The following official figures give, by periods of ten years, the coinage of the United States from the establishment of the Mint to the present time:—
| Years. | Gold. | Silver. | Minor. | Total. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1793–1799 | $696,530.00 | $1,216,158.75 | $50,111.42 | $1,962,800.17 |
| 1800–1809 | 3,067,067.50 | 3,154,687.75 | 164,865.79 | 6,386,621.04 |
| 1810–1819 | 2,348,915.00 | 6,107,903.75 | 162,534.07 | 8,619,561.82 |
| 1820–1829 | 2,579,017.50 | 14,787,327.65 | 178,372.70 | 17,544,717.85 |
| 1830–1839 | 17,745,422.50 | 28,112,136.60 | 334,810.21 | 46,192,369.31 |
| 1840–1849 | 58,909,439.00 | 22,223,733.00 | 360,840.33 | 81,494,012.33 |
| 1850–1859 | 352,915,059.00 | 47,238,813.00 | 1,135,580.03 | 401,289,443.03 |
| 1860–1869 | 290,786,131.00 | 13,637,607.90 | 8,504,070.00 | 312,927,808.90 |
| 1870–1879 | 370,718,883.50 | 142,196,178.60 | 2,231,009.50 | 515,146,071.60 |
| 1880–1889 | 411,766,277.00 | 305,869,081.20 | 8,127,305.56 | 725,762,663.76 |
| 1890 to June 30, 1897 | 374,806,225.00 | 136,248,501.65 | 7,564,849.65 | 518,619,576.30 |
| $1,886,338,958.00 | $720,792,129.85 | $28,814,558.26 | $2,635,945,646.01 |
At this writing the report of the Director of the Mint has not been published, but the coinage for the full year 1897 may be stated as follows: gold, $76,028,484; silver, $18,486,697; and for the year 1898, gold, $77,985,757; silver, $23,034,034. From January 1 to June 30, 1899, the coinage was: gold, $65,915,020; silver, $12,780,441.
It is sometimes thought that the silver dollars are not a full legal tender, but this is not so. They are an unlimited legal tender for all debts, public and private. The Treasury does not, in practice, redeem silver dollars in gold, but successive Secretaries of the Treasury have announced their readiness to do so, if necessary to keep the silver dollars from depreciating,—that is, preserve their parity,—which the law directs.
Silver certificates and gold certificates are not legal tender, but entitle the holder to receive the kind and amount of coin named on their face.
The value of gold bullion in a dollar of that metal is 99.991125 cents, or practically 100 cents. The value of the silver bullion in a dollar of that metal is about 45 cents. It varies, however, with the fluctuations in the market value of silver.
It will thus be seen that the bullion value of a silver dollar and of a gold dollar differs greatly, but the equality of the purchasing power of the two coins is due to the fact that the silver dollars are receivable for public and private debts, that they are indirectly exchangeable for gold, by depositing them in the banks, and that the government is pledged to redeem them in gold, if necessary to preserve their parity with gold.
NEW UNITED STATES MINT, PHILADELPHIA, PA.