Proclamation and Statement Ratifying the London Agreement on Silver

UNDER the clear authority granted to me by the last session of the Congress, I have today, by proclamation, proceeded to ratify the London agreement with regard to silver, which has already been put into effect by the Government of India, and on which I understand other Nations concerned are about to act.

This proclamation, in accordance with the Act of Congress, opens our mints to the coinage of standard silver dollars from silver hereafter produced in the United States or its possessions, subject to the depositors of such silver surrendering to the Government one-half of it as seigniorage and to cover all usual charges and expenses. The dollars coined from half of such newly mined silver will be returned to the depositor. The half surrendered to the Government will be retained in the Treasury.

It will be remembered that at the London Conference sixty-six Governments unanimously adopted the silver resolution proposed by our Government, providing in substance that these Governments would refrain from the policy and practice of melting up and debasing silver coins; that they would replace low valued paper money with silver coins; and that they would not enact legislation that would depreciate the value of silver in the world market. This resolution, however, was contingent upon an agreement between the Governments of those countries producing large quantities of silver and the Governments of those countries holding or using large quantities, looking to the elimination of an unnatural oversupply of silver on the markets of the world. This agreement, of course, was for the purpose of allowing demand and supply to govern the price of silver by the limitation and neutralization of this oversupply derived from the melting up of silver coins.

India had the power to dispose of, on the markets of the world, at any time, and at any price, hundreds of millions of ounces of silver. In fact, India had the power and capacity to dump silver derived from the melting up of Indian silver coins in an amount equal to the world's production from the mines for the period of two years. This power and the uncertainty attending its execution was destructive of the value and stability of silver throughout the world.

China agreed, during the period of four years commencing January 1, 1934, and ending January 1, 1938, not to permit the sale of any silver derived from the debasing or melting up of silver coins. India agreed to limit the sales of such silver to a maximum of 35,000,000 ounces annually during such period and Spain agreed not to sell in excess of 5,000,000 ounces of such silver annually during such period. After such sales, these Governments are to be bound by the general resolution adopted at the London Conference to which I have heretofore referred.

As a condition of the agreement by China, India and Spain, however, it was required that Australia, Canada, Mexico, Peru and the United States should take silver from the production of their respective mines to the gross amount of 35,000,000 ounces annually for such period of four years. The United States, by reason of its large population and its large silver production, agreed to take from its mines annually at least 24,421,410 ounces of silver during such period.

The production of the United States for 1932 was approximately 24,000,000 ounces of silver.