Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-07-05
QUEER FACTS AS
TO MONEY OF u. S.
Fifty-SiN Cents Worth OF silver I'm Il
silver Dollar.


When the new treasurer OF the
United states. John Burke. took Office.
his predecessor handed over to him
assets to the value Of billions But IT
was n varied lot OF securities that
came into his possession bonds. Sc
curitics of all kinds. gold bars and
gold coin. silver bars and silver coin
base metals. gold notes. silver notes
gold in the reserve fund. government
legal tender notes. national bank notes.
fractional currency and subsidiary
coin.
30 two classes havo the same quail
tics. no two exactly the same value,
Intrinsic or otherwise. Yet people are
so eager 10 get anything with tho
stamp of Uncle Sam that they acccr.
il anywhere 1T it's face value, unless
il is required for some purpose which
calls for the peculiar quality OF Il cor
tain kind Of money.
II is u mark Of confidence in Uncle
sam that his beautiful silver ccrtir-
Gates are taken at their face value.
when, in reality. they bear about tho
same relation to gold dollars as cleo
margarine docs to buttcr--only. like
the olcomarSarinc. n certain ARTIFICIAL
value must be given To them.
When the butter moonshiucr turns
out his product the government. i'll
just horror. says il is wrong TO tnmpcr
with food. and tho person who docs it
must ,go To Jail. When Uncle sam
sends out silver disk stamped with
his mark he has made good bust
ness stroke. for h." has placed In cir
If silver, and put 81 cents worth OF
bullion into Governor Burkc'S charge,
1nd like tho olcomarSarine dealer. has
made good transaction.
y poor wreck Of humanity. with a
grateful streak In his heart, not long
since found himself in possession of
six trade dollars. His first inclination
remembrance OF his mother came over
him. and like good fellow, he re-
solved to send her s. gold piece.
Ills first surpris. came when he
found that his trade dollars. which
contained more silver than do the Sill
vcr dollars. we're only valued as bull
lion, and his Who'll" 81 were worth only
1886. He had overlooked the fact that.
when those dollars were issued. back
in 1879. Uncle Sam had omitted to in
dorsc them or 10 give them any none
tary value other than their silver con-
tent.
SO ne did with his ST. VIVA, his uncle
had done, ne went through i little
transaction in high finance. which
makes one blush for him He mixed
his dollars UP with some standard"
silver dollars and persuaded Il small
storckccpcr 10 give him bills for them.
II happened that these bills were sill
yer certificates
He tried 70 induce the Treasury De-
partment 10 take them in exchange
for the gold piece intended for his
mother: was politely told that while
the law provided that the secretary of
the treasury should maintain gold ano
silver on a parity the section had been
construed to mean that silver ccrtifi-
Gates could not produce gold coin.
Thercupon he spent one OF his dol
lars for Dutch courage, and. thus forti
fled determined somehow TO secure
that gold piece for the mother who
was becoming momcntarily dcarer. He
succeeded after time in exchanging
his silver certificate for legal tender
note for So, and, although such notes
are protected by gold reserve equal
TO only about a third of the issue. the