The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1896-10-06

July I. 1896, revised edition, says page
ID: Neither silver certificates nor "n-
yer dollars are redeemed In gold.
But The Times ought 10 have known
that without being told. The silver dol
lar coined by the United States Is no
nore redeemahlc than a gol1 dollar IL
e.. by law. ieeal-tender up to any amount
for all dues TO the government or 10
individuals. There IL no hundred cents
I'm gold back Of II. because IL does not
need any such backing. III free coinase
of silver were begun this month by the
government at the rate OF S2oWO'Ooo
month"; IL could be lucky enough 10 get
hold OF that much silver bulhon-evefy
dollar coined would be the legal equal
Of n gold dollar.
II would lie an easy matter - show tho
absurdity OF ali this from the Dispatch
editorials after It turned from free sill
yer to sound money. and before 1t turned
back again TO free silver. But those eol-
torials were known to be written under
the sort of coercion that came from
the Dispatch thinking sound money was
the winning side. and nobody, consequent
". paid any attention TO them at the
time, nor would they carry any weight
now. We shall II erofore state the case
as it is ourselves.
The act OF Congress Of 1913 makes the
gold dollar Of % SO grains, nine-tenths
fine, the unit of value. a dollar In the
United States has. since that act. meant
a gold dollar or its equivalent. That IS
what a dollar is. The act Of 1890, COM
monty called the Sherman law, Pledges
this Government 10 Keep al OF its dol
lars at a parity with each other. and
the Government has. from the day IL
was passed until to-day, let it be known
that It would take whatever action was
necessary 10 accomplish that end. and it
has actually done so. But the only ac-
tual step that It has found necessary WAS
t. give goll for what are known as the
Sherman notes whenever gold was de-
mauiad. These are the notes which
it gave in payment for the tons Of sil-
Yer bullion that It bought under the
Sherman law They were siyen in pay
mont for silver bullion. they were pay
able ,n coin only, and the act under
which they were issued expressly re-
served to the Government the right 10
pay them I'm silver 81 # chose. But when
the Government, notwithstanding an
this. took the ground t.4t in order TO
maintain the parity OF all dollars it would
nay them in gold if gold was demanded
That fact completely satisfied the world
that the Government was determined
that its silver dollars should not depre-
ciate. And this resolve Of the GovernT
ment. wei known by the people is so
fixed. that Secretary Carlisle has recent
" announced that Fl it should become
necessary. the Government would actual
" exchange gold dollars for silver dol
lars upon demand.
But the Governments resolution mas
been powerfully reinforced by it's prac-
tlce. 1t laws its taxes and duties IN dol
lars. which, by fhe act Of 1873 are gold
dollars. but it receives the silver dol
lars I'm pavment Of trom. AL these facts
WORKING, together satisfy the public mind
that the Government win keep the sill
vor dollars as valuable as TIE gold DOL
lars and the public consequently accepts
,ben as the equivalent Of gold dollars
rooardless Of the feet that they are
intr.nsicaily only worth about 30 GEMS