New-York tribune., 1896-07-24

reopening OF the mint to their product This
was In the days Of the greenback craze The
hercest opposition was being manifested to the
proposed resumption of specie payments. There
was u Widespread demand that the Government
shouid 20 on issuing worthless paper. Defeated
IN that the cheap-money advocates turned their
attention to silver and secured after long
struggle. and over the veto Of President Hayes
the passage OF the Bland act as modified by the
senate and accepted by the House as n compro-
mise. In 1878
THE LAW OF 1878
This act OF 1878 did not open the mint to the
free coinage of silver. but directed the Secretary
OF the Treasury ito purchase. from time to time.
SILVER bullion. at the market price thereof not
less than 100000 dollars worth per month. nor
more than 100000 dollars worth per month.
and cause the same to be coined as fast as so
purchased. into such dollars CThe such" in
the sentence quoted refers to previous descrip-
ton CT the dollars. which were to be Of 4l2la
grains Of standard silvcr) The law further
provided that these coins together with all
silver dollars heretofore coined by the United
states, of like weight and fneness. shall be
legal tender at their nominal value for all debts
and dues. public and private except where other
wise stipulated in the contract" The seignior-
age (the difference between the cost of the
bullion and the nominal value of the coins made
from iD under this act accrued to the Govern
ment
The Bland law remained in force until II was
superseded by the so-called Sherman law Of
1890. Under IT 31S. 1876. 793 silver dollars
coined. 1t worked just as its opponents had
predicted. 1t failed to keep up the price of sill
yer, and 1t so imperiled the credit OF the Govern
ment In the effort to keep the silver dollars on
parity with gold that IT had to be repealed.
When it was enacted. in 1873. the worlds
nual output Of silver had reached 13.4IG,000
ounces. and the average market price that year
was $1,152 an ounce. BY 1850 the worlds annual
silver output had reached 120.213.O00 ounces.
and the price had fallen to S0.9351 an ounce.
THE LAW OF 1890
But the silver men not satisfied with this
demonstration Of the impossibility of keeping up
the price of silver by legislation or of maintain
ing the credit Of the Government under the still
greater difficulties Of free coinage. and the repeal
OF the Bland bill only secured by another
compromise, based on a new, but as 1t turned
out, by no brilliant idea. This was a
scheme to purchase silver. but to issue notes
against 1t and keep It i'll the Treasury in the form
Of bullion. as security for the notes. instead Of
coming it, This act directed the Secretary Of
the treasury 10 purchase, from NlUle 10 tllilt,
silver bullion to the aggregate amount OF 4j00-
coo ounces or much thereof as may be offered
in each month. at the market price thereof, not
exceeding one dollar for 311.25 grains Of
pure silver and to issue in payment OF such
purchases Of silver bullion Treasury notes of the
United States" etc. The act also provided that
| these notes should "be 'edeemabc demand in
coin" and should "be a legal tender In payment
of I'll debts public and private. except where
otherwise expressly stipulated in the contract"
| Recognizing the danger to the country which
had been threatened by the coinage of silver dol
lars under the Bland act, and desiring to allay
any fear that the Government might let its sill
yer and paper issues fall to a silver basis. Con-
gress added this significant provision to the law:
That upon demand of the holder of any Of tho
Treasury notes herein provided for the Secretary or
! Treasury shall. under such regulations he
may prescribe redeem such notes in gold or silver
OF the United States to maintain the two metals on
parity with each other. upon the present legal
ratio. or such ratio as may be provided by law
In spite of all these careful efforts to maintain
the price of silver and at the same time make the
currency secure from any danger of depreciation
to a silver basis. the price continued to fall and
credit TO crumble Inside Of three years the
try was in the throes Of financial panic. which
was due in part TO apprehensions regarding the
Silver had dropped to S01S ounce. and the
mines were pouring II out in unheard Of quanti-
ties the total for 1896, being 1G6 092. 600 ounces.
or nearly four times the output Of 1870 The
United States alone in 1892 produced 100000
ounces, against the worlds output Of 900
ounces in 1869 Meanwhile gold going out
Of the country 10 an alarming extent. and was
also being boarded here. European investors,
fearing that gold payments would be suspended
here sent home our securities in large blocks.
The purchasing clause of the law
pealed on November J. 1888. at a special
session Of Congress, called for the pur-
pose During the time he law In opera
ton the Government purchased 1GS.GI4.6S2 fine
ounces of silver at a cost Of S15j.931 ,002. out OF
this amount over 36 100000 silver dollars have
been coined. and the Treasury still holds over
10000 900 ounces Of the bullion, now worth
about % cents ounce.
In repeating the acts OF 1878 and 1870 Con
cress did not repeal the sections mparting
legal tender quality to silver dollars and the
Treasury notes. The silver dollars now in the
country number something over 430OoOVoO but
sre chiefly represented In circulation by silver
certificates or Treasury notes, as even the most
ardent silver men refuse TO he Numbered down
with the cumbersome pieces Of metal The coun-
trvs stock OF gold money Is placed by the official
Treasury statement at about SGOOrUU0o
y
Az UNKNOWN WOMAN'S SUICIDE.