Act of Apr.

2, 1792.

1

246.

Resolved, That the President of the United States be. and he is hereby authorized to cause to be engaged, such principal artists as shall be necessary to carry the preceding resolution into effect, and to stipulate the terms and conditions of their service, and also to cause to be procured such apparatus as shall be requisite for the same purpose.

Approved, March 3, 1791.

ACT OF APRIL 2, 1792.

Stat. L., CHAP. XVI.—An act establishing a Mint, and regulating the Coins of the United States.

lished at the

ment.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, and it is hereby enacted and declared, Mint estab. That a Mint for the purpose of a national coinage be, and seat of govern the same is established; to be situate and carried on at the seat of the Government of the United States, for the time being: And that for the well conducting of the business of the said mint, there shall be the following officers and persons, namely, a Director, an Assayer, a Chief Coiner, an Engraver, a Treasurer.

Duty of the officers.

Assayer.

3, 1794, ch. 4,

sec. 2.

(Section 2 provides for the employment of clerks, workmen, and servants.)

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the respective functions and duties of the officers above mentioned shall be as follow: The Director of the mint shall have the chief management of the business thereof, and shall superintend all other officers and persons who shall be employed therein. The Assayer shall receive and give receipts for all metals which may lawfully be brought to Act of Mar. the mint to be coined; shall assay all such of them as may require it, and shall deliver them to the Chief Coiner to Chief coiner. be coined. The Chief Coiner shall cause to be coined all metals which shall be received by him for that purpose, according to such regulations as shall be prescribed by this or any future law. The Engraver shall sink and prepare the necessary dies for such coinage, with the proper devices and inscriptions, but it shall be lawful for the functions and duties of Chief Coiner and Engraver to be performed by one person. The Treasurer shall receive from the Chief Coiner all the coins which shall have been struck, and shall pay or deliver them to the persons

Engraver.

Treasurer.

respectively to whom the same ought to be paid or delivered; he shall moreover receive and safely keep all monies which shall be for the use, maintenance and support of the mint, and shall disburse the same upon warrants signed by the Director.

(Section 4 provides oath of office for every officer and clerk.

(Section 5 provides that assayer, chief coiner, and treasurer shall each give bond in the sum of ten thousand dollars.

(Section 6 provides salaries.

the coins to be struck.

Half eagles.

Quarter

(Section 7 provides for the settlement of accounts for services and administration, making reports, etc. (Section 8 provides for buildings and expenses.) SEC. 9. And be it further enacted, That there shall be,Species of from time to time struck and coined at the said Mint, coins of gold, silver, and copper, of the following denominations, values and descriptions, viz. EAGLES-each Eagles. to be of the value of ten dollars or units, and to contain two hundred and forty-seven grains and four eighths of a grain of pure, or two hundred and seventy grains of standard gold. HALF EAGLES-each to be of the value of five dollars, and to contain one hundred and twenty-three grains and six eighths of a grain of pure, or one hundred and thirty-five grains of standard gold. QUARTER eagles. EAGLES each to be of the value of two dollars and a half dollar, and to contain sixty-one grains and seven eighths of a grain of pure, or sixty-seven grains and four eighths of a grain of standard gold. DOLLARS OF UNITS-each to units. be of the value of a Spanish milled dollar as the same is now current, and to contain three hundred and seventyone grains and four sixteenth parts of a grain of pure, or four hundred and sixteen grains of standard silver. HALF DOLLARS-each to be of half the value of the dollar or unit, and to contain one hundred and eighty-five grains and ten sixteenth parts of a grain of pure, or two hundred and eight grains of standard silver. QUARTER DOLLARS— each to be of one fourth the value of the dollar or unit, and to contain ninety-two grains and thirteen sixteenth parts of a grain of pure, or one hundred and four grains of standard silver. DISMES-each to be of the value of Dismes. one tenth of a dollar or unit, and to contain thirty-seven grains and two sixteenth parts of a grain of pure, or forty-one grains and three fifth parts of a grain of standard silver. HALF DISMES-each to be of the value of one

Dollars or

Half dollars.

Quarter dol

lars.

Half dismes.

Cents.

twentieth of a dollar, and to contain eighteen grains and nine sixteenth parts of a grain of pure, or twenty grains and four fifth parts of a grain of standard silver. CENTS-each to be of the value of the one hundredth part of a dollar, and to contain eleven penny-weights of copHalf cents. per. HALF CENTS-each to be of the value of half a cent, and to contain five penny-weights and half a pennyweight of copper.

Act of May

8, 1792.

Of what devices.

Proportional value of gold to silver.

Standard for gold coins, and

be regulated.

SEC. 10. And be it further enacted, That, upon the said coins respectively, there shall be the following devices and legends, namely: Upon one side of each of the said coins. there shall be an impression emblematic of liberty, with an inscription of the word Liberty, and the year of the coinage; and upon the reverse of each of the gold and silver coins there shall be the figure or representation of an eagle, with this inscription, "United States of America" and upon the reverse of each of the copper coins, there shall be an inscription which shall express the denomination of the piece, namely, cent or half cent, as the case may require.

SEC. 11. And be it further enacted, That the proportional value of gold to silver in all coins which shall by law be current as money within the United States, shall be as fifteen to one, according to quantity in weight, of pure gold or pure silver; that is to say, every fifteen pounds weight of pure silver shall be of equal value in all payments, with one pound weight of pure gold, and so in proportion as to any greater or less quantities of the respective metals.

SEC. 12. And be it further enacted, That the standard alloy how how to for all gold coins of the United States shall be eleven. parts fine to one part alloy; and accordingly that eleven. parts in twelve of the entire weight of each of the said coins shall consist of pure gold, and the remaining one twelfth part of alloy; and the said alloy shall be composed of silver and copper, in such proportions not exceeding one half silver as shall be found convenient; to be regulated by the Director of the Mint, for the time being, with the approbation of the President of the United States, until further provision shall be made by law. And to the end that the necessary information may be had in order to the making of such further provision, Director to it shall be the duty of the Director of the Mint, at the practice of the expiration of a year after commencing the operations of the alloy of the said Mint, to report to Congress the practice thereof

report the

Mint touching

gold coins.

during the said year, touching the composition of the alloy of the said gold coins, the reasons for such practice, and the experiments and observations which shall have been made concerning the effects of different proportions of silver and copper in the said alloy.

silver coins

be regulated.

Alloy.

Persons may

to be coined free of expense.

24, 1800, ch.

Director may

therefor, de

per cent.

SEC. 13. And be it further enacted, That the standard Standard for for all silver coins of the United States, shall be one alloy, how to thousand four hundred and eighty-five parts fine to one hundred and seventy-nine parts alloy; and accordingly that one thousand four hundred and eighty-five parts in one thousand six hundred and sixty-four parts of the entire weight of each of the said coins shall consist of pure silver, and the remaining one hundred and seventy-nine parts of alloy; which alloy shall be wholly of copper. SEC. 14. And be it further enacted, That it shall be bring gold and lawful for any person or persons to bring to the said Mint silver bullion gold and silver bullion, in order to their being coined and that the bullion so brought shall be there assayed and coined as speedily as may be after the receipt thereof, and that free of expense to the person or persons by whom the same shall have been brought. And as soon as Act of Apr. the said bullion shall have been coined, the person or 34, how the persons by whom the same shall have been delivered, exchange coins shall upon demand receive in lieu thereof coins of the ducting half same species of bullion which shall have been so delivered, weight for weight, of the pure gold or pure silver therein contained: Provided nevertheless, That it shall be at the mutual option of the party or parties bringing such bullion, and of the Director of the said Mint, to make an immediate exchange of coins for standard bullion, with a deduction of one half per cent. from the weight of the pure gold, or pure silver contained in the said bullion, as an indemnification to the Mint for the time which will necessarily be required for coining the said bullion, and for the advance which shall have been so made in coins. And it shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury to furnish the said Mint from time Treasury hereto time whenever the state of the Treasury will admit thereof, with such sums as may be necessary for effecting the said exchanges, to be replaced as speedily as may be out of the coins which shall have been made of the bullion for which the monies so furnished shall have been exchanged; and the said deduction of one half per cent. The half per shall constitute a fund towards defraying the expenses of stitute a fund, the said Mint.

retary

in.

of

cent. to con

etc.

livering coins

bringing bul

alty on giving

ence, etc.

3, 1795, ch. 86.

Order of de- SEC. 15. And be it further enacted, That the bullion to persons which shall be brought as aforesaid to the Mint to be lion, and pen- coined, shall be coined, and the equivalent thereof in undue prefer coins rendered, if demanded, in the order in which the Act of Mar. said bullion shall have been brought or delivered, giving priority according to priority of delivery only, and without preference to any person or persons; and if any preference shall be given contrary to the direction aforesaid, the officer by whom such undue preference shall be given. shall in each case forfeit and pay one thousand dollars; to be recovered with costs of suit. And to the end that it may be known if such preference shall at any time be given, the assayer or officer to whom the said bullion shall be delivered to be coined, shall give to the person or persons bringing the same, a memorandum in writing under his hand, denoting the weight, fineness and value thereof, together with the day and order of its delivery into the Mint.

a

der,

lawful

ten

Coins made SEC. 16. And be it further enacted, That all the gold and silver coins which shall have been struck at, and issued from the said Mint, shall be a lawful tender in all payments whatsoever, those of full weight according to the respective values herein before declared, and those of less than full weight at values proportional to their respective weights.

and to be made conformable to

weights, etc.

SEC. 17. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the the standard duty of the respective officers of the said Mint, carefully and faithfully to use their best endeavours that all the gold and silver coins which shall be struck at the said Mint shall be, as nearly as may be, conformable to the several standards and weights aforesaid, and that the copper whereof the cents and half cents aforesaid may be composed, shall be of good quality.

The

Treasurer to reserve

three pieces of

assayed;

SEC. 18. And the better to secure a due conformity of not less than the said gold and silver coins to their respective standards, each coin to be Be it further enacted, That from every separate mass of standard gold or silver, which shall be made into coins at the said Mint, there shall be taken, set apart by the Treas urer and reserved in his custody a certain number of pieces, not less than three, and that once in every year the pieces so set apart and reserved, shall be assayed under when and by the inspection of the Chief Justice of the United States, the Secretary and Comptroller of the Treasury, the Sec

whom, etc.