Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1897-03-19
BIMETALLICS,


gentlemen aud ladies and a splendid
program.
ID. II. Wegant Of the committee on
finance made a report that was
adopted.
y statement was read that the In
auguration ball cost 100000, and that
all employees Of the government pen
sion building were dismissed n week
TO prepare the building for the ball.
They were paid wages Of $4,000 for
doing nothing for a week aud exam.
i~nation OF pension cases was stopped
for that time. This was f~acetiously
referred l.; as a high crest OF the
wave Of prosperity.
Major d. c. Sherman suggested
that, as there was a remarkable 10.
crease ia immigration between the
June and November elections, there
be a committee to copy and compare
the poll lists and prosecute any
frauds. The matter was discussed.
A committee Of three was appointed
to copy the poll lists Rigdon, Sher-
man and Pugh, were appointed.
1t was moved to add two ladies to
the program committee.
w. II. Rigdon was introduced TO
discuss the coinage laws. He pre-
scented the subject briefly outlined as
follows;
The coinage of 1893 provided the
first mint.
Carlisle's statement that the double
standard Of / to 15t wa established
in 1884, was shown to be false, in that
the Spanish milled dollar of silver
was the only mint. Carlisle then said
that the standard of 10 to !, or 57lt
grains silver as the mint was estab
lished in 1892, with gold eagles Of ten
dollars or unints This law still left
silver the standard, but provided gold
coins, their measured value being Of
silver minis. In 1916 the rate, vas
changed from 10 to | TO l6 to l. The
silver dollar OF today was 4l2i grains
standard silver, or 37lt pure silver.
Silver remained the unit dollar of
value until 1873 when the gold dollar
was substituted as the unit Of value.
The gold dollar piece was not a coin
of practical value. None were now in
circulation or coined, but IL wasput In
there To aceustom the mind to the
idea of the gold dollar as the unit.
He showed that in 1853 subsidiary
silver was badly knitted. 1t was
lightened as TO legal tender quality.
Carlisle says these coins are legal ten
der for $40. But the revised statutes
say the limit is s.. The gold dollar
was worth four cents less than the sill
yer dollar. So silver was lightened
seyen cents on the dollar for IA time.
Up 10 1853 the silver in two half
dollars was exactly the same as in a
dollar.
Section 1856 OF the revised statutes
showed that for any amount not ex'
ceeding live dollars fractional silver
was a legal tender. The law OF 1879
says fractional silver is a legal tender
for Sl0, The standard dollar was
legal tender for any amount.
The discussion OF appropriations by
congress revealed the fact that the
last two sessions had appropriated
s5l6,0o0,OOO aud SS29,OOO,OO0 respec-
OF sl,Ol5,OOO,OO0 for the Fifty
fourth congress. The average for the
59d and 5Sd congress were oaly SSSS,
ass, COS. Tue united states. state aud
local governments OF our country were
expending S,s@,s Isl, 4os a year, or
sf,coO,0Oo.for every working day OF the
year, The county that spent the next
highest amount was Russia with
ssSS,OOo,0o0 France 5 pent s6aO,OO0,-
oo in 1888 England saoo, 500, los 50
iSa5. Germany ser, sao,s $40 in 1895.
IL Mas shown that We were expend-
log a greater sun than the entire
value OF the cotton, wheat. corn, cat
aud tobacco crops all put together
are actually cxponding-most OF
which Is paid 00t Ia government OH
cials-a greater sum than the value %
the prOductS 81 the toll OF an the
farmers OF the United States.
Judge r. T. Roiso vas invited TO
discuss the question OF reducing the
49, NHam.aH - nAa a..a. -