The San Francisco call., 1896-03-17
1RcAoOnL 49, .
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY,
WASHINGTON, D. c., March 16, 1885, }

tfpes-My DEAR SIR: Your favor of February
II was duly received, and ought to have
been answered at once, but the pressure OF
official business has compelled me to delay
response until now.
You state that in speech delivered by Hon.
Charles F. Crisp in the House of Representa-
tives on the 14th day of February that gentle
man said: "He (meaning the Secretary OF the
Treasury refused to give silver for gold be-
cause he must hold the silver to pay the silver
certificates and Sherman notes, issued under
the act of 1890 and, when Sherman note is
sued under the act Of 1890 is presented, he re-
deems it in gold and not in silver. What
mockery is this? What sort of friendly treat
ment is accorded silver by this law and the
practice that obtains at the Treasury of the
United States?' and you ask me to state fully
how you u have dealt with the silver cur
rency since your (my) incumbency of the Office
of Secretary of the Treasury, and whether you
% have in dealing with the subject discredited
silver?
In answer to your question I can only say
that in all the operations of the Treasury De-
partmelt during my administration OF its
affairs the legal tender gold and silver coins
of the United States have been treated pre-
cisely alike, except that great efforts have
been made to keep silver coins in circulation
rather than have been made to keep gold coins
department in silver coins and silver certif-
Gates greatly exceeds the amount paid out in
gold coins and gold certificates, and in no in
stance has the least discrimination been made
against silver or its paper representative. In
no instance has silver or silver certificates
been refused in payment of a debt or demand
on the Government, and in no instance has
the Government refused to pay silver coins or
silver certificates in the discharge of its obll-
cations when the holders of the obligations
demanded or requested such payment.
When United States notes or treasury notes
are presented for redemption, gold is paid if it
is demanded, and if silver is demanded the
silver is paid. Thus the coins of the two
metals are treated exactly alike in making
payments by the Government as we'll as in the
discharge ofdebts due to the Government. 1t
has always been the policy OF the Treasury De-
partment to encourage the use of silver to the
largest possible extent, and in order to accom-
plish this standatd silver dollars will be sent
by express at the expense of the Government
to any one who will deposit an equivalent
amount of silver certificates or treasury notes
of 1890 with the United States Treasurer or
with a National bank depository, and subsi-
diary silver coins will be sent by express at the
expense of the Government to any one who
will deposit with such officers or banks any
kind of United States currency or National
bank notes, but gold is not sent to anybody
free of charge.
In August, 1898, there was q great and un-
usual demand in nearly every part of the coun-
try for currency OF small denominations, and
in its attempts to supply the demand the
Treasury Department paid out in defraying
the expenses of the Government and in ex-
change for other forms of currency all the sill
yer that could be lawfully used for these pur-
poses, so that for short period it was COM
PEELED to suspend payment in standard silver
dollars except in the redemption of silver GER
tifcates and treasury notes OF 1890. The law
authorizing the issue of silver certificates upon
deposits of silver proyides that '.the coin de-
posted for or representing the certificates
shall be retained in the treasury for the pay.
ment of the same on demand"
1t is therefore plain that whenever the
amount of silver dollars in the treasury does
not exceed the amount OF silver certificates
outstanding the Secretary of the Treasury can
not, without a violation of law, pay out such
silver, except for the redemption of certif-
Gates. At such times he has no more right to
exchange silver dollars for gold than he has to
pay them out in any other manner.
But there is also another fund in the treas
ury which is required by law to be held for
dffferent purpose. 1t consists of the bullion
and the standard silver dollars coined from the
bullion purchased under the act of 1878. The
act provides for the purchase of silver bullion
at the market price and the issuance of treas
ury notes in payment for it, and it also de-
clares that no greater or less amount of such
notes shall be outstanding at any one time
than the cost of the silver dollars coined there
for. Under this provision the Secretary is re-
ouired to keep in the treasury at all times an
amount of silver bullion at its cost price and
in standard silver dollars coined from the pur-
chased bullion, exactly equal to the amount of
the treasury notes outstanding, and he can
not therefore, use such standard silver dollars
except for the redemption and cancellation of
treasury notes.
Nv letter to the United States Senate, upon
which Mr.. Crisp's statement seems to have been
based, was written on the 18th day of August,
1893. and at that time there was no free silver
in the treasury; that is, there were no silver
dollars in the treasury, except as the law re-
auired to be held for the redemption of silver
certificates and notes, During the month of
August, 1898, treasury notes to the amount of
81 ,173, ,267 were redeemed in silver and can
celed, and since the first day of August, 1898,
the total amount of such notes redeemed in
silver and Cancelled is SIS, ,533, ,722.
Prior to my administration of the affairs of
the department none of these notes had been
redeemed in silver or Cancelled. Since the be-
ginning of this administration nearly $l1O,-
OOo, 900 OF gold has been procured in exchange
for other forms of currency Of this amount,
SS,915 ,s12 has been secured in exchange for
silver coin and SIC, ,329, $50 in exchange for
silver certificates. The department has never
refused TO exchange silver for gold when it has
silver that could be lawfully used for that pur-
pose, and If it had so refused, l am wholly un-
able to see how it could be considered dis
elimination against silver. Is refusal to pay
out gold in exchange for silver discrimina-
tion against gold? Ifnot, it of course follows
that refusal to pay out silver for gold is not a
discrimination against silver.
In response to your verbal inquiry concern
ing the coinage of standard silver dollars dur
ing the present administration, you are ad-
vised thatit amounts to the sum of 1862 900
up to the 18th day of this month, while the
whole amount of such dollars coined in this
country from the establishment of the Mint in
1892 UP to February, 1873, q period Of eighty