CO129-186 - Public Offices & Others - 1879 — Page 147

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-they shall be coined only to meet the export

demand, and leaves no discretion as to their

coinage for any other purpose" An Act was in

fact passed in July 1876 depriving Trade dollers

o

their limited legal knder character.

In his last Report, Dr Linderman, on

discuping

at length the position of the Trade

dollar, states that in the latter part of 1877 ° from the appreciation of United States Notes as

compared with gold,

of

silver, a

charge

gold

and the decline in the value

hade dollar added to it

Coinage

became of less intrinsic value than the

value

f

a dollar note, and holders of

silver bullion deposited the same at the links

for returns in trade - dollars, and placed them

in circulation at a profit to themselves . "The

amount held by the Californian banks, and

in circulation as money within the United

States, he estimates at about $5,000,v v o

Finally while insisting upon the advantages to be derived from the continued) coinage of trade- dollars for commercial mo

Dr Linderman shews that succesful

purposes,

thare

attempts had been made to place coins in

domestic circulation, and that, if they should

a

again succeed in acquiring

legal- tender character, large quantities of them would be

brought back from Foreign countries, and he reports that in February 1878 the Secretary of

the Treasury directed that the receipt of deposits of silver for coinage into hrade - dollars should be entirely discontinued.

These statements seem to show that it is

doubtful whether the comage of trade - dollars

will