The Louisiana populist., 1896-12-18
NATCH1TOCKES. La. DECEMBER Is, 1896

160 of them IN a pound. The scent
pieces cost about 80 cents pound, and
there are So of them in a pound. The
pieces are run through the dies and
come out money.
The demand notes authorized July
II, 1861, were payable In dollars, not in
coin. They were not based on bonds
or anything else. They were simple
promissory notes. August 5, 1861, they
were made receivable for all public
dues, and March II. 1862, they were
made legal tender the came as green
backs. They had no exception clause.
The reason why gold or silver ever
goes TO a premium is not because of
any change IN their intrinsic values,
but because the laws of different coun-
tries affix certain arbitrary legal values
to coins of certain weight, and specu-
lators deal in bullion the same as they
do in wheat. cotton or land-things
whose. values the laws do not interfere
with.
III dollar is worth a hundred cents,
hundred cents ought to be worth 4
dollar. but they are not. They are
bought for 20 cents a pound at the
mint. They are run through a ma
chine that stamps them, and then they
are money; but their money function
is limited to sums of one quarter OF a
dollar. though there are 160 Of them in
a pound.
Railroad managers, in paying their
hands with silver dollars, have benefi-
cent objects in view. They want to
teach their men % that silver dollars
are 5O-cent dollars; (2) that silver dol
lars are good money-full legal tender,
equal In purchasing power to any other
dollar, and go that as long as the boys
will do good work and keep out OF poll
tics their wages will be paid in money
that will go anywhere in the world.
The talk about 50-cent silver dollars
is nonsense, as everybody knows.
Five silver dollars will buy as much of
anything as s. gold piece anywhere
within the United States. Nobody dis
putes this. Then what becomes OF the
5O-cent dollar idea? Free silver coin
age would not give us more than twice
as much silver coin as We got while
the Bland law was in force-1S7S 20
1890, and We had no 50-cent dollar then.
Free coinage means that when a
person takes bullion to the mint it will
be coined fer him free of charge. He
takes the coin when it is ready, and he,
not the government, puts it in circula-
tion. He wants it to circulate and for
no other purpose. 1t is of no use to
him unless it does circulate. His first
effort after getting the coin into his
possession is to find some profitable
way to get rid of it. He Immediately
puts 1t where 1t will begin to perform
its lawful functions as money. Hence
free coinage of silver would at once get
fresh money-full lawful tender money
into active circulation, leaving bless
ings in its wake.
Those persons who dread the idea o.
fiat money would do we'll to study the
history of our coinage. 1t is printed in
this issue of the Advocate. The 1-cenl
piece now in use is not half as heavy
as the first ones authorized in 1872
That one was once reduced in weight
by law and once by proclamation oi
the president Our gold coins were re-
duced in weight per cent in 1884
Our subsidiary silver coins are those oi
value less than s1-were reduced in
weight per cent in 1853. and again
slightly changed in 1873. The silver
dollar, however. has remained the same
except that the copper alloy in 1t was
reduced a few grains in 1888.
Free coinage puts money out al once
among the people, while II bullion Is
purchased for coinage and paid fol
with paper, the coin is apt to be stored
and may not get into circulation at all
II would change the situation IL COIN
age value was paid for the bullion and
the paper made full legal tender. But
none of our paper, under the present
practice and under existing laws. will
pay a gold debt; at any rate, not Till
after Judgment is taken and execution
issued. The court could not enforce
payment in gold, even though the judg-
ment be for gold. The security would
be sold for whatever II would bring in
dollars. and that would be the end OF
the transaction.