The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-16
CARLISLE ON SILVER COINS.
THE SECRETARY TELLS WHY THEY
ARE AT PAR WITH GOLD.

can't he Done Under Free Coinage
of silver.
Washington, Sept. 15-Secretary Car
Isle from his summer retreat In Bar
Harbor Me-, has addressed to one of his
Kentucky correspondents the following
letter, which is this day made public:
Mr.. James z. Helm, Louisville. KY
My Dear Sir: Your letter asking how the
silver dollars which contain quantity of
bullion commercially worth only about So
cents each, are maintained as a parity
with gold, Notwithstanding the fact that
the government does not directly redeem
them, or the certificates issued upon
them, in gold, is received, and, as a great
many inquiries upon the same subject are
addressed to me daily from different parts
of the country, which it is impracticable
to answer in detail, l viii take advantage
of your favor to answer them all at once
All the standard silver dollars issued
from the mints since the passage of the
act of 1873, now amounting to more than
$43S co., have been coined on public ac-
count from bullion purchased by the gov
ernment, and are legal tender in payment
| of all debts public and private without
| regard to the amount except when 9th
| erwise expressly stipulated in the contract
between the parties. They belong to the
! government when coined, and they are
paid out by the government at a parity
| with gold for property and services of all
kinds. and received from the people at
parity with gold in payment of all public
dues and demands. The government has
| made no discrimination whatever be-
| no Of he fvNTn
! having been paid on its coin obligations
when gold was demanded, and silver hav-
| ing been paid when silver was demanded.
Under this policy the coinage has been
| so limited by law, and the policy of the
| treasury department, that the amount
coined has not become so great as to drive
the more Valua BILE coin, gold. out of use,
and thus destroy the basis of our none
| tary system; and so long as the two met
ais are of unequal commercial value, at
the ratio established by law, this limita-
| tion upon the coinage is, in my opinion,
absolutely essential to the maintenance of
| their parity in effecting exchanges. 1t con-
stitutes the principal safeguard for the
protection of our currency against the de-
| probation which the experience Of all
countries has shown would otherwise re-
suit from the attempt to use two legal
tender coins Of the same denomination
but OF unequal value. If the limitation were
removed, confluence III ltit hulliAg VI LIZ
government to preserve equality in the ex-
changeable value Of the coins would be
destroyed, and the parity would
be lost long before the amount
of silver coinage had become
really excessive. With free and unlimited
coinage of silver on account OF private
individuals and corporations, the govern
ment would be under no moral obliga-
tion to maintain the parity and, more
over, it would be unable to do so, because
the volume Of over-valued silver forced
into the circulation by a legal tender pro
vision would yoon expel gold from the
country, or put such a premium upon II
that it would be impossible to procure ant
hold in the treasury n sufficient amount
to provide for the redemption of silve'
on presentation. In order TO maintain the
parity under such conditions, the gov
ernment compelled from the beginning tC
| exchange gold for silver dollars and theil
paper representatives, whenever demand
ed Just as 1t now exchanges gold for its
| own notes when demanded; and
as the coinage of silver dol
: lars would be unlimited and
therefore constantly increasing, a point
would soon be reached where 1t would be
impossible to continue the process of re-
demption The implied obligation of the
| government to preserve the value of the
money which 1t coins from its own bull
lion and for its own use, and which n
forces it's citizens to receive in exchange
for their property and services has beer
supplemented by two statutory declara-
tions, which substantially pledge the pub
lie faith to the maintenance of the policy
The act of July IA, 1890, after providing
that the Secretary Of the Treasury should
under such regulations as he might pre-
scribe, redeem the treasury notes ISSUED
in the purchase OF silver bullion, In golt
or silver coin, at his discretion, declares
that It Is "the established policy of th'
United States to maintain the two metal,
| on a parity with each other upon the pres
, ent legal ratio. or such ratio as may b'
provided by law" and the act of Nov. /
1893 again declares 1t to be the policy o.
the United States to continue the use o.
, both gold and silver as standard money
and to coin both gold and silver int
money of equal intrinsic and exchange
able value such quality to be secured
through international agreement or b!
such safeguards Of legislation as will in
I sure the maintenance of the parity o
value of the coins of the two metals ant
the equal power Of every dollar at al
times in the markets and the payment o
! debts"
. With the knowledge Of these assur
, ances the people have received these coin
and have relied confidently upon the goo,
! faith of their government; and the con
fdences thus inspired has been a most DO
tent factor In the maintenance of the par
ity. The public has been satisfied thar
80 long as our present monetary system
IS preserved, the government will IA
, whatever it's moral obligations and ex
press declarations require II 10 do, ant
/ very largely as a consequence Of this con
fidence in the good faith OF the executiv,
, authorities, the silver coins have not de
, preciated in value. IL is not doubted tha
whatever can be lawfully done to main
tain equality In the exchangeable value
of the two metals will be done whenever
II becomes necessary, and, although sil
yer dollars and silver certificates haze
not, up to the present time been received
. in exchange for gold, yet, II the time shal
ever come when the parity cannot be oth
erwise maintained, such exchanges
will be made. IL Is th'
duty OF the Secretary of the
Treasury and all the other public officials
10 execute In good faith the policy de
clared by congress, and whenever he shall
} be satisfied that the silver dollar canno
be kept equal in purchasing power with
the gold dollar. except by receiving It ir
[ exchange for the gold dollar, when such
, exchange is demanded, Il will be his duty
TO adopt that course. But If our present