Sixteen to One

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Jul 23, 1896

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 22, No. 29.

Sixteen to One.—What does it mean? Well, we can tell that without dipping into politics. It means that sixteen ounces of silver shall be held to be worth as much as one ounce of gold. Sixteen ounces of silver, American coin standard of fineness—900 parts pure silver to 100 parts alloy—will coin, at 412½ grains to the dollar, the weight of our present common dollar, $18.60 in silver dollars. One ounce of gold, American coin standard of fineness—900 parts pure gold to 100 parts alloy—will coin in gold dollars $18.60. At a coinage ratio of 16 to 1, then, 16 ounces of silver are worth one ounce of gold.