The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1896-09-16
UNITED STATES FINANCES.
History OF the Coinage Laws Since tn.
Organization of the Government, Com
piled for the Northerner by Judg,
Heckert.

from 1863 to 1873 was a marvellous
period IN the history OF metallic money
and monetary systems at home and
abroad. The worlds production OF
gold from 1850 To 1870 was 81, 725, 900,
| 900, or live times as much as the pre-
cedlng twenty years, and quite as much
as during the entire period from the
| discovery OF America 10 the discovery
of gold in California.
/ The commercial world became alarm
ed AT these figures, fearing general
arrangement of values. That the com
mercial value of gold was decreasing
was manifest In the increase OF price
of standard commodities all the world
over. Some French economists thought
it was an excellent time To demonetlze
gold and establish single silver stand
ard. Others thought the lime oppor'
tune to establish the principle OF bl-
metalllsm, Provided the several com
| mercial nations could be brought To
give common consent. France, Italy
Switzerland and Belgium formed what
was called The Latin Monetary Union"
| In 1868, based on bimetallism. But In
1867, was held the international Mon
etary Conference" at Paris, in which it
was laid down that the adoption OF a
single gold standard was principle
necessary TO universal coinage,
Following this, in 1871, came the de.
feat OF France III the Franco-Prussian
war, and her payment of an immense
subsidy In gold to Germany. Imme.
diately, Germany, by series of coinage
acts from 1871 to 1873, demonetiZed her
silver and adopted single gold stand
ard. She stopped coming silver and
threw IL on the market, selling Sl40,-
| OOO, 900 worth between 1878 and 1879
This alarmed the countries pledged to
| a bimetallic system The Latin Union
| closed the minis of France, Belgium,
Italy and Switzerland to the coinage of
silver, thus confessing their inability To
maintain the two metals on an equality
and as money.
For 10 years France did not issue a
single legal tender silver coin, and on
January 1st, 1891, the Latin Union
went out of existence.
Meanwhile our country was passing
through the throes of war and the
decentralization attending an expanded
and strained credit. In 1861, the gov
eminent became a borrower in gold to
the extent of 800, 100000. In Febru.
ary 1862, it passed the Legal Tender
Act" under which 100000, 900 of
greenbacks was issued as legal tenders
At once gold jumped to a. premium.
The governments promises TO pay were
so much cheaper and inferior as cir
culating medium that gold hid itself
away and disappeared as currency.
Ia July, of the same year, another
issue of $3.50, 100000 of legal tenders
was authorized. Gold rose to still
| higher premium. Even our fractional
silver currency, deprecated as it was
| 10y the act of 1853, went to premium
and disappeared with gold. This made
the fractional paper currency necessary
| Subsequent uses of government credit
in various forms and for war purposes,
continued to advance the premium on
gold until in July, 1864, it reached 1875
per cent. Peace, the ability of the
| government TO pay, as steps toward re-
sumption showed, and final resumption
| in 1879, mark the decline of gold to par
again, or, rather, the exaltation of the
government promise TO pay to the gold
standard.
The act of 1873 (this act has become
more famous through subsequent dis
cussions of it than on account of its in
| trinsic merits or the debates which at
tended its passage) is now The Odius
Decentralization Act of 1878, or "The
Conspiracy Against Silver" of that
year. The approaches to no other
| coinage act seem 10 have been more
deliberate and gradual. The original
draft of the act was presented to the
senate as early as April, 1870, by the
then secretary of the treasury, Geo. 5
Boutwell,. 1t had been prepared with
great deliberation under the supervis-
ion of Dr.. Linderman, director of the
mint. 1t proceeded on the theory that
if the American silver dollar were made
the equivalent of the five-franc piece of
France-France being on bimetalIc
basis and with great volume of silver
currency-said dollar might become
interchangeable with the European
coins of like value. The bill, therefore,
| fixed the weight of the silver dollar at
3S4 grains standard silver, that being
the weight of the fiye-franc piece.
The bill fitted back and forth be.
tween the two houses of congress for
three years, the subject of repeated de-
bates and amendments, the theme of
much newspaper discussion, until, at
length, it was passed by the house, with
the clause providing for a silver dollar
1 Will OOf RIdluS III lb Il Ills pIONlSlOu
was struck out by the senate, and what
was called the "Trade Dollar" clause
was inserted in its stead. This clause
provided for trade dollar of 400 grains
standard silver, and limit on its legal
tender quality to the sum of five dollars.
! The object was to provide market for
our production of silver and to make a
dollar which would substitute the old
| Spanish dollar in the Pacific trade with
China and Japan. 1t was dollar of
commerce and not of circulation. Ii
then passed both houses and became a
| law February IL, 1873. This bill pro-
vided that the gold coins shall be one
dollar piece which, at the standard
| weight of 25.S grains, shall be the unit
/ of value.
From the establishment of the mint
in 1892, to what is called THE Demon
citation Act" passed in 1878, the ag-
gregate number of silver dollars coined
was 1880, 53S. And the amount of SUBJ
sidiary coin issued from the minis dur
ing this period was about 139, 900, 900
dollars.
For about IL years prior to 1879 (the
date of resumption) neither gold nor
silver coins were in circulation in the
Il ~ -