Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-09-19

United States after five years, thong
they were not payable until twenty year
after date. The five years had expired i
1863 on $500, 100000, and was to expire tn
following year on 5000, 100000 more. Th
act of 1869, to strengthen the purses Q
the bond.holders, surrendered this priv
lege and bonnd the government to re
deem in coin, then at an enormous pre-
MUM, or to continue the payment of in
terest until the resumption of speci
payments, ten years later, in 1879.
"This was followed July IA, 1870, b,
the refunding act, under which existing
bonds we're authorized to be converted
into bonds payable, principal and inter
est, 'in the coin of the United States o
the present standard value.' That is Il
say, the value of July IA, 1870. Silver
dollars were at that time, equally with
gold, full legal tender.
| "a second uuauccessfuI attempt at the
demonstration Of silver was inaugurated
on April 25, 1870, by the introduction il
the senate by Senator Sherman of "A bill
(No. S59) revising the laws relating to the
mint, assay Offices and coinage of the
United States.' According to this state
ment the bill was framed in the treasury
department by distinguished body Of
experts II contained seventy-one sec
tions, the fifteenth of which gave list ot
all silver coined to be thereafter issued
and the eighteenth of which prohibited
the issuance of any not named therein.
Ths silver dollar was omitted from the
list, and the mints were thereby to be
closed against deposits of silver bullion
for coinage. But the bill contained no
reference to this fact, which might be
said to appear only by not appearing.
Nor did Mr.. Sherman call the attention of
the senate to this proposed momentous
revolution in our monetary system. On
the contrary, he reported deceptive
amendment to the bill imposing charge
of $40 of per cent 'for coinage, whether
the gold and silver deposited be coined
or cast into bars or ingots.' He vigor-
ously supported this amendment, which
contained, by necessary implication, the
assertion that under the bill silver bull.
lion could still be deposited for coinage,
when he knew that section 18 expressly
provided that it could not. No better
he addressed were unaware of the omis-
sion by him of the silver dollar than the
act that no one appeared to observe this
gross inconsistency.
Was Never Acted Upon by the House.
The bill passed the senate January 10,
1871, but was never acted on by the house.
"The third and finally successful move
ment for the characterization of silver
was the introduction in the house of rep.
resentatives on March 9, 1871, of bill
mo. 1427), revising and amending the
laws relative to mints, assay offices and
Coinage of the United States. II was in
troduced by Mr.. Kelly, of Pennsylvania,
chairman of the committee on coinage,
and reported by him favorably from that
committee on January 8, 1872. He in
formed the house that it had been pre-
pared in the treasury department for the
purpose OF codifying and simplifying the
mint laws, and he and his colleague on
the COMMITTEES Maynard, of Tennes-
see-both stated that 1t was mere revis-
ion of the mint laws, the only i'm portant
change being the creation of a mint bu-
reau in the treasury department.
ut was recommitted January 10, and
again reported with amendments, Feb
ruary 9, l872-this time by the Hon. Sam
uel Hooper, of Massachusetts. He stated
that the bill reduced the weight of the
silver dollar from 412N grain to 348, but
he did not state that it proposed, as il
did, to demonetize silver by making the
silver dollar legal tender only in sums
not to exceed IS. Mr.. Clarkson Potter,
of New York, however, debated that pro.
vision, which he objected to as being Ill
timed, and he also strongly objected to
other features of the bill.
"Pending debate the house adjourned
without action.
"The main object of the bill, which Mr..
Hooper had carefully concealed, having
been thus disclosed by Mr.. Potter, the
measure was apparently abandoned; but
on May ~, following, after IL had slum-
bored nearly four months, Mr.. Hooper, in
the absence of Mr.. Potter, again called il
up for the purpose of moving a substi.
tute. This substitute was never read,
Mr.. Hooper assuring the house that IL had
been submitted to the different gen tlemen
In the house who had taken special inter.
est In the bill, and that il had met with
universal APPRECIATION In the form in
which he offered IL. This was equivalent
to saying that IL no longer contained the
provisions objected to by Mr.. Potter.
Mr.. Hooper answersd every question con-
oerning IL, bat no question was asked or
statement made as TO the silver dollar or
the Limitation OF lie legal tender quality
to Is. This statement can easily be veri-
Hsd by the reference to the Congressio onal
Globe, part s, second session, 42d CON-
grsss, pages 1882 and 1888.
4Hl