 Since the passage of the Bland – Allison Act in 1878, there had been little discussion of gold versus silver coinage. Silver had been hardly mentioned in the 1888 campaign, and Harrison's exact position on the issue was initially unclear, but his appointment of a silverite Treasury Secretary, William Windom, encouraged the free silver supporters. Silver supporters' numbers had grown in Congress with the addition of new Western states. The drop in agricultural prices, which made farmers'debts harder to pay, broadened their cause's appeal. Harrison attempted to steer a middle course between the two positions, advocating a free coinage of silver, but at its own value, not at a fixed ratio to gold. This served only to disappoint both factions. Windom suggested keeping the Bland – Allison system, but doubling the amount of silver allowed to be coined. The intrinsic value of the silver dollar had fallen to 72.3 cents, but Windom believed (though gold supporters doubted) that coining more silver would increase demand and raise its value. Harrison was willing to sign whatever bill would satisfy the largest group of people, as long as it did not make the currency unsound.
