People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1896-09-10
What McKinley's Election Means.

W VuO dCU VI I'oA hdS ID W l. Oy Gut
act Of 1894 this was changed to Is to l.
and again by the act of 1887 to 1885
tO1. So we see the ratio was slightly
changed, but the free coinage of both
silver and gold as provided foe by the
act of 1893 was continued unaltered
until 1873.
From 1892 to 1853 any person who
had silver could take it to the mint
and have it freely coined into any Of
the coins provided for by law and dur.
ing these years relatively more of the
smaller denominations were used than
now, and during that period most Of
the coinage done was in halves and
quarters, and all this time fractional
currency was full legal tender the
same as the dollar piece.
A great deal mas been said about
and a great deal of stress laid unc ,
the fact that only 100000 silver col
lars were coined from 1892 to 1873.
This made no difference what denom-
nations were coined Sc long as coin
age was free and fractional coins were
full legal tender.
And again. The Spanish milled
dollar, the Mexican dollar, the dollar
of Peru and Bolivia, the five franc
piece and some certain foreign gold
coins circulated here as full legal ten.
der. This was the case until 1851,
and in fact they continued to circu.
late more or less until just before the
war. No one can tell how many Of
them were in circulation, but there
were large amount.
So there was plenty of money for all
purposes and no need of the mint
coming any larger amount, although
coinage was free and unlimited.
In this connection, and as a part Of
the conditions as they existed prior to
1873, wish to state the actual coin
age Of silver in the United States from
1892 up to 1873, as taken from the
records Of the mint: The total COIN
age of full weight full legal tender
silver coins from 1892 down to 1853
was little over $37, OOO,O 900; and from
1892 down to 1873 over $93,OOO,OOO of
full legal tender silver money had
been coined at our minis.
We think the writer is a little mis-.
taken here. Subsidiary coin was not
legal tender for amounts above $40
after 1853.-ED. VOICE
The significant fact in all this is
that silver and gold were both used
as money prior to 1873; that the coin
age of both was free and unlimited,
and it made no difference whose coins
were struck, the assertions of gold
bugs to the contrary Notwithstanding.
1t is notable fact that in the two
years prior to the act Of 1893 nearly
two and half millions of standard
silver dollars were coined and one
million of these were coined in the
few weeks of 1873 before the passage
OF the act of February II, 1878, which
closed the minis to free coinage.
This showed that, as contraction of
currency took place, silver began to
flow to our minis. Had it not been
for The passage of the act of 1873, we
would have been practically at the
bimetallic level before the end of
1874, and all the loss and agony of
contraction to reach the utterly alb
surd level of the gold standard would
have been at an end.
Such was the condition in our coun.
try prior to 1873 when silver was
stricken down. Under such a condi.
tion, prosperity, thrift, enterprise and
industry were seen en- every hand.
Our factories were kept busy. Indus
tries and enterprises Of every charac.
ter were springing up all over the
land. Idle labor was fully employed.
Cities sprang up as if by magic. The
farmer was happy and prosperous be-
cause he received a remuneratiye
price for his products. The naked
were clothed, the hungry were fed and
a bright future seemed to spread out
before Us as a nation.
Now let US notice the circulation
curing Vhls period, especially during
the 6OS' The Peoples party are in
favor of a circulation of money-gold.
silver and paper-such as will give at
least $50 per capita for every man.
woman and child in the United States
l think l can show from an autheu.
t., source that we had more money in
circulation in 1876 for thirty-fIye
millions of people by far than we have
now for seventy millions, the asser-
tions OF gOldbugs to the contrary not.
withstanding.
In his "Case for Bimetallism" Paul
VandervOOrt states that all state.
ments of circulation have been defec.
tive, and have rested as supposed
statements made by John J. Knox at
D;@tehu,c, ia 1919