Law Based On The Report

Judge Vincent reruarks as follows upon tho foregoing: "Inasniuoh as the number of Hr:""s in a silver dollar was suggcsted to be exactly fliteen times tho ïiuiiiber of grains in a gold dollar Mr. Hamilton's report uecessarily reeommends the adoption of a bimetallie systom at the ratio of 15 to 1, and his refleetions aro oertainly of greater value than thoso made by others years betore that time. Basod upon the Hamilton report congress enacted tho law of April 2, 179)." Sections 9 and 1 1 of this law are then given. The lirst enuuierates the coins of the United States, begin ning with the eagle and closiug with the half cent; of the "dollars or units" this section says eadh is to be "of the value of a típanish milled dollar as the same isnow current. " Section 11 provides brieliy that iu United States moncy flfteen pounds of Bilver shall be of equal value to one pound of gold, whioh proportion shall obtain through any greater or less quantity of the metáis. Judge Vincent proceeds: "A careful reading of Sccrattiry Hamilton's report and the act of April 2, 179a, cannot fatl to oonvince thafe oongross substantially adopted and enacted all of his Viaws on the subject, as it would be very aot to do when his views agreed witii thjse of Thouias Jefferson. " As to the omission of tho gold dollar piece, in spite of the faot that Hainilton recommended suoh a coin "to havo a sensible object in that metal to express the unit," and that 60,000 would be enough, the judge says it was omitted beause it was too small for practical use, and as Hamilton said: "In small payruents no inconvonience can nccrue" froni the solé use of silvor and copper. Hamilton's idea was to have the value made equal in gold and silver, says the judge, and heproceeds: "It wasintended by Hamilton's report and the act of J792 to have tree and unlimited coinage of aold and silver at the ratio of 15 to 1, the then commercial values of the two metáis, and both wcre made legal tender for all debt.s. It is undoubtedly true that the Spanish niilled dollar, ns it was thon curreut, was the starting point, and the number of grains to comparea gold dollar was ascertained by dividing tho nuniber of grains in the silver dollar by 15, but this does not alter the f act that units were expressed in gold and silver. On the contrary it seems to show that both were made units of value. "Tbe word 'unit' was employed as the equivalent of 'dollar," and tbo dollar was to consist of either one of two different things - one-tenth part of B47% grains of gold, or 371 i grains of silver - justasequal values niay be embodied in given weights of any two given commodities, such as wheat or coi-n. A unit of value is the unit in which values aro expressed; the value of both gold and silver are expressed in the act of 17ttó; so we had two units of value. If botb had not been so expressed we could not have had bimetallism. The unit is simpiy the startiug point in the reckoning of inoiiey. "The lauguage of the proposition mitteu lor decisión is not as clear and sat isfactory as might bo desired, but I am of the opinión that under the uut of 1T'.)-.' ih unit was to be the dollar. The value ol Ihis unit was to be measured in both golc and silver, '071% trrains boing the quantity of silver, and í'}L grains being the quantity of gold, wnioh wero to equally espross the measure and value of the unit adopted. As I conceivu tuis to be the point at issue, as understood by the parties to the controversy, and which was intended to be expressed in the written statement thereof, I decide in thñ affirmative of the proposition.