o silver dollars of the old standard. I said:

"The bill reported by the committee on finance thus provides for
an immediate resumption of specie payments in silver coin, and thus
completes the first and most difficult step of the problem. It
neither disturbs nor deranges business, nor stirs up the phantom
of contraction. It is in exact accordance with existing law, and
leaves the silver coin, as now, a subsidiary coin, a legal tender
only for limited amounts.

"The next question presented by this bill is, shall we return to
our silver coinage the old silver dollar. And here I am met by
the objections of the Senator from Vermont, but his objections are
rather to the amendments proposed by the Senator from Missouri,
than to the report of the committee. The committee propose the
silver dollar, not as a legal tender for gold contracts, but only
as a tender for currency contracts not exceeding twenty dollars in
any one payment. I would prefer to leave the silver dollar and
stand upon its intrinsic value as a legal tender the same as the
smaller coin; but there is no injustice in enlarging the limit to
twenty dollars, and but for the reasons I will state hereafter
there is no injustice in making it a legal tender for all currency
contracts. The silver dollar has that intrinsic value which in
all periods of our history has made it a favorite coin, not only
for domestic uses but for exportation. It furnishes silver bullion
in a shape and form more convenient for handling than any other
form of coin.

* * * * *

"When the old silver dollars are issued at par with the United
States notes, a large amount of them will be taken as a reserve by
the people to meet future needs, with or without a legal tender
quality. As their issue is not peremptory, and the aggregate cannot
exceed the surplus revenue or sinking fund, there is no danger of
an overissue, while their existence among the people will be the
best reserve when gold alone becomes the full standard of value.

"Every argument already mentioned in favor of subsidiary silver
coins is equally potent in favor of the silver dollar. It will be
eagerly taken in payment of United States notes. It is purely a
voluntary exchange. It is the cheapest mode in which we can redeem
United States notes. It is specie resumption in the old time-
honored standard of silver dollars of full weight and fineness.
It will accustom our people to distinguish between the real dollar