Money Matters
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Note that there is no such prohibition against Congress, or any delegated power to make anything legal tender. Congress was originally understood to have no power to make anything legal tender outside of federal territories, under Art. I Sec. 8 Cl. 17 and Art. IV Sec. 3 Cl. 2, but in 1868 a Supreme Court packed by Pres. Ulysses S. Grant, in the Legal Tender Cases, allowed Congress to make paper currency issued by the U.S. Treasury, backed by gold, legal tender on state territory, a precedent that remains controversial to this day, when courts allow paper currency not backed by anything to be considered "legal tender".
The only money amount in the Constitution or its amendments is in the Seventh Amendment:
In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.
In 1789 the "dollar" was a coin, the Spanish taler, containing 371.25 grains of pure silver, or 416 grains of silver of standard (coin grade) purity. A troy ounce, the standard measurement unit for precious metals, is 480 grains, so a "dollar" contains 0.7734 troy ounce of pure silver, and 20 such coins would weigh 17.3333 troy ounces and contain 15.46875 troy ounces of pure silver. One can use the Oanda Currency Converter below to find out what the current value of that amount of bulk silver would be in federal reserve notes. For example, on June 15, 2000, it would be about $87.71 in federal reserve notes. However, keep in mind that the world trading price for gold or silver is the bulk, wholesale price, for ingots, in minimum quantities of 400 troy ounces, and the trading is generally only a tranfer of title and not a physical delivery of the ingots, for which an additional transport charge may be made. As single coins it would have about twice that bulk value, so the constitutional threshold under the Eighth Amendment would be closer to $176 in federal reserve notes. That would be the minimum "value in controversy" that would preserve the right to trial by jury in a civil case.
The Coinage Act of Apr 2, 1792 The Coinage Act of Mar 4, 1900 Dollar Defined Dictionary
and statutory definitions of money, 1856-1996. Excerpt
from 1923 Congressional Record The Federal Reserve and
several large banks deliberately contracted to extend credit to
the agriculture industry for the purpose of eliminating many
farmers. The Gold Confiscation
Of April 5, 1933 Unconstitutional act of Congress and
President Roosevelt. Money as
Debt Quotations Revealing statements from public
figures. 31 USC 5103,
defining legal tender. However, it only constitutionally applies
to non-state U.S. territory, such as federal enclaves created
under Art.
I
Sec. 8 Cl. 17 or incorporated territory under Art. IV
Sec. 3 Cl. 2. Antebellum
Money Cases, including some civil war legal tender cases.
Compiled by Larry Becraft. A
Caveat Against Injustice, or An Inquiry into the Evils of a
Fluctuating Medium of Exchange, Roger Sherman, 1752.
One of the Framers presents his theory of money. Gold and
Economic Freedom, by Alan Greenspan (1966) Before he
became Chairman of the Federal Reserve he had some strong
opinions, which he has never repudiated. A Pieces
of
Eight, by Edwin Vieira Comprehensive treatise on money. What Is A
"Dollar"? An Historical Analysis Of The Fundamental
Question In Monetary Policy, by Edwin Vieira. Trashing
the Constitution: How misconstruction of the monetary powers
and disabilities subverted the Founding Fathers intent,
speech of Edwin Vieira before the Rotary Club of New York, March
25th, 2003. The Money
Issue, memorandum of law by Larry Becraft. A
Caveat Against Injustice, or, An Inquiry into the
Evils of a Fluctuating Medium of Exchange, Roger Sherman
(1752) By the author of the Tender Clause of the U.S.
Constitution. De
Moneta, Nicholas Oresme, 1484. Translated from Latin
by Charles Johnson Classic treatise on money and coinage. The
Theory and Practice of Banking, Henry dunning
MacLeod, 1892. Classic treatise on money and banking in the
post-feudal, early industrial age. Money
and Civilization, Alexander del Mar, 1867. Early
classic treatise. History
of Monetary Systems, Alexander del Mar, 1895. Early
classic treatise. History
of Money in America, Alexander del Mar, 1899. Early
classic treatise. Natural
Law of Money, William Brough, 1896. Early classic
treatise. Gold
and Silver Coinage under the Constitution, U.S.
Statutes, 1789-1896. Legal
Tender: A Study in English and American Monetary History,
S.P. Breckinridge, 1903. The First and Second Banks of
the United States, John Thom Holdsworth, Davis
Dewey, 1910. State
Banking Before the Civil War, Davis Dewey; The
Safety Fund Banking System in New York: 1829-1866,
Robert Paddock, 1910. Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee
(GATA) Advocate and undertake litigation against illegal
collusion to control the price and supply of gold and related
financial securities.. People for
Mathematically Perfected Economy Argues that debt-based
currency leads to economic collapse. You Be The
Judge and The Jury Accusation that the present monetary system
is fundamentally corrupt and unconstitutional.The following links are provided free for public educational purposes, and do not represent endorsements of the companies or their products or services.
Also see Tax Matters
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