ullion would have the
sole benefit. The utmost capacity of the mints would be employed
for years to supply this demand at the cost of, and without profit
to, the people. The silver dollar would take the place of gold as
rapidly as coined, and be used in the payment of customs duties,
causing an accumulation of such coins in the treasury. If used in
paying the interest on the public debt, the grave questions then
presented would arise with public creditors, seriously affecting
the public credit.

It had been urged that the free coinage of silver in the United
States would restore its market value to that of gold. Market
value was fixed by the world, and not by the United States alone,
and was affected by the whole mass of silver in the world. As the
enormous and continuous demand for silver in Asia had not prevented
the fall of silver, it was not likely that the limited demand for
silver coin in this country, where paper money then was, and would
be, the chief medium of exchange, would cause any considerable
advance in its value. This advance, if any, would be secured by
the demand for silver bullion for coin, to be issued by and for
the United States, as well as if it were issued for the benefit of
the holder of the bullion. If the financial condition of our
country was so grievous that we must at every hazard have a cheaper
dollar, in order to lessen the burden of debts already contracted,
it would be far better, rather than to adopt the single standard
of silver, to boldly reduce the number of grains in the gold dollar,
or to abandon and retrace all efforts to make United States notes
equal to coin. Either expedient would do greater harm to the public
at large than any possible benefit to debtors.

The free coinage of silver would also impair the pledge made of
the customs duties, by the act of February, 1862, for payment of
the interest of the public debt. The policy adhered to of collecting
these duties in gold coin, had been the chief cause of upholding
and advancing the public credit, and making it possible to lessen
the burden of interest by the process of refunding.

In view of these considerations, I felt it to be my duty to earnestly
urge upon Congress the serious objections to the free coinage of
silver on such conditions as would demonetize gold, greatly disturb
all the financial operations of the government, suddenly revolutionize
the basis of our currency, throw upon the government the increas