assistance to the community in the transition to redeemable paper
money, and would facilitate the resumption of specie payment and its
permanent establishment. Without these conditions I fear that only
mischief and misfortune would flow from a coinage of silver
dollars with the quality of unlimited legal tender, even in private
transactions.

Any expectation of temporary ease from an issue of silver coinage to
pass as a legal tender at a rate materially above its commercial value
is, I am persuaded, a delusion. Nor can I think that there is any
substantial distinction between an original issue of silver dollars
at a nominal value materially above their commercial value and the
restoration of the silver dollar at a rate which once was, but has
ceased to be, its commercial value. Certainly the issue of our gold
coinage, reduced in weight materially below its legal-tender value,
would not be any the less a present debasement of the coinage by
reason of its equaling, or even exceeding, in weight a gold
coinage which at some past time had been commercially equal to the
legal-tender value assigned to the new issue.

In recommending that the regulation of any silver coinage which may be
authorized by Congress should observe these conditions of commercial
value and limited legal tender, I am governed by the feeling that
every possible increase should be given to the volume of metallic
money which can be kept in circulation, and thereby every possible aid
afforded to the people in the process of resuming specie payments. It
is because of my firm conviction that a disregard of these conditions
would frustrate the good results which are desired from the proposed
coinage, and embarrass with new elements of confusion and uncertainty
the business of the country, that I urge upon your attention these