, 1896-08-19

telling us what terrible results have
sage of that law. They tell us that sill
yer al demonetiZed; that half our
money was struck down; thai prices
have declined to about half their form
err rates: that matters are constantly
growing worse; that we are on the di-
rect road to ruin; hat if we do not re-
verse things pretty soon we will be a
ma lion of bankrupts, thai the nation it
self will he bankrupt, and all because
of the crime of 1873. That is a fearful
charge, if true. But is it true? Let us
examine the matter "a little. The silver
men say that the coinage law of 1873
was passed by fraud. They tell us that
neither The congress OF the United
States nor the people knew That the
silver dollar had been dropped from
our list of coins by the passage of that
Jaw, until long after it was passed and
had become a law. They even charge
that President Grant. when he signed
the bill, did not know that the silver
dollar had been dropped from our
COINS. | want to say right here that
it was his business to know what vas
in and what was not in the bill when
he signed It. l am fully satisfied that
when congress passed the bill they
knew just what was in the bill n
NH ar had hoor loft nut nf n. and thot
General Grant did also when he signed
it. Our silver friends must be hard
pressed for argument when they resort
TO the cry Of fraud. (A%ppNause). That
bill was passed just as any other bill
is passed; after the fullest discussion OF
all the bill contained both by the en-
ate and by the house. The bill was
prepared by the treasury department,
and the most important change that
VAS made in our coinage laws vas
dropping the silver dollar from IL list
Of coins. The silver dollar had not
been in use since 1884. Experience
had shown hat it was impossible to
nave two standards of different values
in the market of the world at the same
time. to measure the products Of the
world with. BY the natural and newt
able coinage law OF 1884 w e to
the gold basis, and we have been on a
gold basis ever since except from 1861
to 1879 when we were on the paper
basis. The ratio then adopted made
our silver dollar less valuable than the
same amount of silver was when it vas
coined into a dollar. The result was
that our silver dollars left us. They
vent out Of circulation. The money
sharks of those days bought them up
and shipped them abroad as bullion.
Silver was more valuable then as bull
lion than it was as dollars. Hence it
did not come to our mints for coinage.
1t left us and went abroad. and when
We passed the coinage raw of 1873, We
did not invite silver back. The Hon.
John G.. Knox, in his report as comp
troller OF the currency in 1876, in
speaking about this law Of 1878, said:
The coinage law Of 1873 simply regis
tered in the form of a statute what had
been the really unwritten raw of the
land for nearly 40 years"
The bill was introduced into the SEN
ate ON the 2Sth day Of April, 1870. 1t
was discussed for two days by Senators
Sherman, Summer, Bayard. Morrill,
and others. 1t passed the mate on the
10Th day OF January. 1871, by a vote Of
So yeas to IA nays. 1t was introduced
in the house on The 9th day of March,
1871. 1t was discussed by such able
statesmen as Garfield. Kelley. Mayn-
ard, Holman and others. 1t first passed
the house on the 9th day of May. 1872,
by a vote Of ITO yeas to 10 nays. Cap
pfause. The bill was printed 10 times
by order OF congress. 1t was conlsfd-
cred at length by the senate finance
committee, and by the committee on
weights and coinage of the house dur
ing five different sessions Of congress.