The advocate and Topeka tribune. [volume], November 23, 1892, Page 10, Image 10

About The advocate and Topeka tribune. [volume] (Topeka, Kan.) 1892-1894

Image provided by: Kansas State Historical Society; Topeka, KS

                
10
H03JETAET OOMMISSIOH.
( Continued from paye 8.)
the constitution of the United States
reoojrnizes and fixes them as money by
the provision that the states shall not
make anything but "gold and silver com
a tender in the payment of debts." Con
gress cannot demonetize either gold or
ilver, except under a claim to a general
authority over the subject of currency,
upon which, if it exists at all, there are
no limitations, and which may extend to
monetizing any form of paper. If con
greea can establish' a legal tender, it is
cot prohibited, aa the states are, from
making anything "but gold and silver
coin a tender in payment of debts."
Between 1821 and 1834, when the legal
equivalency between the metals was 15
to 1, gold was at a premium m silver of
from 5 to 7 per cent and disappeared
from the circulation, and but little was
brought to the mint for coinage. The
gal relation of value between the metals
of about 18 of silver to 1 of gold es
tablished in 1831 was an undervaluation
of silver. From that date on and until
1874 the silver dollar bore a premium in
the London market over the gold dollar
of from 1 to 8 per cent. Notwithstanding
thla premium, silver did not wholly dis
appear, as gold did between 1821 and
1834, butthe quantity in circulation con
tinually grew smaller down to 1862, when
both the metals were expelled from the
circulation by legal lender paper. Be
tween 1850 and 1873, whenever payments
wars made in coin, gold was used be
cause it was the cheaper of the two
metals, just as silver was used for a simi
lr reason between 1821 and 1831; but
during each of these periods both gold
and silver possessed equally the pot en
tlality of money, the metal out of actual
use being certain to come again into ac
tual use when the conditions changed.
After 1834, on account of the under
valuation of silver by the coinage law of
that year, there was a tendenoy to ex
port silver rather than gold in the settle
ment of adverse balances of foreign traded
In 18521a 'soarcity of the small coins
required in miaor transactions began to
be seriously felt. To meet, this difficulty
the act of February 21, 1853, was passed.
I; provided tbat trie silver coins unaer
the denomination of one dollar should
be struck slightly below standard weight,
and that the legal tender function of
snob coins should be limited to $5 in any
one payment. This expedient, or the
equivalent one of slightly debasing such
coins, is familiar in the practice of Euro
pean countries. Previous to the act
of 1853 the owners of silver bullion had
the right (act of Jaauarv 18, 1837, sec
tion 30) to demand its coinage into any
of the denominations of silver coin
authorized by law. Before that act the
law did not authorize any silver coins
except the three-cent piece, which were
not of standard weight and fineness, and
which were not a legal tender for all
urns. Under the provisions of that act,
the subsidiary or fractional coins, being
undarweighted, possessed a mint value
above their bullion value, and were per
mitted to be coined only on government
account. By this regulation the govern
ment made a profit or seigniorage on the
subsidiary coinage equal to the differ
ence between its mint and bullion value.
But after the passage of this law, a9 fully
as before its passage, the owners of eilvt-r
bullion bad the riht to demand Us coin
age into dollars, whose weight remained
unchanged, and which, when coined were
equally with go'd a full legal tender.
This right was never denied to silver
bullion until the passage of the law of
theAflfaZi42' W8f !
4r of the full-weighted silver
dollar taken away or limited until the
adoption of the revised statutes in June,
1874.
The act of February 12, 1873, above re
ferred to, is a long act of sixty-seven sec
tions, regulating all the details of the
mint. It does not demonetize the old
silver dollar, or any of the silver coins of
standard weight issued prior to 1853.
The silver dollar is not named in it, and
it would eacape casual observation that
that dollar was in any way affected by it.
Precisely what the act did was to author
ize the coinage of silver half-dollars,
quarter-dollars, and dimes, below stand
ard weight, and of a new silver coin for
Asiatic commerce above standard weight,
to be called "the trade dollar," and to
prohibit these particular coins, described
as "said coins," from being a legal ten
der for more than $5 in any one pay
ment. ".
The act contains, in addition, an
enumeration of the gold coins, and of the
minor coins of base metal, which are au
thorized. It contained no prohibition,
eo nomine, of the continued coinage of
the old silver dollar, and that it did pro
hibit that coinage escaped the attention
of the people of the country, who were to
be so injuriously affected by it, by the
generality of the prohibitory words which
are found in the seventeenth section:
No coins, either of cold, silver, or minor coin
age, snail hereafter be Issued from the mint,
other than thorns of the denominations, stand
ards, and weights herein set forth.
The act of February 12, 1873, did not
demonetize or affect in any manner the
legal tender functions of the full-
weighted silver coins that had been
minted prior to its passage, but the
seventeenth section deprived silver bul
lion of its right of being coined into full
legal tender money on either govern
ment or private account.
In no section of the act was it specifi
cally pointed out or referred to that the
effect of the act was to change the stand
ard of values. from gold and silver to gold
alone. The title of the act, instead of
containing any intimation of the change
made in the standard of values, was " An
act revising and amending the laws rela
tive to the mitts, assay offices, and coin
age of the United States." As compre
hensive a title as this would have been
required for an aot making some insig
nificant change in the nickel coinage, or
in the mode of purchasing chemicals
used in assaying.
The act when passed was not read ex
cept by title, and it is notorious that
this transcendent change in the money
system of the country, affecting the most
vital interests, was carried through with
out the knowledge or observation of the
country. It was neither demanded by
the resolutions of public meetings or po
litical conventions, nor asKed for in peti
tions from the people. As paper money
v as the actual currency of the country
at the time, a coinage act was not likely
to attract general attention. In its rela
tion to the question of a single or double
standard, it was disoussed but little in
the house, and not at all in the senate.
The press of the country was entirely un
observant or silent when it was pending
and when it was passed, and for more
than three years afterward. If it had
been generally known that any such
vital question as the demonetization of
silver was lurking in the bill, it would
have aroused the most wide-spreading
discussion throughout the country, as is
thown upon the present debate upon re
monetizing it, which is only the same
question reversed, and wbhh, it is ap
parent,, will dominate all other public
questions until it is settled.
The most striking evidence, perhaps,
of the public inattention to the effect of j
the coinage act of 1373, is the fact that
President Grant, who signed it, and who
was critically observant of the legislation
of congress, had no knowledge of what it
really accomplished in relation to the
demonetization of silver, and was still
uninformed about it as late as the fol
lowing October. If the president of the
United States, in daily intercourse with
the public men of the country, had failed
to hear during certainly eight months
that the laws no longer permitted money
to be coined from silver,. it must be true
that the ignorance on the subject was
general and profound.
In a letter written October 3, 1873, to
Mr. Cowdrey, General Grant said:
I wonder that silver is not already coming; into
the market to supplv the deficiency in the circu
lating medium. Experience has proved
that lctakns about 140000000 of fractional cur
rency to make the small change necessary for
the transaction of the business of the country
Sliver will gradually tke the place of this cur
rency, nod, further, win become the standard of
values, which wilt be hoarded in a small way.I
estiuwft that thU will consume from 1201,000 000
to 1300 000 000 in time of this species of our circu
lating medium. I confess to r d-slre to
see a llml'ea hoarding; of money. But I want to
see a hoa'dipg ft something that is a standard
of value the world tver. silver is thi.
Our mines are now producing almost un
limited amounts of stiver, and it Is becoming a
question, "What shall we do with It? ' I surest
tire a solutim which will answer for scnn
years, to put it in clrculailon. keeDlog it thrre
"iitll It is fixed, and then we will find other
markets.
The demonetization of silver, coined
and uncoined, was affirmatively com
pleted in June, 1874, by the following sec
tion (35SC) of the Revised Statutes:
The silver coins or the United States shall be
a legal tender at their nominal value for any
amount not exceeding 95.00 in any one pay
ment. No law was ever parsed by congres of
which this language can be considered a
revision.
The Revised Statutes were enacted in
bulk. They were intended to be a re
vision merely of the existing laws, with
out change or introduction of new matter,
and cengresa was assured by its com
mittee on revision that no new matter
had been introduced into them. It was
not possible for the members of the com
mittee to have personally verified tie
exact accuracy of the revision. They
must necessarily have relied upon assur
ances given to them by the persons
actually engaged in the work. Whoever
may be responsible for this error in the
Revised Statutes, the ancient money of
the country, instead of being intention
ally legislated out of existenoe by con
gress, was revised out of existence.
(To be continued.)
All genuine Spooner
Horse Collars have this
trade mark. Be not de
ceived by imitations.
Bargain in a Hotel. A paying hotel
in Topeka which has a good farmer
trade, and in which quarters have already
been engaged by people who will attend
the next legislature, is for sale at a bar
gain because the proprietor is obliged to
go abroad for the benefit of his health.
Some one will buy the furniture, utensils
and good will of this house for half what
they cost. Address or call at the Advo
cate office.
BLOSSOM HOUSE.
Opposite Union Depot, Kansas City, Mo,
The Blossom House Is convenient to
all parts of the city. Cable cars run In
every direction. It is Just across the
street from the union depot, Just the
place to meet your friends. Members of
the Alliance make the Blossom House
their headquarters when In the city, and
their general place of meeting when a!
tending conventions abroad.
Sensw your subscription to the paper be
fore your time expires, and thus save the
printer the trouble of taking your name
from the list This is also a good way to
pTttvent missisj a auabez.
BoitleHigGi
If von want the bt
Buy the old, reliable brands,
Halt's. Blood's, lip mtt's or Hana's,
For sale by all hardware dealers and merchants.
Readers.
A newspaper has but
one thing to sell the
advertiser, and that
is circulation 1
An advertisement to
be effective, should be
widely distributed.
THE
mmm
KECOBD
offers the advertiser
bis money's worth.
It is the leading' family
newspaper of Pennsyl
vaniait reaches the
homes of the people,
and its readers are
buyers.
ADVERTISING BATES.
Daily, display, 28 cents a line.
Sunday, display, 25 cents a line.
THE RECORD PUBLISHING CO.,
917 Chestnut St., Philadelphia.
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D widows trca. fuliis li jo a pocket-knifs, wetKhioulf
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