The Topeka state journal., 1899-10-13
A BIRTHDAY FOR THE OLDEST
OF UNCLE SANS COINS.
los Years ago was First Mnted Amid Great Enthusiasm
From the Young ColOnists who Hailed it as Their
own Piece of Money

October Is viii be the anniversary Of
the silver dollars birthday.
The silver dollar as a national piece
of money, minted by Uncle Sans ser
wants under laws passed by Uncle
sam 3 Congress, is close to a hundred
and five years OF age.
1t was on October Is, 1874, that the
first few hundred silver dollar pieces
ever coined at the Philadelphia mint
were sent out into the world to help
transact its business.
Not at all bad looking coins were the
first of the United States silver dollars
they were almost as handsome as any
that have ever been put out by this
government, and that is saying good
deal, for American coins have generally
ranked among the most gOOdly to look
upon of any in the world. The dollar
of 1874, however, would look strange to
modern eyes. In the first place, the
either the diverse or the reverse Of the
coin, but stamped in fine letters on its
edge were the words, Hundred cents,
one dollar or unit On the diverse
was Liberty head, facing right with
flowing hair over the head was the
word Liberty" beneath, in the usual
place, was the date 1884, and TO the
right and left were the stars, fifteen in
number, typical of the number OF
States in the then young Union
On the reverse was spread eagle
surrounded by laurel WreathS. crossed
and the words, United States of Amer
lea" The metal was of S94.4 thou
sandths fnenesS and the weight 41e
THE NEW DOLLAR.
The dollar of to-day weighs Az grains
and is 800 thousandths fine The ratio
between United States gold and silver
coinage was as Is to L in 1874, now 1t IS
as 16 to 1. Then the coinage ratio con-
formed to the commercial ratio; now it
does not, and that is what is causing
most of the present trouble about the
currency. But. as a certain East In
dian Englishman would say That is
another story"
There was a great deal of pulling and
hauling among the statesmen of the
Republics early days before the word
was finally given for the establishment
of a mint and the striking of federal
coins.
In 1872. six years after the DecIara-
ton of Independence and twelve years
before the first silver dollars were act
ually turned out, Robert Morris, then
head of the Finance Department. sub
mftted to Congress a scheme for the
establishment Of a United States mint
and the coinage of various denomina-
tiOns of metal money, including silver
dollars The authorship of this plan
was claimed by GOuverneur Morris, a
relative of the man who proposed 1t.
It was received with some favor, and
the following year Congress authorized
the erection of a mint But nothing
came of it then, objections, chiefly on
the ground Of expense, being raised IN
many quarters In 11S5 Thomas JeIer-
son submitted a scheme providing for
the coinage of golden eagles, silver dol
lars half dollars, double dimes and
dimes, and copper cents and half cents.
In 1855 Congress adopted this plan, and
queer looking cents and half cents
were coined under its provisions In
asmuch as there was then no federal
mint however, the striking of these
pieces was let out by contract to q man
named Jarvis, who did the work in the
old colonial mints. situated at New
Haven, Conn.,, and Rupert, Vermont.
THE MINT.
In 1892 the first United States mint
was built at Philadelphia 1t was a
small, old fashioned three story affair,
but it was considered a great institu-
ton by the citizens of the young Re
public, especially those who CHANGED to