The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, July 04, 1894, Image 1
.4 Kj
ESTABLISHED 1865., NEWBERRY. S. C., WEDNESDAY, JUL ,84
. THE SAGE OFENOREE.
EXHAUSTIVELY REVIEWS THE SIL
VER QUESTION.
He Claims that Silver Has Never Beel
Demonetized and that Free Colnage of
Silver i Legally in Force Now-A
Logical Argament.
We are told in the sacred writings:
"My people are destroyed for lack o
knowledge." Hesoa 4:6.
Tbis is strictly true of the people o
the United States at,the present time
The members of both Houses of Con
gress have assprted time after tim(
and it has been fiasbed on the electri<
wires throughout the world and carrie
by the press to every nook and cornei
of the earth that silver, the money oi
the peonle from the earliest records
has been demonetized by the act 01
Congress of Feb. 12, 1873. This ba
greatly appreciated gold and unsettled
values to the ruia of business of all
kinds.
We propose to show that this is en
tirely erroneous-that silver has noi
been demonetized in the United State.
by any law of Congress-that it is a full
"legal tender," and under the samc
rights of coinage at our mints that gold
has, which is free and unlimited. By
reference to Webster's Unabridged
Dictionary it will be seen that to de
monetize means to "deprive of value,
to withdraw from use as currency.'
We all know this cannot be said ol
silver, for it is in daily use and the
standard silver dollar is A full legal
tender.
That our solution of this important
question may be absolutely correct, let
us calmly consider the fa -ts and ana
lyze all the coinage laws enacted by
Congress,beginning with the first mint
act of April 2, 1792, and endiug with
the act of November, 1893, repealing
the purchase clause of the Sherman
law:
First, what are the facts?
Nothing is better established in his
tory than that no mint existed in any
of the colonies in colonial das. None
of the colonies had any metalic money
of their own coinage. They used the
coins of other nations, chiefly the old
Spanish milled dollar and its fractional
parts, which Queen Anne, by her royal
eproclamation in 1704, made lawful
money throughout all the colonies of
British N6rth America. Tbese..coins
were more widely known in the com
mercial world than any other coins
known to the human race.
After the establishment of the liber
ties of the -people and the sovereignty
of the State in 1783 and the formation
of the United States government by
the adbption and ratification of the
Constitution 6f the United States in
1789. it became imperative that we
should have our own coins, our unit
of money, our dollar of account.
To accomplish this the statesmen of
that day went industriously to work.
Thomas Jeffcrson and Alexander
Hamilton, then Secretary of the United
btateb Treasury, led in the great work.
On investigation it was found that
the old Spanish milled dollar had been
recognized as the standard unit of
money, the dollar of account from 1701,
when Queen Anne issued her royal
proclamation making it and its fraction
al parts lawful' money throughout
British North America. That the
English Parliament in 1750, during the
reign of George 11., by act "declared
all contracts, debts and dues whatso
ever payable in silver at 6,., 8d. per
ou:nce, and all Spanish milled pieces of
full weight shall be eounted, taken and
paid at the rate of 6.s. per' piece for the
-discharge of any contract or bargain to
be made after the said 31st day of
March, 1750, the halves, quarters and
other pieces of the same coin to be ac
counted, received, taken or paid in the
same proportion."~
By this act the Spanish milled dollar
and its fractional parts were made a
-full legil tender throughout England
and all her dependencies. The Cn
tinentar Congress, by an act May 3.
1775, recognized the Spanish milled
dollar as the money unit, under which
act bills of credit were issued promising
to pay in Spanish milled dollars.
The Continental Congress on June
22, 1775, resolved "that a sum not to
exceed $2,000,000 of Spanish milled
dollars be emitted by the Congress in
bills of credit for the defense of
- Awerica.
In July, 1775, the Congress author
ized the issue of bills of credit td the
amount of $1,000,000, Spanish milled
dollar's.
Many other acts were passed by the
- Continental Congress recognizing the
Spanish milled dollar as the unit of
money, the dollar of account.
We are told by Wast'ngton in his
Life of Jefferson, Vol. 1., pp. 162 and
165, that that foremost statesman in his
day, speaking of the establishmzent o1
our unit of money and the Spanisb
* milled dollar, said: "The unit or dollar
is a known coin and the most familiar
of all to the minds of the people. It it
already adopted from South to North,
has identified our currency and there
fore happily offe.rs itself as a unit al
ready introduced. Our public debt, our
requisitions and their appointments
have given it actu~al and long possessior
of the place of unit."
After it was decided to adopt the
Spanish milled dollar as the unit o1
money, the dollar of account of thi
nationi, a very large number of thenr
were collected and sent to the mint anc
assayed. They were found to contait
on an average three hundred and seven.
- ty-one and twenty-five one hundredth;
grains of pure silver. That is why tha
number of grains of pure silver was pul
in the standard silver dollars in th<
beginning of our coinage and has con
tinued to be so put to the preseni
time.
Thbe above facts are imbedded in thi
history of the times to which they re
fer and are incontrovertible.
I1 will now proceed to analyze thi
coinage laws enacted by Congress be
ginning with the first one and endinl
with the last one, and quote copiou:
extracts from each one so as to imakt
perfectly clear the solution of the ques
tion before us.
The act of A pril 2, 1792, establishe'
the first mint in the United States
Section 9 shows the coins thast were
authorized to be struck and coined an(
the metals out of which they were t<
be coined. It reads as follows:
"And be it further enacted, Tha
there shall be from time to timi
struck and coined at the said mint
coins of gold, silver and copper, of th<
following denominations, values an<
descriptions, viz: Eagles-Each to b<
of the value of ten dollars or units an<
to contains two hundred and forty
seven grains and four-eights of a grair
of pure or two hundred and sevent;
grains of standard gold.
"Half Eagles-Each to be of thi
value of five dollars, and to contain oni
hundred ar.d twenty-three grains an<
six-eights of a grain of pure or oni
hundred and thirty-five grains c
standard gold.
"Quarter Eagles-Each to be of tbe
value of two dollars and a half dollar,
and to contain sixty-one grains and
seven-eights of a grain of pure or sixty
seven grains and four-eights of a grain
of standard gold.
"Dollars or units-Each to be of the
value of a Spanisb milled dollar as the
same is now current, and to contain
three hundred and seventy-one grains
and four-sixteentbs of a grain of pure
or four hundred and sixteen grains of
standard silver.
"Half dollars-Each to be of half the
value of the dollar or unit, and to con
tain one hundred and eighty-five
grains and ten-sixteenths part of a
grain of pure or two hundred and eight
grains of standard silver.
"Quarter Dollars-Each to be of one
fourth of the value of the dollar or
unit, and to contain ninety-two grains
and thirteen-sixteentbs part of a grain
of pure or one hundred and four parts
of standard silver. -
"Dimes-Each to be of the value of
one-tenth of a dollar or unit, and to
contain thirty-seven grains and two
sixteenths parts of a gratn of pure or
forty-one grains and three-fifths parts
of a grain of standard silver.
' af Dimes-Each to be of the
value of one-twentieth of a dollar, 'nd
to contain eighteen grains and nine
sixteenths parts of a grain of pure or
twenty grains and four-fifths parts of
a grain of standard silver.
"Cents-Each to be of the value of
the one hundredth part of a dollar, and
to contain eleven pennyweights of
copper.
-Half Cents-Each to be of the value
of half a cent, and to contain five
pennyweights and half a pennyweight
of copper."
The a,ove named coins are the only
ones anthorized by the act to be struck
and coined for the first sixty years
and more after the passage of the first
mint act.
It will- be observed that there is no
gold, dollar among them. The gold
dollar was not coined until after the
act of March 3, 1849, which authorized
the coinage or double eagles and gold
dollars. The dollar or unit called for by
the act was a silver dollar containing
371 1-4 grains of pure silver or 416
grains of standard silver of the value of
the Spanish milled dollar which was
and had been the money unit, the
dollar of account since 1704. There
was no change in the value of the
coins until the following act was passed
June 2S, 1834:
"Be it enacted by the Senate and
House of Reptesentatives of the United
States of America in Congresi as
sembled, That the gold coins of the
United States shall contain the follow
ing quantities of metal, that is to say:
Each eagle shall contain two hundred
and thirty-two grains of pure gold. or
two hundred and fifty-eight grains of
standard gold; each half eagle, one
hundred and sixteen grains of pure
gold or one hundred and twenty-nine
grains of standard gold; each quarter
eagle shall contain fifry-eighit grains of
pure gold or sixty-four and a half
grains of-standard gold," etc.
It will be seen that the pure gold in
the gold coius have been reduced by
this act. No mention is made of the
other coins.
On Feb. IS, 1837 an act was passed in
regard to the establishmeot of a mint
and regulation of coins of the United
States, from which Iquote tbefollowing
extracts:
Sec. 8. "And be it enacted, That
the standard for both gold and silver
coins of the United States shall here
after be such that of one thousand
parts by weight, nine hundred shall be
of pure metal and one hundred of
alloy; and the alloy of the silver coins
shall be of copper and the alloy of the
gold coins shall be of copper and silver,
provided that the silver do not exceed
one-half of the whole alloy.
Sec. 9. "And be it further enacted,
That of the silver coins, the dollar
shall be of the weight of.foui- hundred
and twelve and one-half grains; thle
half dollar, of the weight of two huo
dred and six and one-fourth grains; the
quarter dollar, of the weight of' one~
hundred an?d three and one-eighth
grains; the dime, or tenth part of a
dollar, of the weight of forty-one and a
quarter grains; and. the half dime, or
t wentieth part of dollar, of the weight
of twenty grains and five-eigh ts of a
grain; and that dollars, half dollars and
quarter dollars, dimes and half dimes
shall be legal tenders of payment
according to their nominal value for
any sums whatever.
Sec. 1. "And be it further enacted,
That of the gold coins the weight of
the eagle shall be two hundred and'
fifty-eight grains; that of the half
eagle, one hundred and twenty-nine
-grains, and that of the quarter eagle.
sixty-four and one-half grains. And
that for all sums whatever the eagle
shall be a legal tendr>r of payment for
ten dollars; the half eagle, five dollars,
and the quarter eagle for two and a
half dollars.
Rec. 14. "And be it fur her enacted,
That the gold and silver bullion
brought to the mint for coinage shall
be received and coined by the proper
officers for the benefit of the depos
itor."
It will be observed that the parity
between gold and silver that we hear
so much about was established by the
law of April 2, 1792. It was adjusted
by the act of June 28, 1834. by reduc
ing the pure gold in the gold coins and
readjusted by the act of -January 18,
I1837, by a slight increase of pare gold
in the gold coins and making all the
coins of both gold and silver nine
-tenths fine. While the grains of pure
gold in the gold coins have been
changed twice, the pure silver in the
silver dollar has never been disturbed
to the preeent time. The silver dollar
contains to-day the same number of
grains of pure silver that it contained
on A pril 2 1792, whben it was est ab
lished as our monpy unit, the same as
-the old Spanish milled dollar, the
money unit for centuries.
Trhe act of Jan. 18, 1S37, made per
fect the equality of gold and silver.
Both were given thbe same rights of
coinage and the same debt-paying
powers, both were given free and un
limited cainoge and the coins of
each were made full legal tender alike.
IFrom that day to this there has been
no change by law in the value of the
gold coin and thbe standard silver dol
lar, our money unit.
On the third of March, 1849 an Act
was passed authorizing the coinage of
gold dollars and double eagles. It reads
as follows:
"Be it enacted by the Senate and
House of Representatives of the United
IStates of America in Congress asseni
bled. That there shall be from time to
time struck and coined at the mint of
the United States and the branches
thereof, conformably in all respects to
law (except that on the reverse of the
gold dollar the figure of the eagle shall
be omitted) and conformable in all re
spects to thbe standard for gold coins
now established by law, coins of gold of
the following denominations and val
fues, viz: Double eagles, each to be of thbe
v1alu ftwenty dollarsenrnnitsandgold
dollars each to be of the value of one
dollar or unit.
"Sec. 2.1. And be -it further enacted.
That for all sums whatsoever, the
double eagle shall be a legal tender for
twenty doliars and the gold dollar shall
be a legal tender for one dollar."
This is the first time -the gold dollar
appeared on the scene which it was
sneakingly attempted in the Act of 12th
of February, 1S73, to imtipose on the ija
tion as our money unit which will be
shown later.
As silver bullion by weight was worth
more than the silver coins, reaching as
high as 7 per cent. in 1855, the owners
of silver bullion failed to take it to the
rlints and have it struck and coined
and as our mints struck and coined sil
ver coins at a ratio of 15.98 of silver to 1
of gold, while all other nations except
Mexico struck and coined theirs at a
ratio of from 15 and 15 1-2 of silver to 1
of gold, wben our coins left our borders
they rarely returned. To -supply our
own people with fractional currency
and keep it in our borders Congress en
acted the following law on the 2!st
of February, 1853.
"Be it enacted by the Senate andHouse
of Representatives of the United States
of America in Congress assembled.
That from and after the first day of
June, eighteen hundred an-I fifty-tbree,
the weight of the halt dollar or piece of
fifty cents shall be one hundred and
ninety-two grains, and the quarter dol
Ir, dime and half dime shall be, re
spectively, one-half, one-fifth and one
tenth of the weight of sAid half dollar.
"Sec. 2. And be it further enacted.
That the silver coins issued in conform
ity with the above section shall be legal
tenders in payment of debts for all
sums not exceeding five dollars.
"See. 3. And be it further enacted.
That in order to procure bullion for the
requisite coinage of the sub-divisions of
the dollar authorized by the Act, the
treasurer of the mint shall, with the
approval of the director, purchase such
bullion with the bullion fund of the
mint."
This is the first time in the history
of the country that the government
went into the market and purchased
silver bullion, and had it struck and
coined. This she was forced to do. EL
will be seen that shi coined only the
fractional -parts of the dollar. To save
herself.from loss and to kepp the coins
in o'ir b6rders she reduced the half dol
lar from two hundred and six and
a quarter grains ..of standard silver
to one hundred and ninety-two grains.
and the quarter dollar, dime and half
dime, in the like proportion. Because
of this reduction in the weight of these
coins they were made a legal tender for
only five dollars.
That the going into the market on
the part of the government and buying
silver bullion and having it struck and
coined into currency, did not in any
way impair the rights of the owners of
either gold or silver bullion to take
their bullion to the mint and have it
struck and coined is clearly prov n by
th 11th section of the act of March 3d,
1853.
It reads as follows:
"And be it further enacted, That the
owner or owners of any gold or silver
bullion, in dust or otherwise, or of any
foreign coin, shall he entitled to de
posit the same in the said office and the
treasurer thereof shall give.a receipt
statiig the weight. and description
thereof in the manner and under the
regulations that are or may be provided
in like cases of deposit at the mint of
the United States with the treasurer
thereof. And such bullion shall with
out delay be inelted, parted, refined
and assayed an'd the net value thereof,
and of all foreign coins deposited in said
office, shall be ascertained a.nd the
treastirer stiall thereupon forthwith.
issue his certificate of the net value
thereof payable in coins of the same
metal as that deposited either at the
otYlee of the Assistant Treasurer of the
United States in New York, or at the
mint of the United States, at the option
of the depositor, to be expressed in the
ertificate, .which certificate shall be
receivable at any time within sixty
days from the date thereof in payment
of all debts due the Unite(d States at
the port of New York for the full sum
tberein certified."
We have clearly shown that up to
tbis time gold and silver bad the same
rights of coinage and the same debt
paying powers-that the parity between
these two metals was finally readjusted
and fixed by the Act of January 18,
1837, and that ihbe standard silver d*l
lar 412 1-2 grains, nine-tenths fine, was
adopted as our money unit on the 2nd
of April, 1792, when our monetary sys
tem was established, it being of the
same value as the old Spanish milled
dollar that had been recognized through
out all the colonies of North America
for centuries, as ~the money unit, the
dollar of account, and was made a legal
tender in 17.50, even by old England.
Then came the war between the
States with its deaths and desolations.
Specie payments were suspended for
eighteen years. But beyond the mid
dle of the time of suspension the Act of
the 12thb day of February, 1873, to revise
and amiend the law relative to thbe mint,
assay offices and coinage of the United
States, was p)assed by Congress.
This Act has been styled and is known
as the.crime of the ages. It can serve
no good purpose to enquire at this late
day whbois responsible for it. Suffice it
to sav every member of the Congress of
the United States of 1873. is responsible
for it by his act. either of comnmission
or omission. The intelligence, virtue
and manhood of the South had no part
in it. They were not there. They were
denied representation. If their repre
sentatives had been there that law
could not, and would not have been
enacted. The crime- would not have
been committed.
The Act is a very voluminous one,
embracing- sixt' -seven sections. Let
s analyze it and see!what the elements
that constitute the crime of its passage
are, and what it has accomplished. The
first element is, the Act was rushed
through both houses of Congress with
out even beinig read when it should
have been exhaustively discussed sec
tion after section, touching as it does
on matters of the gravest character to
the nation. .The Act dropped from the
list of coins to be struck and coined the
standard silver dollar, the money unit
of the nation. It does Dot even men
tion that coin. It substituted for the
standard silver dollar, thbe money unit
of the nation, an unknown coin, styled
the trade dollar with its fractions! parts,
and made it a legal tender for only five
dollars in any one payment.
Section 15 of the Act is as follows:
"The silver coins of the United States
shall be a trade dollar, a half dollar or
fifty cent piece, a q1u'rter dollar or
twenty-five cent piece, a dime or ten
cent piece; and the weight of the trade
dollar shall be four hundred and twen ty
grains troy; the weight of the half dol
lar shall be twelve grams and one-half
of a gram; the quarter dollar and the
dime shall be respectively one-half and
one-fifth of the weight of said halfdollar.
The silver coins of the United States
shall be a legal tender at their nominal
va e fo npament not exceeding
fivedollars in any one payment." Re
produced in Revised Statutes, Section
3,513 and 3.586, which was enacted ot
June 22, 1874. An analysis of the see
tion of the Act above quoted reveal
the fact that the limitation of tende
applies only to the trade dollar and it
fractional parts.
The first part of the section in de
scribing the silver coins is as follows
"The silver coins of the United State
shall be a trade dollar."
The last part of the section reads
"The silver coins of the United State:
shall be a legal tender, etc." The co
incidence of words is perfect. If ther
is any doubt that the limitation of lega
tender applies only to the trade dolA
and its fractional parts and did not an(
does not apply to the standard silve
dollar, the 28th section of the Act re
produced in the Revised Statutes, Sec
tion 3,527, on June 22, 1874, will dispel it
Section.3,527, Revised Statutes, reade
"Silver coins othel than the trade dol
lar shall be paid out at the severa
mi's, and at the assay office in Nev
York city, in exchange for gold coin
at par in sums not less than one bun
dred dollars." This section of the Ac
makes it perfectly clear that the lega
tender qualities of the standard silve
dollar was not impaired in any way
The limitation of tender applied to th
trade dollar alone. The Act left thf
standard silver dollar in the plenitudf
of its debt-paying powers. One of th(
worst elements of crime in the enact
ment of the law of February 12, 1873
was the sneaking attempt to chanw'
the money a n it of the nat ion from th
standard silver dollar 412 1-2 grain,
9-10 fine, to the standard gold dollai
25 8-10 grains -9 10 fine. Section 1
reads:
"That the gold coins of the United
States shall be a one dollar piece.
which at the standard weight o:
twenty-five and eight-tenths grain.
shall be the unit of value."
This is an admission that the gold
dollar 25 8 10 grains was Dot at th
time and never had been the unit o:
money of the nation. Having showL
while the framers of the Act of Feb,
ruary 12tb, 1873, dropped the stand
ard silver dollar from the list of coinm
authorized to be struck and coined al
the mint and substituted for it an un
known coin styled the trade dollar,
they utterly failed to impair its legal
tender qualities. I will now proceed
to show that the Act of the 12th ol
February, 1873, provides for the free
and unlimited coinage of silver.
Section 21 provides for deposits ol
silver bullion, casting into bars or coin
ing into trade dollars and is reprodneed
in Revised Statutes, Section 3,520, of the
Act of June 22d, 1874. It reads:
"Any owner of silver bullion may
deposit the same at any mint to be
formed into bars or into dollars of the
weight of four hundred and twenty
grains troy designated in this title a
trade dollars and no- deposit of silvei
for other coinage shall be received,
etc."
Section 22 provides for the weighing
of bullion and determining its fitness
and mode of melting and is reproduced
in Revised Statutes, Section 3,521, Act
of June 22, 1874. It reads:
"When bullion is deposited in any
of the mints it shall be weighed by the
superintendent and when practicable
in the presence of the depositor to
whom a receipt shall be gi.ven which
shall state the description and weight
of the bullion."
Section 25 provides for charges for
converting bullion into coin and the
preparation of bars and is reproduced
in Revised Statutes, Section 3,524. It
reads:
"The charges for converting stand
ard silver into trade dollars, for welt
ing and refining when bullion is.belw
standard, for toughening when met
als are contained in it which render
it unfit for coinage, for copper used for
alloy when the bullion is above stand
ard, for separating the gold and silver
when these metals exist together in
the iJullion and for the preparation of
bars, shall be fixed from time to time
by thbe director with the concurrence of
the Secretary of the Treasury, so as tc
equal but not exceed,in their judgment,
the actual average loss td each mini
and assay office of the material, labor,
wastage and use of machinery employed
in eachi of the cases aforementioned.'
Section~4 of the Act of February 12th,
1873, defines the powers and duties of
the supei-intendent, reproduced i.n thi
Revised Statutes, Sections 3,503, 3,504
3,505, 3,506. Section 3,503 reads:
"The superintendent of- each. mini
shall have the control thereof, the su
perintendence of the officers and per
sons employed therein and the super
vision of the business thereof, subject
to the approval tof the director of th4
mint. He shall make reports to th(
director of the mint at such times anc
according to such forms as the directo:
may prescribe; which shall exhbibit ir
detail and under appropriate heads thi
deposit of bullion, the amount of gold
silver and min.or coinage and th<
amount of unparted, standard and re
fined bars issued and such other statis
tics and information as may be re
qui red."
-Section 3,i>04: "He shall keep and ren
der quart,r-yearly to the director o
the mint for the purpose of adjustmen
according to such forms as may be pre
scribed by the Secretary of the Treas
ury, -regular and faithful accounts o
his transactions with the other officer
of the mint and the depositors," etc. *
Section 3,500: * * *"The super
inten dent shall receive 'all bulliot
brought to the mint for assay or coin
age; shall be the keeper of all bullion o>
coin in the mint, except while the
same is legally in the hands of ethel
officers and r'.ll deliver all coin:
struck at the mint to the persons t<
whom they shall be legrally payable."
Section 4.5 provides for the pay meni
of coins or bars to depositors and is re
produced in Revised Statutes, Sectior
3544, It reads: ' When the coins oi
bars which are the equivalent to any
deposit of bullion are ready for de
livey, they shall be paid to the deposi
and the payments shall be made if de
manded, in the order in which the
bullion .eball have been brought to the
mint. * **In the denomination
of coin delivered, the superintenden
shall comply with the wishes of the
depositor, except when imnpracticabl'
or inconvenient to do so." Nothing car
be clearer that the Act of Februa~ry le
187:3, provided free and unlimited coir
age of silver to every citizen of th<
Uited States, the owner of silver -bul
lion. Having shown by the ahove ex
tracts that the Act of February 12. 1873
provided to every citizen of the UmIte<
States the owner of silver bullion free
andl unlimited coinage of his or he
ullion into bars or trade dollars of 421
grains troy, I will now show that tbh
next year the mints of the Unite<
States were thrown open to all nations
of the earth, and they were invited t<
bring their bullion to our mints an<
have it coined. Free and uniimite<
coinage was extended to them.
See the Act of January 29. 1874. 1
reads: "Be it enacted by the Senat,
.ad Hse of Reresntatives of th
- United St tes of America in Congress
s assembled. That it shall be lawful for
i coinage to be executed at the mints of
- the United States, for any foreign
s countries app'ying for the same, ac
r cording to tbe legally prescribed stand
s ards and devices of such country, un
der such regulations as the Secretary of
- the Treasury ruay prescribe; and the
charge for the same shall be equal to,
a the expense thereof, including labor,
materials and use of machinery to be
fixed by the director of the mint with
3 the approval of the Secretary of the
- Treasury. Provided, That the manu- 4
facture of such coin shall not interfere I
I with the required coinage of the 4
r United States. It is the essence of ig- i
I norance on the part of the friends of I
r silver, and the knavery of its enemies I
- to affirm that the Act of 12th February, ]
- 1873, deprived citizens of the United I
. States of the right to take their silver
bullion to the mints and have it
struck and coined, when by the Act of
I January 9, 1874, which threw open the I
mints to all nations and invited them
to bring their bullion to our mints and t
- have it struck and coined.
It must be kept in mind that when I
I the Act of the 12th February, 1873, that i
dropped the standard silver dollar, the I
.money unit, from the list of coins au- I
thorized to be struck and coined, spe- I
cie, payments were suspended. So
sneakingly, so adroitly was this Act
rushed through. both houses of Congress I
very few knew it had been done, nor 2
was it generally known for years after. I
In 1876, more than three years after the I
crime was committed, the matter was t
discussed in both Houses of Congress. t
Many'of the most prominent leaders I
in both the great parties spoke. Hol
man, of Indiana, known as the watch I
dog of the Treasury, Kelly, of Penn- t
sylvenia, who had charge of the bill in f
the House, Cannon and Burchard of a
Illinois in the House, Senators Conk
ling, Blaine, Garfield, Bogy, Sergeant,
Howe, Hereford, Beck and Voorhees
of thc Senate each one spoke express
ing his surprise and denounci'ng the E
Act. Senator Allison spoke and t
said the bill "was doctored," "was c
changed after discussion." Let it be t
noted Senator Sherman, chairman of a
the Finance Committee of the Senate, t
and who had the bill in charge, was F
silent. Only the few who devised the i!
evil and rushed the bill through Con- E
gress without its even being read knew
it and kept it close. When the people S
understood what had been done in I
their indignation the first chance they f
got they chaBged Congress to such an 0
extent that that body promptly re
stored the standard silver dollar, the i
money unit of the nation, to its former I
rights of coinage as will be seen by. the
Act of February 28, 1878. d
President Haye* returned the bill to n
the House of Representatives in which fi
it originated with his veto of the same. b
That body promptly passed it over his a
veto by a two-third vote and sent it to 0
the Senate. That body with equal 0
promptness passed it over his veto by a 0
two-thirds vote, and it became a law. a
The Act reads as follows: "Be it V
enacted by the Senate and House of P
Representatives of the United States of t
America, in Congress assembled, That 1
there shall be coined at the several si
mints of the United States silver dol- P
lars of the weight of four hundred and t!
twelve and a half grains troy of
standard silver, as provided i1 the Act b
of January 18th, 1837, on which shall g
be the devices and superscriptions 0
provided by said Act, which coins, to- t
gether with all silver dollars heretofore 0
coined by the United States of like e
weityhit and fineness, shall be a legal I
tender at their nominal value, for all si
debts and dues, public and private, C
except where otberwise expressly ti
stipulated in the contract. And the Sec- d
retary of the Treasury is authorized and I
directed to purchase, from time to time, 1
*silver bullion at the market price r
thereof not less than two million dol- s
lars worth per ntonth and cause the s
same to be coined monthly, as fast as i
so purchased;, into such dollars, and ad
sum sufficient to carry out the foregQ- d
ing provision of this Act is hereby t
appropriated out of any money in the b
Treasury not otherwise appropriated." il
If thbe members of the two houses of a
Congress had studied, taken in and un- ti
derstood the Act of Congress of t he 12th c
of February, 1873, they would have li
known the legal tender qualities of the
standard silver dollar, the money unit s
of the nation, was not impaired by that t
Act.
Section 28 of the Act of February 12,
1873, reproduced in the Revised Sa
utes, section 3527, reads: "Silver coins ~
other than the trade dollar shall be paid
out:at the several mints and at the as
say office in New York city in exchange
for gold coins at par, in sums not less
than one hundred dollars." Thbe sum
II was limited to one hundred dollars to
-save, loss of time and trouble at the ~
imints in making change. The abovesec
tion of the Act declares the standard sil
ver dollar on a par with gold coins and
orders the exchange of gold coins for
.them-at the mints when applied for. It I
.is clear the legal tender qualities of the I
.standard silver dollar was not impaired
by the Act of 12th February, 1hJ,
hence that part of the Act of February
28, 1878, restoring to the standard silver
dollar its legal tender qualities was -
superfluous.
The Act of February 19, 1887, retired
the trade dollar and ordered their ex
change or recoin3age into standard silver
dollars. It was ilibegotten and short
lived.
Next came the Act of July 14, 1890,
.directing the purchase of silver bullion
eand the issue of Treasury notes thereon
and for other purposes. It reads:
e"Be it enacted by the Senate and
SHouse of Representatives of the United
>States of A merica, in Congress as
sembled, That the Secretary of the
STreasury is hereby directed to purchase,t
.from time to time, silver bullion to the
Saggregate amount of four million five
ehundred thousand ounces, or so much
Sthereof as may be offered in each
-month at the market price thereof not
-exceeding one dollar for three hundred
,and seventy-.one and twenty-five
-hundredths grains of pure silver, and
C
to issue in payment of such purchasesI
of silver bullion Treasury notes of the
SUnited States to be prepared by the
Secretary of the Treasury, &c.
Sec. 3. That the Secretary of the Trea
sury shall each month coin two million
ounces of the silver bullion purchased
,under the provisions of this Act into
-standard silver dollars until the first
day of July, 1891, and after that time I
h e shall coin of the silver bullion pur- I
-chased under the provisions of this ActI
.as much as may be necessary to provide
for the redemption of the Treasury
notes herein provided for, and any gain
r orseignioragearising from suchbcoinaige
Sshall be accounted for and paid into
the Treasury."
I It will be observed that this Act in
Screased the amount of silver bullion
> purchased and the number of standard
i silver dollars to be coined per month by
the government over and above what
was authorized by the Act of February
t 28, 1878. While it did this it stopped I
the coinage of the specific amount of 1
e two million onces of silver bullion per
month into standard silver dollars after
July 1st, 1891; but made c mandatory
on the Secretary of tbe Treasury to con
Linue the purchase of 4,500,000 ounces
)t silver bullion per month and to coin
up the silver bullion purchased under
,te provisions of this Act, as much as
may be nectssary to provide for the re
iemption of the treasury notes issued
md paid: out for the silver bullion so
purchased, and any gain arising from
iuch coinage shall be accounted for and
;aid into the Treasury.
In the face of this mandatory law,
,ommanding the Secretary of tbe Treas
iry, after July 1st, 1891, to coin as much
)f the silver bullion in .the Treasury
nto standard silver dollars as may be
iecessary to provide for the redemp
ion of the Treasury notes issued and
)aid out for the same, President Cleve
and arbitrarily declared "every note
>f the government on presentation will
e paid in gold," and his Secretary of
he United States Treasury,Mr. Carlisle,
Las been so paying them. With 133,
61,375 fine ounces of silver bullion in
he Treasury, equal to more than $180,
00,000 standard silverdollars, and with
121,217,677 of Treasury notes outstand
ng against it, which notes are com
nanded to be redeemed in silver coins,
?resident Cleveland stopped the coin
ge of standard silver dollars and is
elling government bonds for gold and
s redeeming iu gold, the treasury notes
ssued and paid out for silver bullion.
le is doing this in direct violation of a
ositive law. He is destroying every
ndustry in the land and will reduce
he people to want and the nation
o bankruptcy if he is not stopped in
iis mad and reckless career. By this
ourse he has thrown three millions of
nen out of employment on whose labor
en millions of people are dependent
or bread and has caused the incipient
tages of revolution in sixteen States.
The followisg is the Act of September
6, 1890:
"Be it enacted by the Senate and
louse of Representatives of the United
tates of America, in Congress assem
led. That from and after the passage
f this Act the coinage of the three dol
ar gold piece, the one dollar gold piece
nd the three cent nickel piece be, and
he same is hereby prohibited and the
ieces named shall not be struck or
ssued by the mint of the United
tates.
"Sec. 2. That as fast as the said coins
ball be paid into the Treasury of the
Tnited States they shall be withdrawn
rom circulation and be recoined in
ther denominations of coin.
"Sec. 3. That all laws and parts of laws
a conflict with this Act are hereby re
ealed."
The above Act shows that the gold
ollar about which we have heard so
iuch does not exist and has not existed
yr more than three years. All of them
ave been withdrawn from circulation
nd recoined into other denominations
f coins. It was not wanted. The Act
f March 3, 1849, gave it birth. The Act
f September 26, 1890 quietly laid it
way. It lived only forty-one years
rhile the standard silver dollar, the
eople's money, has existed for een
aries and will continue to exist while
aetallic money is used. Without the
iver dollar and its fractional parts we
rou!d have no change for the transac
ion of business.
The Act of November, 1893, passed
y the extraordinary session of Con
ress, repealed only the purchase clause
f the Act of 14th of July, 1890. By
bese two Acts the government has
eased to purchase silver bullion and to
oin it into standard silver dollars.
'he purchase by the government of
ilver bullion and having it struck and
rined into trade dollars and its frac
onal parts and into standard silver
ollars under the Acts of February 12,
873, February 28, 1878, and 14 of July,
890, did not any more iampair the
igt of every citizen, the owner of
iver bullion, from depositing his
Lver bullion at the mints and having:
struck and coined into bars, trade
ollars and standard silver dollars than
id the Act of February 21, 1853, when
ie government first purchased silver
ullion and had it struck and coined
a to half dollars, quarter dollars, dimes
nd half dimes. The mints at that
ime and after were open to every
itizen. Coinage was free and un
.mited.
A remarkable spectacle is now pre
ented. The t14cretary of the Treasury
lacked by the President of the United
states has denied the right of citizens,
w ners of silver bullion, to deposit it at
hie mints and have it struck and coined
rto bars and standard silver dollars.
he Tints are idle, while every busi
ess in the nation is famishing for
uoney. There is a sc'rew badly loose.
he mints were established to coin the
noney metals of the nation in the
terest of the people and not to %e
losed in the interest of Shylocks. Withb
he passage of the Act of 12th February,
873, began the woes of the people of
e nation. It was conceived in
niquity, it was rushed through Con
:ress by fraud. It is a fraud. All
,wyers know every Act accomplished
rough fraud is utterly null and void.
phis Act is a nullity. When all is re
luced in the last analysis to first princi
les we have under the laws on the
tatute books free and unlimited coin
ge of silver, 15 98-100 of silver to 1 of
old, with the standard silver dollar
12 1-2 grains, 9-10 fine, the legal tender
ualities of which never have been
mpaired by any law at any time the
noney unit, the dollar of account of
he nation. We affirm that no judge
an write a valid decree against the
onclusions drawn. The laws s'aould
e impartially executed. How are we
o have it done? The sacred writers
el us if a people would have good
~overnment, wise laws impartially
dministered, they must select as
ulers -"able men who love God, speak
e truth and hate avarice." This year
.1 the members of the lower house of
Mngress and twenty United States
ienators will be elected.
The highest duty of every citizen is
o exercise thbe greatest care in selecting
hose who are to make our laws and to
xecute them. If unworthy men are
elected the people have no one to
lame but themselves. Tbey are the
nes who suffer. Respectfully,
ELLIsos S. KEITT.
First Bale or Texas Cotton.
HOrsTON, TEXAS, June 27.-The first
ale of cotton of this season's crop was
e earliest bale ever raised in the
jitedl States, was sold to-day at the
~otton Exchange at auction and was
>ogh t by Lathan, A lexander & Co., of
ew York. for $235. Nearly 39 cents
pound. Thee bale weiahed 604 pounds
ud came from Duval County. Reports
rom all the cotton growing sections of
[exas are of the most flattering nature.
otton and corn never promised such
n enormous yield.
"All run down" from weaker.ing ef
ects of warm weather, you need a good
onic and blood purifier like Hood's
eraarilla. Try it.
A THRILLING WAR INCIDENT.
The Brave Sergeant of Kershaw's Brigade
Succors the Wounded on the Union
Side at Fredericksburg.
Editor Herald and News: I was very
much surprised and quite pleased a few
days ago on reading an article in one of
the papers published in Detioit, Mich.,
of a little incident that actually oc
curred thirty-two years ago between
that brave and noble Christian soldier,
whom we all loved so much, General
J. B. Kershaw, and a school-mate
friend of mine, Richard Kirkland, who
was a mere boy, scarcely grown at the
time. I don't think that I ever knew
a better or more noble hearted young
man before, during or since the war
than this handsome "Dick" Kirkland,
as he was so familiarly called.
On the day after the battle (f Fred
ericksburg, General Kershaw's brigade
occupied a place c-;lled "Marye's Hill,"
and the yankee General Syke's division
lay about one hundred and fifty yards
ahead, with a stone wall between the
two opposing forces. The intervening
space between Syke's men and the
stone wall was strewn with dead and
dying soldiers; victims of the battle of
the day before. The air was rent with
their groans and agonizing cries for
"water! water!"
"General," said th.e boy sergeant in
gray, "I can't stand this!"
"What is the matter, sergeant?"
asked the general.
"It breaks me all up to hear those
dying and wounded yankees crying for
water. May I go and give them
some?"
"Kirkland," said the general, "do you
know what you are asking? The mo
ment you step in sight and over the
wall, you'll get a bullet put through
your head; the skirmishing has been
murderous all day."
"If you will give me permission,"
ays Kirkland, "I'll try it."
"My boy, I ought not to let you run
much a risk, but how can I refuse? You
may go," at last yielded the general,
"and may God protect you!"
"Thank you, sir."
With his bright handsome faae full
)f smiles he sprang over the wall down
among the dying soldiers, pouring the
Aessed water down their parched
broats.
After the first volley of bullets bad
)een showered about his head, his noble
.rrand became understood, and instead
>f bullets, shouts of admiration and
.beering followed one after another
intil the noble and Christian hearted
)oy returned to his post in safety under
3rod's guiding hand of protection.
A. J. HAILE, M. D.
Newberry, S. C., June 30, 1894.
A BIG BOYCOTT.
rhe Grievances of the Employees of the
Pullman Car Company taken up by
the American Railway Union.
Nearly all the railroads leading out
>f Chicago are tied up by the Ameri
~an Railway Union, and it is estimated
hbat 40,000 men are on a strike to
ettle the grievances of the employees
>f the Pullmans who work at Pull
nian, Ill., St. Louis, Mo., and Ludlow,
Ey. The Pullman company contends
~bat they have been paying their men
at the shops every cent possible under
existing conditions of business.
SOME FACTS ABOUT THE PULLMAN
COMPANY.
It has in operation 3,000 cars.
More than 126,000 miles of railroad
ire under contract to use their cars.
Nine thousand meals are served daily
in tneir dining room and buffet cars.
Chicago is the great centre from
which the great system radiates, and
500 cars leave there daily.
More than 100 Pullman ears leave
Iersey City every day, carrying about
5,000 passengers.
The Pennsylvania road runs five
trains composed. exclusively of Pull
man cars out of Jersey City every day.
A bout 1.500 conductors'are employed
by the Pullman company.
The porters of the Pullman company
number 3,000.
The Pullman company takes the seat
or berth money and the railroad takes
the fare.
The Pullman company furnish the
ear, supply it with a conductor and a
porter.
The Pullman company takes care of
all its inside requirements.
The railroad company hauls the cars
and keeps the trucks and outside work
in order.
The only rival of the Pullman is the
Wagner car, which is seen only on the
Vanderbilt roads.
In 1892-93 the Pullman company
earried 5,6-3,129 passengers.
The traveler of to-day, who gets into
a Pullman train, eats, drinks, smokes,
reads and sleeps as comfortably as -ii
be were in his own house.
One Pullman train makes an un
broken run of 4,322 miles, from Boston
to Los Angeles, Cal.
Pullman cars are no longer consid
ered as mere adjuncts of luxury, but
are a necessity.
Before their use became general rail
road companies in attempting to make
long journeys dotted their lines with
numerous hotels.
Twenty minutes stop for meals at
hotels used to be the rule in long jour
neys, but Pullman cars have rendered
such eating houses useless.
A Sedentary Occupation,
plenty of sitting down and not much
exercise ought to have Dr. Pierce's
Pleasant Pellets to go with it. They
absolutely and permanently cure Con
stipation. One tiny, sugar-coated Pel
let is a corrective, a regulator, a gentle
laxative. They're the smallest, the
easies to take, aud.most natural remedy
-no reaction afterward. Sick Heaa
ache, Bilious Headache, Indigestion,
Bilious A ttacks, and all stomach and
bowel derangements are prevented, re
lieved and cured.
A. "COLD IN THE HEAD" is quickly
cured by Dr. Saae's Catarrh Remedy.
So is Catarrhal Headache, and every
trouble caused by Catarrh. So is Catarrh
itself. Thbe proprietors offer $500 for any
cae which they cannot cure.
We Are
Ready
For ...
Business!
A NICE CLEAN STOCK
. . OF . .
Dry Goods,
Hats, Shoes,
Groceries.m
Hardware.
WE. INVITE
A CALL FROM YOU.
AND WE SOLICIT
A SHARE OF YOUR
.~ .TRADE . t.
You can, find us opposite the
C. &. G. S. Mower Co.
Yours anxious to please,
111FF & S1VYPPERT
Can reduce your expenses materiMly
bypurchasing your Groceries, Fruits,
and Confectioneries from
HN Go HOOFz
CAN
You afford to pay fancy prices, wheh
by comparison you find you can
SAVE
enough to pay you for the trouble of
investigating the quality and quantity
your
MONEY
will get for you. Afresh, choicestockof
Sugar, Coffee,
Tea, Rice,
Grist, Cheese,
Maccaroni, Flour,
Meal, Bacon
Hams, Isard
Syrup, Canned Goods,
Tobaccos, Cigars, Oranges,
Lemons, Banannas,
Plain and French Candies,
&c., &c.
Look to Your Interest and
Give Me a Call.
H. G. HOOF.
Afaiin Street, Newberry.
FOR SUMMER WEAR!
We wish to call your attention to our
li.ne of Summer Fabrics. In every class
of light weight and attractive style of
Dress GSoods, we have a very complete
line.
SPECIALS.
Figured Lawn, fast col........ 5
Figured Colored Sw .........'
Fancy French Lawns............10
Crepe Moire, new weave.........12k
White Dotted Swiss..............10
Black Lawns, new patterns.....10 to 12}
Imported Fancy Dimities..........25
Light Colored Crepe, very styl
is...........................12k to 15
Merrimac Light Prints...........5
Simpson's Light Prints..........6
White Goods-Plain Checks, B'ro
ken Plaids, Stripes and Fancies
in every style and description
and quality...............6} to 25
Call and See These Things.
Typewriters,
Bicycles,
Mimeographs5,
Phonographs,
Sundries.
Cash or Installments.
New Machines Traded for
Old Ones.
A Well Etjuim1ped Bicycle Re
GONZALES & WITHERS,
Columbia, S. C.
WOMANSWORKia