, and Richard Yates.
The Democrats who voted for it were:
Senators Thos. f. Bayard, Eugene Casserly,
Garrett Davis, j. w. Johnson, Thomas c.
McCreery, Willard Salisbury, J. p. Stock
ton, Allen G. Thurman, and Geo. Vickers.
The IA Senators who voted against it were
all Republicans.
Jan. IL, 1871, the bill was received by the
House, referred to the Committee on Coin
age, Weights and Measures. and considered
by that COMMITTEES until Feb. 25, when it
reported back substitute bill, which made
some changes of little Importance, mainly as
to the extent 10 which the subsidiary coin
age was to be legal tender. Nothing more
was done with the matter by that Congress.
March 8, 1871, Mr.. w. d. Kelley rentro-
duced the bill, which was referred to the
Committee on Coinage, Weights and Meas
ures, which retained it until Jan. 8, 1872,